History of the Jager Club
The Beginnings
After Dr. Jager's Death
The Jager Room
About the Jager Club
The Beginnings
In 1967, when Thor Jager, MD, was 85 years of age, he made plans to retire. He was widely recognized as a consultant, teacher, bibliophile and mentor and was believed to be the most respected physician in the Wichita area. Several of his fellow physicians sought a fitting way to honor him.
Four of Dr. Jager's colleagues met, considered several options, and finally concluded that an internal medicine club named in honor of Dr. Jager would be most appropriate. He was a very modest gentleman, so it required some persuasion before he agreed to allow the club to be named "The Jager Club." The four friends who formed the first informal committee were Earl L. Mills, MD, C.T. Hagan, MD, James B. Fisher, MD, and Ernest W. Crow, MD.
A banquet was planned and the committee members divided the responsibilities. Dr. Fisher was to select a site for the banquet; Dr. Crow was to select a speaker; Dr. Hagan was in charge of the guest list and accepting reservations. Dr. Mills agreed to choose an appropriate memento for the occasion and to contact and invite special guests.
The following invitation was mailed:
April 25, 1968
Dear Colleague:
For some time it has been suggested that a club of Internists be formed in Wichita and that an appropriate name for it should be THE JAGER CLUB. For the first meeting a dinner has been arranged, at which time Dr. Jager and his family will be present, and you and your wife are invited to attend. Also to be honored will be the Medical Residents completing their program this year.
The date selected for this event is Tuesday, May 21, 1968, at 7:15 p.m. at the Wichita Country Club. The cost will be $7.50 per person. Robert Hudson, M.D., Chairman, Department of History of Medicine , The University of Kansas Medical Center, will be the speaker. Please mark your calendar and plan to attend.
In order to make the necessary arrangements as early as possible, we ask that the enclosed reservation card be returned no later than May 15. If payment is made in advance, please make checks payable to: The Jager Club and the enclosed postage-paid envelope may be used for your convenience.
E. L. Mills, M.D.
J. F. Fisher, M.D.
C. T. Hagan, M.D.
E. W. Crow, M.D.
The guest list included all Wichita area internal medicine specialists (see attached list) plus Jager family members and a few special guests. Most of those on the guest list were in attendance. Because of the close friendship between Dr. Jager and Logan Clendening, MD, Dr. Hudson spoke on the life of Dr. Clendening. Dr. Earl Mills made a presentation of the traditional gold-headed cane to Dr. Jager. Dr. Jager sent the following letter to each member of the planning committee and an additional handwritten note to Dr. Hagan, who had to leave the dinner unexpectedly.
Thor Jager, M.D.
235 N. Belmont
Wichita, Kansas
May 30, 1968
Dear Fellow Internists:
It deeply moved me that you wanted to attach my name to your newly formed internal medicine club. More than anything else, I appreciate the kind and generous thought that motivated you to thus honor me.
Looking out over the dining room at the Country Club the evening of May 21, I was touched to see so many of my colleagues, not only those friends of many years standing, but also those with whom I have become acquainted only during the past few years.
It pleased me very much to have Dr. Hudson talk about my good friend, Dr. Logan Clendening. Those of you who were fortunate enough to have been his pupil know what an excellent teacher he was.
Words cannot express the emotion I felt upon receiving the beautiful gold headed cane. I will keep it in my library along with my other treasured possessions.
Thank you for a memorable evening. I would like to have the privilege of attending some of the club's meetings in the future.
Cordially,
Thor Jager, M.D.
235 N. Belmont
Wichita, Kansas
My dear Tom,
I have been aware for some time that you were one of the chief instigators of the plot that came to such a glorious conclusion this past Tuesday evening. I confess I am still feeling quite overwhelmed by the honor conferred on me.
You can not imagine how moved I was by the sight of so many of my colleagues gathered together in our room that evening. The speakers were all too complimentary. The interesting talk of Dr. Hudson and the unexpected presentation of the gold-headed cane made me feel very humble.
I have treasured your friendship through the years in addition to respecting your fine medical ability. I can only say thank you with all my heart, dear Tom, and hope you understand my feelings. We were so sorry that you became ill and that I could not at that time personally express my appreciation.
Affectionately,
It was agreed that there should be an annual meeting of the now-named Jager Club. The first meeting was so successful and the topic so appropriate to Dr. Jager's lifelong interest in medical history, the committee elected to change the orientation of the club from internal medicine to the history of medicine. In addition, it was decided to expand the membership to all physicians and others throughout the area who had an interest in medical history.
The second meeting was held in 1969 at the Wichita Country Club. The featured speaker was Mahlon Delp, MD, professor and chairman of the Department of Internal Medicine, The University of Kansas Medical Center, who like his mentor, Ralph Major, MD, shared an interest in medical history with Drs. Jager and Clendening. Dr. Delp's medical history interest was of the Old West, and his particular focus was Marcus Whitman, MD, and the Oregon Trail, which was the topic of his presentation.
The third meeting, held November 15, 1971, featured Peter Olch, MD, Deputy Director, Library of Medicine, Washington, DC. Dr. Olch maintained an interest in The Jager Club throughout his life and made a second presentation despite failing health in 1994. Dr. Olch spoke on the famous Johns Hopkins surgeon, William Halstead, MD, and described his own research documenting Dr. Halstead's heroin addiction, later proven by the diaries of Sir William Osler, when they were released 50 years after Halstead's death.
After Dr. Jager's Death
Dr. Jager attended the first three meetings, but meetings were suspended after he was unable to attend. Following Dr. Jager's death in 1975, the planning group decided to resume meetings of the club. On June 26, 1979, Samuel Asper, MD, Professor of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University, and retired dean of American University of Lebanon, spoke on "Medicine in the Middle East." Dr. Asper was dean of the medical school in Lebanon during the civil war and made an interesting presentation related to the problem of caring for the sick and wounded on both sides of the conflict.
Thereafter, meetings have been held several times each year. Originally, because of Dr. Jager's association with Wesley Medical Center, the Wesley administration assisted by providing printing, administrative and secretarial help through the Department of Internal Medicine Education.
For several reasons, including the essential assistance provided by Dr. Hudson of the Department of History and Philosophy of Medicine at the University of Kansas, the presence of the Jager Collection at the University of Kansas Medical Center in Kansas City, and the obvious educational value of the Jager Club meetings, it was elected to place the Jager Club administration at the University of Kansas School of Medicine-Wichita, where it has remained.
Meetings are open to members and their guests, as well as non-members. Spouses and friends have always been encouraged to attend and medical students and residents are invited to each meeting. Financial support for attendance by students and residents is provided by the Dean's Office and, in addition, individual members are encouraged to host students and residents. Clinical departments frequently provide the funds to send residents and students from their respective departments.
The Jager Room
Shortly after the first Jager Club meeting, Dr. Jager expressed a desire to place his extraordinary library where it could be permanently housed after his death. Dr. Mills spoke with both Drs. Jager and Hudson about the possibility of giving it to the University of Kansas Medical Center. Soon Dr. Hudson came to Wichita to meet the Jagers. In a letter dated June 3, 1968, directed to one of the committee members, Dr. Hudson stated "My time with the Jagers was a genuine pleasure. The collection far exceeded anything I had imagined. It was a great afternoon."
Dr. Jager elected to will his collection of books and manuscripts to the History of Medicine Library at the University of Kansas Medical Center. An attractive upstairs room in the Clendening Library was readied, and on February 22, 1974, the room was dedicated.
On the same day, Dr. Jager was honored by the American College of Physicians. At the Jager Room dedication, an eloquent presentation was made by Dr. Hudson accepting the gift on behalf of the university. The American College of Physicians meeting was attended by most of the internal medicine practitioners in the state of Kansas, as well as some national notables. Many of the University of Kansas faculty and administrators, plus a number of Dr. Jager's friends and family, were in attendance at the dedication.
The collection was housed in the original Jager Room for several years, and in 1987, when the new Clendening Library was completed, a very special room was provided for the collection in even better surroundings. Dr. Jager's will required that the room include provisions for safety, proper humidity, and fire protection.
The costs of decorating the Jager Room and providing the required environment were paid through a very successful fund-raising campaign. The campaign was selected as a special project by the University of Kansas Medical Alumni Association with 138 alumni and 21 friends of the university responding. In addition a generous gift was made by Mrs. Thor Jager. The new room was dedicated on May 9, 1987. Comments were made by Dr. Crow, who headed the fund-raising campaign, and Dr. Hudson on behalf of the Clendening Library.
In 1989, discussions were held with representatives of the Medical Society of Sedgwick County, and it was agreed that a joint meeting of the Jager Club and the Medical Society would be desirable for the fall meeting. The speaker was Dr. Wilfred Arnold, professor, Biochemistry, who spoke of Dr. Paul Gachet, physician to Van Gogh. The joint meeting was so successful for both organizations that it is now traditionally as the first meeting each year.
In 1989, the Medical Alumni Board of the University of Kansas School of Medicine began to meet annually in Wichita. They were invited to attend Jager Club meetings, and since then, each spring meeting of the Jager Club has been scheduled to coincide with the board's visit to the Wichita campus. Joint meetings have also been held with the Wichita Surgical Society. The club remains available to other medical groups wishing to schedule a joint meeting.
On March 28, 1991, several members took a bus trip to visit the Jager Room. The bus developed mechanical problems and had to be abandoned in a most rural area of the Flint Hills. An absence of rest rooms on the bus compounded the problem. After a considerable wait, Kansas Highway Patrol and turnpike officers transported the members to Emporia, where vans were rented. The group traveled on to Kansas City, but arrived too late for a leisurely visit in the Jager Room. After attending the Hixon Hour, the Kansas City History of Medicine Seminar, and a pleasant dinner, they returned home. Members were extremely patient and gracious about the inconvenience; all were rewarded at the next Jager meeting with a "Flint Hills Certificate of Valor."
While working in the Jager Room archiving Dr. Jager's correspondence, Eugene Pierce, MD, a Kansas City physician, became so interested in Dr. Jager that he decided to write a biography. After painstaking research, the biography was printed and published in Kansas Medicine in February 1994, and presented by Dr. Pearce to the Jager Club (December 2, 1993). This large meeting was particularly noteworthy since Dr. Jager's daughter and son-in-law, Mr. and Mrs. Robert Salstein, of Washington, DC, and Mr. and Mrs. Eric Jager, Dr. Jager's son and daughter-in-law of Wichita, were in attendance, as well as Mrs. Thor Jager, his widow.
About the Jager Club
The Jager Club has remained an informal organization. Committee members have been chosen by the Dean of the University of Kansas Medical School-Wichita and by other committee members from those having a special interest in medical history. For a few years, Dr. Crow chaired this committee, followed by several years under Dr. Robert Manning's leadership. Currently, Dr. Gerald Nelson is the chairman. Other physicians who have served in addition to the original committee are Jerry Cohlmia, MD, John Kiser, MD, Joseph Meek, MD, Russell Nelson, MD, Hugo Weber, MD, William R.C. Murphy, MD, and Gerard Brungardt, MD. Mrs. Jager usually attends committee meetings.
Jager Club administration and record keeping has been the responsibility of several dedicated individuals. While housed at Wesley Medical Center, it was done by Mrs. Mabel Fowler. After it was transferred to the University of Kansas School of Medicine - Wichita, Mrs. Hazel Fenske was in charge, then Mrs. Ginny Reece, and currently it is the staff in the Department of Academic and Student Affairs. Much of the Jager Club's success is attributable to the dedication of those persons. Many speakers have commented about the unrivaled quality of the audiovisual assistance provided by Mr. Vincent Marshall and his staff.
The Jager Club stationery was developed by Dr. Manning's son, Philip, using Dr. Jager's bookplate.
Dr. Robert Hudson has been a foremost supporter of the Jager Club. Not only has he made numerous presentations to the club but has been of inestimable help by suggesting speakers. In addition, Jager family members have been stalwart supporters. Mrs. Thor Jager has attended every Jager Club meeting and has provided a liaison with the family. Other members have attended meetings when possible.
Dr. Robert T. Hudson retired from his position as professor and chairman, Department of History and Philosophy of Medicine at the University of Kansas Medical Center at the end of the academic year 1995. Because of his long service to the Jager Club, he was honored at the March 10, 1995, meeting. The Jager Club Committee asked Dr. Hudson to choose a speaker whom he would especially like to have make a presentation on that occasion. He selected his close friend and previous Jager Club speaker, Robert J.T. Joy, M.D., Professor and Chairman, Section of Medical History, Uniformed Services, University of Health Sciences, in Bethesda, Maryland. The topic was "The Magic Bullet: a History of Antibiosis." Dr. Manning also spoke of the many pleasant memories associated with his close friendship with Dr. Hudson spanning many years. A standing ovation followed the presentation of a lovely plague on which was inscribed:
The Jager Club
Presented to Robert P. Hudson, M.D. for his many contributions to the Jager Club and its members.
Physician, scholar and teacher, he has served the University for _____ years and the Department of History and Philosophy of Medicine for _____ years.
Presented this 10th day of March, 1995 in honor of his retirement from the University.
"No bubble is so iridescent or floats longer than that blown by the successful teacher."
Sir William Osler
Financially, the club is independent. The annual dues of $25 for the past few years have been adequate to cover the expenses of our visiting speakers and some of the cost of students and residents' attendance. No attempt has been made to formalize the club by election of officers. The deans of the medical school, first Dr. Reals and then Dr. Meek, were essential to the club, providing financial support in its early days as well as administrative support, and giving it visibility as a viable function of the University of Kansas Medical Center and the University of Kansas School of Medicine - Wichita.
