LaSalle County
ILGenWeb

Biography - WALTER C. LOVEJOY, M. D.

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.


Visit Our Neighbors
Lee DeKalb Kane
Bureau Kendall
Putnam Grundy
Marshall Woodford Livingston

Explore ILGenWeb
Search Our Archives

  
LaSalle County Archives