Curtis Strong Chittenden

Curtis Strong Chittenden was born in Burlington, Vermont in 1825 (Shosenberg, 1992). He obtained his degree in Doctor of Dental Surgery at the New York College of Dentistry in 1846 (Shosenberg, 1992). He moved to Hamilton, Ontario in 1849 and practiced dentistry there for forty years (Gullett, 1971). In 1860, he became president of the Michigan State Dental Association and gained immense knowledge about professional dental organizations (Gullett, 1971).

In the first ODA meeting, Chittenden influenced the idea that it would be better to first organize the province’s dentists before seeking legislation (Gullett, 1971). In addition to his involvement in the ODA, he also acted as the assistant editor of the publication of the Journal for a period starting in 1868 (Gullett, 1971). Chittenden was president of the ODA in 1870 (Shosenberg, 1992). The University of Toronto Dentistry Library currently holds some of Chittenden’s book collection. He passed away on May 8th, 1889 (Gullet, 1971).

References:

Gullett, D. W. (1971). A history of dentistry in Canada. Toronto: Published for the Canadian Dental Association by University of Toronto Press.

Shosenberg, J. W. (1992). The rise of the Ontario Dental Association: 125 years of organized dentistry. Toronto: Ontario Dental Association