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DONALD DUNCAN MACDOUGALL was born April 10, 1859,
on a farm near Lucirnow, Ontario, the third son of Murdo and Sarah
MacDougall, both natives of Inverness-shire, Scotland. His maternal
great-grandmother was descended from Sir Lachlan MacKinnon, a noted
Inverness Scot, who is said to have been the first Scotsman knighted by
the British Crown, and his maternal great-grandfather was a great-grandson
of Donald MacCriminon, the famous piper of Clan MacLeod and composer of "MacCrimmon’s
Lament." His father emigrated to Bruce County, Ontario, from the Island of
Skye when a young man with his two brothers, Angus and Peter. He was a
devout Christian and an elder in the Presbyterian Church for many years.
Dr. MacDougall ‘s parents were married in Canada, and had six children:
William Lachlan, now in California; Roderick (deceased) ; Donald Duncan;
John Mallo (deceased) ; Flora (deceased) and Christina, now
Mrs. C. L. Linfoot, of Grand Forks,
North Dakota.
Dr. MacDougall received his early
education in the country schools and at the age of twenty came to Michigan
and entered the Battle Creek Sanitarium, where he studied for three and a
half years; and after spending two years in New and Old Mexico, returned
to the East and located in Cincinnati, where he completed his medical
education and was graduated from Hygeia Medical College in the class of
1895. He was graduated from the National College of Electro-Therapeutics,
Indianapolis (now at Lima, Ohio) in 1897 with the degree of Master of
Electro-Therapeutics. He began practice in Connersville, Indiana, and was
soon recognized as one of its
most active and useful citizens. While there, he established the Fayette
Sanitarium contributing, in addition to $4,000 raised by the citizens, his
own treatment room equipment, valued at $2,500, and giving largely of his
time and service. The institution was established as a self-supporting
benevolence under the State Conference of the Seventh Day Adventist
Church, who were among the founders of the sanitarium system for the
treatment of the sick. Dr. MacDougall also raised the money to build a
handsome church of that denomination in Connersville. Under his
management, the sanitarium did all the charity work of the town and earned
a comfortable surplus. It is now
under control of a board representing the city and county, civic and
business institutions in the State. In 1916, at the dedication of the
large plot of ground, worth $12,000, contributed by E. W. Ansted, upon
which new buildings are to be erected, Dr. MacDougall was an honoured
guest. When Dr. McDougall left Connorsville, in December, 1906, to settle
permanently in Cincinnati, the press and his many friends in the community
united in expressing regret at his removal.
Dr. MacDougall now maintains
successful private sanitarium treatment rooms in Shillito Place,
Cincinnati, where physicians send their patients for special treatment. In
November, 1916, he was appointed by the Ohio State Medical Board a special
examiner in massage and Swedish movements. He is well known as a medical
electrician and has introduced many new features in electrical and
hydropathic treatment. In 1891, he designed (in Cincinnati) the electric
light bath cabinet that was illustrated in the Scientific American
and attracted world-wide attention. This has since been generally adopted.
The remedial value of electric light was ftrst discovered by Dr. J. H.
Kellogg, Superintendent of the Battle Creek Sanitarium.
Dr. MacDougall is an active member
of the Caledonian Society of Cincinnati and an honorary member of the
Burns Club; he was one of the committee in charge of the organization of
the Caledonian Kiltie Band. He was also a member of the committee of the
Caledonian Society that prevailed upon the Cinciunati Park Board to change
the name of one of the parks to St. Clair Park, in honour of General
Arthur St. Clair, one of Washington’s
generals and first governor of the Northwest Territory, who established a
military base at Losantiville during his wars
with the Indians and renamed the settlement Cincinnati. Dr. MacDougall is
recognized as an enthusiastic organizer and is active in every civic and
Christian work. He has contributed many pointed articles to the press, on
professional and other subjects, particularly matters of public welfare.
His manner is cheerful, genial and optimistic. While in Connersville., he
was responsible for the initiation of the "real Xmas spirit," an
all-year-round disposition to help others and the community as well. He is
a sincere Christian and has been a member of the Seventh Day Adventist
Church for thirty-eight years. |
