1917

Joel Goldthwait, orthopedist, takes 20 American orthopedists to Britain, at invitation of his British friend and counterpart, Sir Robert Jones, to gather facts and provide aid; on return in August joins army Surgeon General’s Office newly created “Division of Orthopedic Surgery” and becomes chief of military orthopedics for American Expeditionary Forces. He arrived in France in October and began establishing “orthopedic stations,” each with a “splint team,” at every stage of injured soldier’s journey from battlefields to disembarkation to US (Linker, 52-59).