Frontispiece from “An essay on electricity, the theory and practice of that useful science, and the mode of applying it,” by George Adams, 1785, shows a physician applying current generated by an “electrical machine,” to a patient’s arm.
“The Society having heard from some of their Correspondents in Germany that what they call a Vegetable Quintessence had been fired by Electricity, I take this Opportunity to acquaint you, that on Friday Evening last I succeeded, after having been disappointed in many Attempts, in setting Spirits of Wine on Fire by that Power.”
So begins a collection of correspondence written by the physician and scientist William Watson and addressed to Martin Folkes, who eventually succeeded Sir Isaac Newton as President of the Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, commonly known as “The Royal Society.” The collection, printed in 1746, details a series of experiments that Watson carried out, and is noteworthy for his observations on the conductive properties of water and the effect that atmospheric moisture had on electrical experimentation.
Long before they fully comprehended its origins and properties, early physicians were fascinated with the potential therapeutic uses of electricity. However, it wasn’t until the Enlightenment that scientists began a more thorough examination of the essential characteristics of electrical phenomena and their possible uses in medicine. With the invention of the Leyden Jar in 1745, doctors and scientists who had long been able to generate electricity on primitive, hand-cranked electrostatic generators, were finally able store it. In the following years and decades, equipment for both the storage and generation of electricity was refined, increasing the possibilities for more sophisticated therapies.
The Medical Heritage Library now contains a substantial collection of primary-source materials that illustrate these early forays into electrical experimentation, many of which were contributed by the Center for the History of Medicine. The collection spans three centuries, covers everything from electrophysiology to quackery, and includes original works by Galvani, Ampère, Nollet, Cavallo, and Becquerel, among many other notables.
“The law of electrical repulsion and attraction,” from “Electricity in health in disease. . .” by S.H. Monell, 1908.
Patrons can trace the evolution of the field from it’s earliest days via the whimsical correspondences of enterprising 18th century scientists like Watson, referenced above, through to the 20th century, which brought the development of more modern electrotherapies and diagnostics. Also included are a number of early works on the construction of machines for generating and storing electrostatic charges, as well as a selection of 19th-century electrotherapeutic device manufacturers’ catalogs.
As always, for more from the Medical Heritage Library, please visit our full collection!