Chiropractic History
Primitive forms of chiropractic were used as early as 1,750 B.C. Hippocrates, the Father of
Medicine, talked of spinal misalignment problems, and Germany has had "bone-setters" for
years. Chiropractic as we know it started about 100 years ago.
The first recorded chiropractic adjustment was performed on
September 18,1895, by Dr. Daniel David Palmer, a
Canadian-born teacher and heater.
D.D. Palmer was born in 1845 on the Ontario frontier. At age
11, a business failure forced his family to move to the U.S. He
and his younger brother stayed behind and worked in a
factory until 1865. Then they rejoined their family.
By the 1880s, Palmer's thirst for knowledge led him to learn
magnetic healing. This therapy used the body's magnetism to
heal others. Palmer opened his first magnetic healing practice
in Burlington, Iowa. A year later, in 1887, Palmer moved to
Davenport, Iowa, where he started another practice.
Dr. Palmer studied the cause and effect of disease. In Palmer's building was a janitor
named Harvey Lillard, who had been deaf for 17 years. Palmer asked how he had become
deaf. Lillard replied that one day, when he had strained his back, he heard something
"pop". For over 17 years Mr. Lillard complained of hearing problems. Palmer examined
Lillard's back and found a spinal vertebrae out of position (suluxated). Reasoning this to
be the cause of Lillard's deafness, Dr. Palmer pushed the vertebrae back into place. As he
expected, Lillard's hearing improved. Palmer theorized that decreased nerve flow may be
the cause of disease and that misplaced spinal vertebrae may cause pressure on the
nerves. He reasoned, if the spinal column were correctly positioned, the body would be
healthy.
This dramatic beginning caused a great deal of excitement, and soon exaggerated claims
surfaced from activists and zealots. At first, Dr. Palmer thought that he had discovered a
cure for deafness. Because chiropractic challenged the traditional medical concept of
health, a campaign was begun to discredit and eliminate the profession. This campaign is
less active today.
One of Dr. Palmer's patients, a minister, took the Greek words for "hand" (cheiros) and
"done by" (pracktos) and put them together to spell chiropractic, meaning "done by the
hand."
Palmer decided to open a chiropractic school in 1897. By 1902, 15 people had graduated
from the Palmer Infirmary and Chiropractic Institute, which was renamed the Palmer School
of Chiropractic (PSC) in 1907. One of these graduates was Palmer's son, Bartlett Joshua
(B.J.) Palmer, DC, who would become as memorable a figure in chiropractic history as his
father.
Daniel David Palmer began some travels to the West Coast,
and little by little, his son, Bartlett, took over running the daily
activities of the school. Chiropractors, just as early medical
doctors, were not licensed by the government.
Chiropractors simply opened a practice after graduating
from chiropractic schools. By that time, however, medical
doctors were required to have licenses. This discrepancy
caused continual problems for chiropractors throughout the
first half of the 20th century. In 1906, when Daniel Palmer
returned to Davenport, he and hundreds of other
chiropractors were convicted of practicing medicine without
a license. He was released after serving 23 days of a
105-day sentence, and paying a $350 fine. A year later, one
of Palmer's former students, Shegataro Morikubo, DC, was
arrested in Wisconsin for practicing medicine, surgery and
osteopathy without a license. In a landmark decision, the
judge and jury agreed that Morikubo was not practicing
medicine, surgery and osteopathy, rather he was practicing something different -
chiropractic.
In 1910, B.J. Palmer introduced the use of X-rays. In 1924, he introduced the
neurocalometer to reveal more scientifically the location of out-of-position spinal bones.
Through the end of World War II, chiropractic became controversial under B.J. Palmer, the
son of the profession's founder. He administrated the largest chiropractic college at that
time, owned radio and TV stations, traveled extensively, and even hosted three U.S.
Presidents - Coolidge, Hoover and Truman - at his home. In 1924, B.J. had the first radio
station west of the Mississippi , WOC (Wonders Of Chiropractic). In 1928 he purchased
WHO (With Hands Only) in Des Moines, Iowa. However history will judge B.J. Palmer, it can
be certain that without B.J. Palmer, chiropractic would not have survived the early ruthless
attempts to discredit its healing ability.
Starting in 1944, World War II veterans could get government benefits. Using the G.I. Bill,
returning soldiers enrolled in chiropractic colleges by the thousands.
Chiropractic is now second only to medicine as the largest primary health care provider in
the western world. Palmer College of Chiropractic in Davenport, Iowa, grew from 24
students in 1906 to 3,100 in 1923. Today, there are more than 23 chiropractic institutions
throughout the world. Current enrollment at chiropractic institutions now exceeds 10,000
dedicated students.
Since Dr. Palmer's first primitive chiropractic adjustment, the art
and science of chiropractic has progressed significantly.
Acceptance among other health care professionals has resulted
from advanced diagnostic procedures, scientific research,and
sophisticated equipment.
