The Passing of a Frontier Doctor
Dr. John A. Martin, a former Texas Ranger turned physician, dies at Port Gamble, leaving behind a legacy of service to the suffering.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
At the age of 49 years and 4 months, Dr. John A. Martin, of Port Gamble, W.T., ended his earthly pilgrimage last Friday morning, November 9th. Born in Hannibal, Missouri, he later moved to Texas where he served as a Lieutenant of a company of Rangers to suppress Indian depredations. Following the Civil War and a residence in Canada, he eventually moved to California in 1869, where he graduated from the California Medical College. He came to Port Gamble sixteen months ago and practiced medicine, becoming known for his sympathy and devotion to his patients. Toward the close of his sickness from tuberculosis, he sought the counsel of Christian friends and expressed the hope of the Gospel. He leaves a wife and three children. The Kitsap Lodge No. 41, A.O.D.W., took charge of the funeral rites.
“He was very sympathetic, and always won the kindest regards from all his patients and friends.”
This obituary offers a rare, nuanced look at the life of a frontier doctor whose trajectory from Texas Ranger to timber-town physician reflects the mobile, transient nature of life in the late 19th-century American West.
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