Abraham Jacobi - Definition and Overview

Abraham Jacobi (May 6, 1830 - July 10, 1919) is considered the father of pediatrics. He opened the first children's clinic in the United States.

Born in Hartum, Westphalia, he received an MD at Bonn University in 1851. Shortly thereafter, Jacobi joined the revolutionary movement in Germany (see Revolution of 1848). He was eventually convicted of treason and imprisoned until he escaped in 1853. Upon release, Jacobi sailed to England and then to New York.

Starting in 1861 at the New York Medical College, he was a professor of childhood diseases. From 1867 to 1870, he was chair of the medical department of the City University of New York. He taught at Columbia University from 1870 to 1902.

He helped found the American Journal of Obstetrics.

His wife, Mary Putnam Jacobi, was also a physician. She was the first woman student at L'École de Médicine in Paris, France.

He was friends with Carl Schurz.