HISTORY MINUTE

The early twentieth century was a major turning point for medicine. New treatments and new vaccines were becoming available. New understandings of how disease spread and how the human body worked were being uncovered. And it was starting to become easier to spread this information to the general public how they could better take care of themselves and prevent illness. This time period also saw two of the greatest public health crises of the century: the millions of wounded of World War I and the Spanish Flu Epidemic. Dr. Rupert Blue, the Surgeon General at the time, would lead the effort to preserve the health of the public with these great tests.

Blue was born in North Carolina in 1868 and was raised in South Carolina. His father, an attorney, encouraged him to pursue a legal career and studied the law under him for six months. Blue said he never liked the law and wanted a career in medicine instead. When his father died, he felt he could go his own direction. In 1889, he enrolled at the University of Virginia as premed major. He ultimately earned his medical degree from the University of Maryland in 1892.

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