Skip to main content
Advanced Search
Surgical Kit
Surgical Kit
Surgical Kit

Surgical Kit

Maker
Periodca. 1860
MediumMahogany, brass, velvet, steel
Dimensions2.5 × 5.5 × 16 in. (6.4 × 14 × 40.6 cm)
InscribedPrinted on trade label inside case, "WADE & FORD / 85 FULTON ST. / N.Y."
ClassificationsMedical T&E
Credit LineGift of John Hall, 1932
Object number2019.505
DescriptionA rectangular surgical case of mahogany, with brass hardware consisting of a keyplate on the front panel, two hinges in the rear, four plain corner guards on the lower portion, and four stylized corner guards on the lid. There is also an oval-shaped brass nameplate centered on top, although there is no legible inscription due to surface deterioration. The case opens to reveal a velvet lined interior, with fitted compartments for each of the instruments.
Curatorial RemarksThis surgical kit, constructed by Wade and Ford of New York, is a remnant of the thousands that were mass produced for the Union Army at the outbreak of the American Civil War (1861 -1865). There was little variance in the contents of these kits, which contained the tools necessary to perform common battlefield surgeries: long smooth-blade amputation knives, a jagged bone saw, various types of forceps for bone and bullet extractions, scalpels, a tourniquet to slow blood loss, ligature needles for sutures, and a hand-powered trephine, or skull drill. Modern conically shaped "Minie bullets" afforded soldiers far greater accuracy and range than the round musket balls that preceded them, and were capable of inflicting catastrophic damage to flesh and bone. Doctors and surgeons on both sides of the conflict were grossly unprepared for such levels of carnage, and some of the lesser experienced relied on "on the job" training. Amputation was the primary means of preventing deadly complications from infection. While this procedure undoubtedly saved many lives, it posed serious risks of its own; diseases colloquially known as "surgical fevers" ran rampant before sterilization became an accepted practice. Thankfully, hyperbolized images of soldiers biting down on bullets and sticks are somewhat exaggerated. Chloroform and ether were frequently used as anesthetics by this time, although there is little doubt that men lucky enough to survive a battle wound often suffered agonizing recoveries.NotesThe owner of this surgical kit, Dr. Charles E. Hall (1837 - 1922) was born in Adelphia, Monmouth County. He graduated from Princeton College in 1862, and attended the College of Physicians and Surgeons of New York before enlisting in the Union Army as an assistant surgeon of the 15th New Jersey Volunteer Infantry early in the Civil War. Dr. Hall eventually earned the rank of chief surgeon, a role he served with the 40th New Jersey Volunteer Infantry. After the War, he retired from the practice of medicine and returned home to Monmouth County, where he became President of the Freehold Banking Company. He married Luella Rightmire Hall (1856 - 1932) and together they had one son, John Hall (1856 - 1932).
Collections