1853Oliver Wendell Holmes gave a lecture at the Gloucester LyceumPeople and Communities, Arts and Culture, Cultural Institutions, Notable People

Oliver Wendell Holmes was a physician, poet, and humorist notable for his medical research and teaching, and as the author of the series of essays “Breakfast-Table.” He practiced medicine for 10 years, taught anatomy for two years at Dartmouth College, and in 1847 became a professor of anatomy and physiology at Harvard. He was later made dean of the Harvard Medical School, a post he held until 1882. His most important medical contribution was calling attention to the contagiousness of puerperal fever.

Holmes achieved his greatest fame, however, as a humorist and poet. He won national acclaim with the publication of “Old Ironsides” (1830), which aroused public sentiment against the destruction of the USS Constitution. His son, Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr., was appointed associate justice of the United States Supreme Court.

The lecture, given on Jan. 19, 1853, was entitled “Lecturing and Lecturers.”