Black Mug, 15oz DANIEL HALE

Daniel Hale Williams was a pioneering African American surgeon known for performing one of the first successful open-heart surgeries and for founding Provident Hospital, the first interracial hospital in the United States.

His Life & Achievements

• Born: January 18, 1856, in Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania.
• Early Struggles: His father died when he was nine years old, forcing his family to separate. Williams worked various jobs before pursuing medicine.
• Medical Education: He studied at Chicago Medical College (now Northwestern University Medical School) and graduated in 1883.
• Breaking Barriers: In 1891, he founded Provident Hospital in Chicago, the first non-segregated hospital in the U.S., providing medical care and training for Black doctors and nurses.
• Historic Surgery: On July 10, 1893, he performed a groundbreaking heart surgery, successfully repairing a wound to the pericardium (the sac around the heart)—a procedure that was unheard of at the time.
• Leadership & Legacy: He later became Surgeon-in-Chief at Freedmen’s Hospital in Washington, D.C., and was the only Black charter member of the American College of Surgeons in 1913.
• Death: He passed away on August 4, 1931, in Idlewild, Michigan.

Williams’ contributions revolutionized medicine, proving that Black doctors could lead in surgical innovation despite racial barriers. His hospital and surgical advancements paved the way for future generations of Black medical professionals