Taft: The Ultimate Professional

Dr. Taft late in life, as he neared retirement.

George Watts, lifelong friend of Dr. Taft, and long time professional partner in many endeavors.

Dr. Taft, above all else, should be remembered for his extraordinary professional involvement. He authored hundreds of articles and opinion pieces, always stressing professional ethics and duty. Indeed, he expressed the sentiment that writing is itself a professional duty! There cannot have been many other men in this profession who were Dean of two leading schools, founder of multiple professional organizations, and President of the American Dental Association, National Association of Dental Examiners, International Medical Congress, National Association of Dental Faculty (now the ADEA/AADS), in addition to Chairman of the American Medical Association, Section of Oral and Dental Surgery. This does not even begin to hint at his involvement on the local and regional level across the United States. Truly, this man was a founding father and leader of the dental profession in America.

1850
Graduated from the Ohio College of Dental Surgery (OCDS).

1854
Became Professor of Dental Surgery at OCDS.

1856
Editor of the Dental Register.
Dr. Taft, both with George Watts and later on his own when Dr. Watts left to fight in the Civil War, edited the Dental Register of the West for almost 50 years, from 1856 until the year of his death, 1903. During his tenancy as editor, the Register was the first dental journal to begin a monthly schedule of publication, and had the reputation of being the most reliable dental journal being printed, having never missed an issue. Dr. Taft's oversight and attention to detail was credited with this remarkable performance.

1856
Introduced the hot air blow pipe.

1858
Became Dean of the Ohio College of Dental Surgery.

1859
Wrote the textbook popularly known as Taft's Operative Dentistry.
Shown in the exhibit is the 3^rd edition from 1877, published two years after he came to Ann Arbor. This textbook became so well known as the definitive work on the topic that the author of an 1870 article on "Teeth of the Ancients" commented, "I wonder at what a price 'Taft's Operative Dentistry' would have sold … [3000 years earlier]." (Dental Register 24:223-226.) The illustrations on these pages show a variety of forceps for the extraction of teeth in different areas of the jaw, with instructions for their use.

1868-69
President of the American Dental Association.
What you see here is a transcription of Dr. Taft's presidential address as the outgoing President of the Association. In this presentation, as consistent with Dr. Taft's entire career, he strongly espoused the duty of each dentist to the advancement of the profession, and professional ethics as essential to this process. Transactions of the American Dental Association 1869:39-42.

1875
After three years in planning, the School opened in October of this year, with Dr. Taft as the founding Dean.
Dr. Taft was at the time the Dean of the Ohio College of Dental Surgery and Professor of Operative Dentistry. He relinquished the deanship to accept the position at the University of Michigan, but on the condition that the Ann Arbor position be no more than half time. His original plan was to help in getting the new school off the ground, but then to step back and allow others to carry on.

1881
Received the honorary degree of Doctor of Medicine from the University of Michigan.

1883 (August 6)
Founded the National Association of Dental Examiners, elected first President of same organization. Re-elected as President in 1884, 1885, and 1886.

1884
Organized the National Association of Dental Faculty.
This organization is the same one which later became the American Association of Dental Schools (AADS), and most recently the American Dental Education Association (ADEA).

1887
President, International Medical Congress, Section XVIII: Dental and Oral Surgery.

1899-1900
Served as President of the National Association of Dental Faculty.

1892
Chairman of the American Medical Association, Section of Oral and Dental Surgery.

1892-94
Served on the Executive Committee of the World's Columbian Dental Congress.

1895 (April 30^th)
Honored by the Cincinnati Odontological Society.

1900
Retired and passed the editorship of the Dental Register to Neville S. Hoff.