In the 1900s a Doctor was very
important to small communities. Usually, there would only be one doctor assigned per
community, due to the limited availability of doctors. The doctor would have done much of
the same things a community doctor would do today; treat the ill, create casts for broken
ligaments, bandage open wounds etc. Along with this he would have also mixed and ground up
medicine which he could have prescribed to those who needed it. He was basically the head
caretaker of the community that he was posted to.
The doctor had to be very precise and skilled in his field. The doctors then did not have all the tools and machines that we have today. Being a doctor back then would have been very difficult. One of the local doctors in Cumberland during the 1930s was a man named, Dr. James Fergusson. He was a very good doctor, who practiced medicine from his home. Being a doctor in the thirties would have been very rewarding because you would have worked by yourself, with no other doctors around. Many people would have admired and respected the doctor of the community and this is one of the things that would have made it a desirable occupation to pursue.
