One of the younger member's of the medical profession of LaSalle county
is Dr. Walter C. Lovejoy, of Marseilles. A son of E. B. Lovejoy, now a
prominent citizen of Ottawa, Illinois, he was born in the pretty village of
Landaff, New Hampshire, October 3, 1869, and there his early years were
happily passed.
When a mere child he accompanied his parents in
their removal to Illinois, and, locating in Ottawa, he acquired his English
education in the public grammar and high schools of that place. Having a
fixed purpose to devote his life and talents to the healing of the sick and
to alleviating the "ills to which flesh is heir," he went to Chicago after
he had completed his elementary education and began the study of medicine
under the instruction and guidance of Dr. C. A. Weick, a well known
physician of that metropolis. In 1891 he was graduated with the degree of
Doctor of Medicine in the Chicago Homeopathic Medical College, and succeeded
his preceptor, Dr, Weick, in practice. Subsequently he came to Marseilles,
where he opened an office and soon was enjoying a fair share of the
patronage of the people of this locality. In July, 1898, he enlisted for
service in the Spanish- American war, and was given a position as assistant
surgeon in a Wisconsin regiment. Ordered to the Pacific coast, he
accompanied the regiment to Camp Merritt, Presidio, California, and it was
not until the 5th of December, 1898, that he received his honorable
discharge and was permitted to return to his home and regular practice. The
wide experience and broader views of life and duty which he gained in this
six months' experience, however, will be of inestimable value to him in his
future career; and even though he had personally been benefited not a whit
he would not begrudge the time and service he had given to his country. He
is a member of the Illinois State Medical Society and takes the leading
medical journals, thus keeping posted on the latest discoveries in regard to
diseases and modern methods of dealing with them.
In important event
in the life of Dr. Lovejoy occurred on the 13th of June, 1895, when his
marriage to Miss Ella Frances Pitts, a daughter of F. D. Pitts, an honored
citizen of Marseilles, was solemnized. The Doctor and wife are members of
the Congregational church of this place, and are both very popular in local
society.
Extracted 13 Jun 2019 by Norma Hass from Biographical and Genealogical Record of LaSalle County, Illinois, published in 1900, volume 2, pages 644-645.
Lee | DeKalb | Kane |
Bureau | Kendall | |
Putnam | Grundy | |
Marshall | Woodford | Livingston |