John Morgan

In 1765, John Morgan cofounded a medical school in Philadelphia, the first in the American colonies. That same year, he published a plan for establishing other institutions for training physicians and professionalizing medicine. Morgan had first worked as a military surgeon on the western frontier during the French and Indian War (1754–63). He later pursued an advanced medical degree at Edinburgh University in Scotland.

During the Revolutionary War (1775–83), Morgan served two years as the director general of the Hospital of the Army. In this position, he confronted daunting challenges, including an outbreak of small-pox and infighting among army officials who were unaccustomed to a centralized medical service.

This portrait was made by noted Swiss-born artist Angelica Kauffmann in Rome during Morgan’s visit there in 1764.