Rutherford B Hayes 1822 – 1893

Rutherford B Hayes 1822 – 1893

Republicans were strong abolitionists and they received such enormous support from homeopaths, who were central to the abolitionist movement, Rutherford B Hayes continued the tradition of supporting them. He appointed homeopath Tullio Sussara Verdi, who has already been supported by Abraham Lincoln and Ulysses S. Grant, to the National Board of Health in 1879.

In 1878, Hayes issued a Quarantine Act to deal with the Yellow Fever epidemic, incorporating information from the American Institute of Homeopathy and based on the success of homeopaths in treating this disease.

Eliakim Scammon was Brigadier General and Hayes commanding officer in the 23rd Ohio Regiment. His brother Jonathan Young Scammon instituted Chicago’s Swedenborgian Church of the New Jerusalem (based on the work of Emanuel Swedenborg), and introduced homeopathic medicine to the Midwestern city through a new hospital. Jonathan donated ground for the Hahnemann homeopathic hospital. This was a time when the West was wild and many of America’s Institutions were being formed at this time by politicians and donations and support from homeopaths and abolitionists were of great importance at this time.

Long Branch became a popular destination due to its association with water and homeopathy, and Hayes was a frequent summer visitor.