The History Of Chiropractic
Many new chiropractic patients wonder when the chiropractic profession first started. The actual profession of chiropractic, as a distinct form of health care, began more than one hundred years ago on September 18th, 1895. There is even evidence that rudimentary forms of chiropractic care have been performed to promote health since the beginning of recorded time. Some of the earliest healers in the history of the world understood the relationship between spinal function and overall health. Hippocrates advised, "Get knowledge of the spine, for this is the requisite for many diseases". Although there was an understanding of a the relationship of good health and a proper functioning spine, treatment of the spine was widely misunderstood until Dr. Daniel David (D.D.) Palmer discovered the specific chiropractic spinal adjustment. That first adjustment was the birth of chiropractic. Dr. Palmer perfected his new spinal treatments and went on to develop the science, philosophy and art of chiropractic which to this day forms the chiropractic profession's foundation.
DR. DANIEL DAVID PALMER
"I am not the first person to replace subluxated vertebrae, but I do claim to be the first person to replace displaced vertebrae using the spinous and transverse processes as levers and to develop the philosophy and science of chiropractic adjustments."
- - D.D. Palmer, Discoverer of Chiropractic - -
Chiropractic has a very unique and interesting beginning. On that September evening back in 1895, D.D. Palmer was working late in his office when he noticed that the building's janitor, Harvey Lillard, was not disturbed and did not react at all to an extremely noisy fire engine that passed by the outside window. The inquisitive Dr. Palmer then approached Mr. Lillard to try and strike up a conversation and soon realized Lillard was partially deaf. Dr. Palmer managed to communicate with the man and learned that he had normal hearing for most of his life. However, not long ago, he had bent over in a cramped, stooping position, and felt something "pop" in his back and as he stood up, he immediately realized his hearing was impaired. Dr. Palmer then deduced that the two events, both the popping in his spine and the hearing impairment had to be connected in some way.
After convincing Mr. Lillard to allow Dr. Palmer to examine him, D. D. noticed a significant misalignment of Lillard's spine and determined he could restore a normal spinal positioning. Mr. Lillard agreed to allow Dr. Palmer to make an attempt to try and help his condition. Soon after Dr. Palmer applied a thrusting pressure to the spinal region, Mr. Lillard felt relief, and amazingly, he could now hear normally again. Dr. Palmer was right! They were connected and chiropractic as a profession was born. Within two years of this discovery, Palmer worked tirelessly and opened the first chiropractic school, Palmer College of Chiropractic, on Brady Street in Davenport, Iowa.
Dr. Palmer's new and effective chiropractic treatment method did not take long to attract the attention of many that were jealous of his success. In fact, the news media of the time, delighted in vilifying the pioneer chiropractor, whom they labeled as a "charlatan" and a "crank on magnetism". The attacks continued and the medical community quickly joined in this anti-chiropractic movement. Discouraged by their own failure to heal diseases, they began a letter writing campaign to the editors of local papers, openly criticizing his methods, and accusing him of practicing medicine without a license.
Their efforts proved to be effective and the first chiropractor was ultimately accused, arrested and found guilty of not harming someone, but of practicing medicine without a license. Dr. Palmer stood by the fact he had created a distinct form of healthcare and rejected the verdict as false by not paying the $350 fine and served twenty three days in jail. Dr. Palmer ultimately paid the fine to be released, but he unwaveringly refused to let go of his fundamental belief in chiropractic as a separate and distinct profession. He also cautioned against introducing medicine into the body, saying it was often unnecessary and possibly even harmful. He stood up to his attackers, and it is this courage that started the right of chiropractic to exist as a distinct health care model, outside the mainstream medical model.
Dr. Palmer's son, Bartlet Joshua (B.J.) Palmer continued his father's work and is credited with clearly defining and developing chiropractic into a unique form of health care. B.J.'s research and extensive writings were instrumental in getting chiropractic accepted and recognized as a licensed profession. He took his father's vision and advanced chiropractic to the largest non allopathic health care profession today. Although chiropractic has advanced tremendously since the days of D.D. and B.J. Palmer, the basic tenets and understanding of chiropractic, being a drug-free method of correcting vertebral subluxations in order to remove nerve interference, still stand to this day. As a result of their efforts, more than eighty thousand chiropractors continue to serve their communities by offering help, hope and health to millions of people every day.
DR. BARTLET JOSHUA PALMER (AT LEFT)
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