IN MEMORIAM

Lowrie James Porter (I 895-l 981)

T here are exemplary men who go through life enriching the lives of those who come into their purview. Their gentle, imperceptible influence on friends and colleagues eventually broadens their vision and inspires them to a more meaningful life. Such a man was Lowrie James Porter. He was born in Petoskey, Michigan, where his grandfather served as a missionary to the Indians, and grew up in Grand Rapids, Michigan, where his father, Dr. E. G. Porter practiced dentistry, was a deacon in his church, and super- intendent of the Sunday School. Lowrie himself was deeply religious and lived by his faith.

When Lowrie was graduated from Grand Rapids High School in 1913, his family was faced with unforeseen strained financial circumstances which made it impossible for him to go to college at that time. He then went to Toledo, Ohio, to find work, earn money for college, and study electrical engineering. While in Toledo, Lowrie attended the Baptist church and played clarinet in the church orchestra. This activity brought him into contact with Dr. Burt Abell, a well-known orthodontist who in 1923 was President of the Ameri- can Association of Orthodontists (AAO). On learning that Lowrie’s father was a dentist, Dr. Abel1 suggested that Lowrie become an orthodontist, which he considered to be the “engineering phase of dentistry. ” He loaned Lowrie texts by Angle and Case, which he studied diligently during his years in Toledo. Lowrie then decided, as he put it, “to become a good orthodontist. ”

When he had saved sufficient money to pay for his first year’s tuition at dental school, Lowrie suffered an acute attack of appendicitis. The expense of hospitalization and medi- cal treatment left him again without funds. He then went to work a second time for a year and finally enrolled at the University of Michigan College of Dentistry, where he received his D.D.S. degree in 1918.

Lowrie worked his way through college, which, as he reminisced, “wasn’t easy with daily classes from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and a half-day on Saturday. ” For relaxation he played in the University Symphony Orchestra and in the band. When he was turned down by the Navy during World War I for being severely underweight, Lowrie continued his studies and was asked to remain after graduation as an instructor under United States Army orders. In 1919 he went to New York to study orthodontics under Dr. Martin Dewey. He remained at the Dewey school as an instructor and served also as an instructor at the New York College of Dentistry, which subsequently became part of Columbia University.

Many of the leaders in orthodontics at that time, some of whom were instructors at the Dewey School, befriended Lowrie. Among his friends were John V. Mershon, Milo Hellman, Lloyd Lourie, Clinton Howard, Joseph D. Eby, Oren Oliver, William K. Gregory, and others who helped shape Lowrie’s career in orthodontics.

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In 1923 Dr. Porter established his private practice of orthodontics, from which he retired in 1964 after he suffered a heart attack. “Building an orthodontic practice in those days,” Dr. Porter reminisced, “was not easy. Most people did not know what orthodon- tics was and the average dentist was disinterested in the prevention of malocclusion. It took me 1.5 years to obtain even a mediocre practice.”

In time Dr. Porter acquired an outstanding practice and received worldwide recogni- tion as a skillful orthodontist. He was unsparing of himself as a clinician, lecturer, and teacher. He wrote more than thirty papers which were published in orthodontic and general dental journals. He gave several hundred clinics and was a frequent guest lecturer at different university dental schools and dental and orthodontic societies. He contributed a chapter on “Orthodontic Appliances and Case Histories of Cleft Palate Patients” in a book on Congrnitul Cl& Lip and Pdtrtr mnd Nasal D+,mitirs by Dr. Harold S. Vaughan. He introduced many innovations in orthodontic practice, including the horizon- tal lingual lock, various lingual loops, and the low lingual arch.

The history of the AA0 is replete with the contributions of Dr. Porter as a member of important committees and holder of different offices, including AA0 president in 1948- 1949. Dr. Porter, was a director of the American Board of Orthodontics from 1951 to 1958, serving also as treasurer and Board president.

Dr. Porter was deeply interested in prepayment dental programs and dental public health. He was a consultant to the Health Departments of the City and State of New York and was a member of the group that organized their orthodontic programs. He joined lay organizations active in promoting dental care for a larger segment of the population. Dr. Porter was recipient of many awards and citations for his dedicated concern in the ad- vancement of orthodontics, general dentistry, and public health dentistry. He received the AA0 Award of Merit in 1964 and the Albert H. Ketcham Memorial Award in 1968.

Among his many activities, Dr. Porter was a charter member of the Northeastern

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Society of Orthodontists, which he served in many capacities, including president (1946- 1947). He was a Fellow and president of the New York Academy of Dentistry, president of the New York section of the American College of Dentists, and a director of the William J. Gies Foundation. He was a Fellow of the Omicron Kappa Upsilon honorary society and Xi Psi fraternity.

Dr. Porter’s philosophy of life was similar to that of the old New Englander who was asked by an urbanite why he was planting pine seedlings when he might never see the trees. The old Yankee replied, “I am paying my debt to those who planted trees for me.” Lowrie was ever thankful to those who aided him during his early years when he was a stranger in New York and felt that he owed a debt to his chosen specialty and to the promotion of public health in general.

Dr. Porter married Priscilla Alden Laing in 1922, and they had three children. Mrs. Porter died in 1976 after 54 years of happy married life. In 1980 Dr. Porter married Mrs. Kathryn J. McCord. They then moved from his home in Greenwich, Connecticut, to Point Charlotte, Florida, where Kathryn resided.

Dr. Porter died on May 24, 1981. He is survived by his wife, Kathryn, his three children-Mrs. T. J. Schillereff, Wolfeboro, New Hampshire; Mrs. Glenn Simms, Plano, Illinois; James Porter, Hatboro, Pennsylvania-thirteen grandchildren, and seven great grandchildren.

.I. A. Salzmann