In the more than two centuries since Dr. Henderson set up his brief practice here in 1805, there have been numerous doctors, nurses, dentists, pharmacists, hospitals and related medical services available to the citizens of Knox County.
Their stories are recounted in the articles below.
Writing in 1862, historian A. Banning Norton tell us that when the town of Mount Vernon was officially platted on July 16, 1805, a physician was among the few hardy pioneers living here at the time. In describing how the town was named, Norton writes:
"A little doctor named Henderson was with us when we laid out the town. He was from Baltimore, Maryland, proposed that we should call it after Washington's home-place, and we all sanctioned. When it came to giving any name that pleased Washington, it pleased all proprietors"
Norton goes on to tell how later on the well-known tavernkeeper, Ben Butler, threatened to kill Dr. Henderson for suggesting that Butler's daughter be innoculated for smallpox. Soon thereafter, the Doctor ran away with a woman, putting an end to the career here of Mount Vernon's first physician, who did, however, give our town its name.