In 1866, with dentistry still in its infancy as a recognized profession, Lucy Hobbs became the first American woman to earn a doctorate degree in dentistry. Given the lax laws of the times, Lucy Hobbs had been practicing dentistry in Cincinnati since 1861; she had been denied entry into  the Ohio College of Dental Surgery because of her female status in the male dominated profession. In 1862 she moved her practice to Iowa amidst the nation divided by the American Civil War.  She had joined the Iowa State Dental Society which helped her gain entry into the Ohio College of Dental Surgery, and in 1866 got her degree.

Source: ADA Mews, April 15th, 2019

Not even among dentists are the names Dr. Joseph Muhler and Dr. William Nebergall well known ( if know at all!).  Yet both have just been inducted into the Dental Hall of fame for developing and patenting fluoridated toothpaste in 1950. By 1955 Procter and Gamble launched Crest, the first clinically proven fluoridated toothpaste. The world has seen a tremendous reduction in caries, the disease of dental decay, thanks to Drs. Muhler and Nebergall.

Dentists have many many contributions in the world outside the realm of dentistry. Some were made with good intent, but later regarded in a most negative light. Take the case of the German dentist, Dr. Friedrich Krohn. In 1920 he designed the flag which would become the symbol of the Nazi party: the hakenreuz (swastika) flag.  Dr. Krohn was the director of the DAP ( the forerunner of the Nazi party) chapter in Rosenheim, and was a member of the Thule Society, a right wing anti-semetic group steeped in occultism and familiar with the swastika symbol. Dr. Krohn was probably influenced by this when he created the red, white and black flag using the colors of the old German Republic.

It should be remembered, when Dr. Krohn designed the flag in 1920, none of the horrors of the Nazi regime had occurred. Indeed, Hitler was largley unkown and struggling for control of the party, and had not yet committed any acts against humanity. Yet Dr. Krohn’s design was so bold and striking, Hitler stole the idea and the credit. Perhaps that was for the better.

What could be more relevant to Black History month than a famous Black Dentist? And what could be more relevant  to dentists than golf. Enter George Franklin Grant, the Harvard trained African American  dentist who invented the modern wooden golf tee.  Previously, there had been other objects and methods for teeing up a golf ball, but it took Grant to patent the forerunner of the modern golf tee.

Born in Oswego, New York in 1847, he entered Harvard’s School of Dental Medicine in 1868 and graduated in 1870. He was one of the first two graduates of Harvard University’s dental program .He later became Harvard’s first African American professor . He was a dedicated dentist, and patented a prosthetic device for cleft palate that was internationally recognized. He  was also  involved in dental organizations, as a founding member  Harvard’s Odontological Society, and as president of the Harvard Dental Alumni Association.

We don’t really know if Grant was an avid golfer.  Golf was not nearly as popular, or egalitarian back at the turn of the last century.  But then Grant was not one to be held back Grant’s patent,  issued on December 12, 1899 for an improved golf tee was a vast improvement over the mounds of sand previously used.  If you have ever hit a ball in sand , you know how messy that can be, not mention if the wind is kicking up.  So we offer our gratitude and humbly honor the man who helped modernize golf.  I just wonder  though, were golfers better at getting out of sand traps prior to his invention?