Histories of individual organizations, medical or otherwise, do not ordinarily hold great interest for nonmembers. However, when such an organization spans a period of 100 years and has had among its members many of the physicians who formulated our surgical heritage, it may have more definite appeal.
The Southern Surgical Association was founded shortly after the end of the Civil War by doctors who believed that Southern surgeons "were doing work as good as being done anywhere and yet they were not being given any opportunity to show it." The organization was known for nearly 30 years as the Southern Surgical and Gynecological Association until the name was changed in 1916. A combination of commitment to surgical excellence, exceptional documentation (every paper since the beginning has been published and preserved), and the dedication of a few individuals has resulted in this interesting book.
Editor Robert S. Sparkman summarizes the effort