About the Book

"This is the untold story of Dr. J.D. Harris, an African American physician whose life and career straddled enormous changes for Black professionals and the practice of medicine. Born in Fayetteville, North Carolina, Harris served as a contract physician to the Union Army and transitioned to a similar post under the Freedmen's Bureau, treating Black troops and freemen in Virginia. Margaret Humphreys narrates not only what we know about Harris, but offers context to his remarkable journey, including how incredible it was that a young man born into freedom in a slave state learned to read when literacy for Black people was illegal. He was one of very few African Americans to become a doctor before Howard Medical School opened in the 1870s, a fact that reveals both the structural barriers to medical education for Black Americans and highlights how those structures weakened in the 1860s. Drawing on census records, court records, Civil War and Reconstruction documents from the National Archives, African American newspapers, and more, this book is a revealing look at not only the history of medicine in the Southern United States, but of race and citizenship during one of the nation's most tumultuous eras."--

Book Synopsis

This is the untold story of Dr. J. D. Harris (1833-1884), an African American physician whose life and career straddled enormous changes for Black professionals and the practice of medicine. Born in Fayetteville, North Carolina, Harris served as a contract surgeon to the Union army and transitioned to a similar post under the Freedmen's Bureau, treating Black troops and freedpeople in Virginia. Margaret Humphreys not only narrates what we know about Harris but offers context to his remarkable journey, including how incredible it was that a young man born into freedom in a slave state learned to read when literacy for Black people was illegal. He was one of very few African Americans to become a doctor before Howard Medical School opened in the 1870s, a fact that both reveals the structural barriers to medical education for Black Americans and highlights how those structures weakened in the 1860s.

Drawing on census records, court records, Civil War and Reconstruction documents from the National Archives, African American newspapers, and more, this book is a revealing look at the history not only of medicine in the southern United States but also of race and citizenship during one of the nation's most tumultuous eras.

Review Quotes

"Searching for Dr. Harris is a complex and interesting analysis of Dr. Harris's life and times. A masterful and thorough researcher, Margaret Humphreys offers readers a compelling and significant story that adds to our understanding of Black history in the American South."--Todd Savitt, East Carolina University

"An engaging biography. . . . [A] must-read for physicians, historians, and the wider public alike. In uncovering the life of [Dr. J. D.] Harris, Humphreys makes a fascinating case for biography . . . [as] Harris's life story reveals the limits and possibilities of focusing on representational politics in a country still suffering from structural and institutional racism."--The Lancet

"Drawing on a vast archive of legal and probate records, government documents, hospital collections, and the records of nineteenth-century philanthropic and travel organizations, Humphreys expertly demonstrates how microhistories can illuminate the most consequential and fascinating episodes of our collective past. Searching for Dr. Harris offers a timely and essential contribution to the history of medicine, African American history, and southern history."--Journal of Southern History

About the Author

Margaret Humphreys is Josiah Charles Trent Professor of the History of Medicine at Duke University and the author of several books.