For many years I've been fascinated by the World's Columbian Exposition (the official name of the Chicago World's Fair), held in Chicago from May 1 to October 30, 1893. I own a photograph booklet of all the buildings and at least one antique magazine with contemporary articles and photos of it,... CONTINUE READING
As we prepare to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Lucy Hobbs Award, we reflect on Dr. Lucy Hobbs Taylor, the first woman in America to graduate with a dental degree and an instrument she most certainly had at her disposal – the tooth key. At one point in her autobiography, written in the... CONTINUE READING
Have you brushed your teeth with Sozodont lately? Do you think the local drugstore still carries Rubifoam? Can you find a listing for Dr. Sheffield's Antiseptic Creme Dentifrice in the pages of Benco Dental's Dentist's Desk Reference? The aforementioned dental products were popular around the... CONTINUE READING
Dentistry Celebrates Black History Month The dental community owes a huge debt of gratitude to Geneva Craig. Without her counsel, one of the profession's notable forces for change might have directed her talents to the world of dance. At least that's how Dr. Jeanne Craig Sinkford describes... CONTINUE READING
How Black Pioneers in Dentistry Rewrote the Rules of Oral Healthcare Education On March 10, 1869, just four years after the Civil War's end, Dr. Robert Tanner Freeman, the son of enslaved parents, opened a door of opportunity for future generations of dentists. Two decades later, a... CONTINUE READING
When Was the First X-Ray Discovered? When the x-ray appeared at the very end of 19th century, it arrived with a bang. Immediately upon its discovery, the x-ray became a source of fervent fascination among scientists, who raced to be the first to write or discover something new about this... CONTINUE READING
Charles Dickens's classic Christmas story, A Christmas Carol, was published on December 19, 1843. It's the now-famous story of the conversion of a miserly man into a generous, kind person, who cares for the poor around him. At the beginning of the story, Ebenezer Scrooge, the miser of the story,... CONTINUE READING
Track the evolution of the dental chair from 1790 through today. From its humble beginnings in 1790 and the fancy parlor dental chair of the early 1900s, to the streamlined workhorse of the 1930s and the colorful marvels of the Mid-Century Modern era, the dental chair has continually evolved to... CONTINUE READING
The dental drill is feared and loathed by children and adults alike. However, do you know the history of this staple of the dentist's tool tray? Here's a peek at a few of the many stages in the evolution of the humble dental drill. Early Dental Instruments [caption id="attachment_37916"... CONTINUE READING
In 2021, a tribute to Dr. George Grant, the first African American faculty member of Harvard University and its dental school, came in the form of a scholarship to support underrepresented minority students. This aligns with the 1867 actions of Harvard School of Dental Medicine as the first dental... CONTINUE READING