The name Dr. Frank Ernest Mellow is attached to forty-three different artefacts here at the Museum of Health Care, not the least of which is the massive electrostatic generator currently on display in our “Electricity and the Invisible Ray” gallery!
The generator was the last piece of equipment to be taken out of Dr. Mellow’s office and brought to Kingston in 2006– it had been in the same place in the second floor sitting room of Dr. Mellow’s house since it was purchased in the 1910s. The placement of the machine in the house made the whole second floor smell like ozone because it was used so frequently.
Dr. Frank Mellow was a Queen’s University graduate, inspired to go into medicine by his older brother Sam. He graduated at the top of his class and practiced medicine in Saintfield, Ontario for ten years before moving to Uxbridge, Ontario in 1912. He married Daisy Isabel Campion Carmichael shortly thereafter, and they were very active in the community. Mellow helped found the Lakeridge Cottage Hospital, and the couple even built a bowling green!
Dr. Mellow is remembered by his descendants today as a devout, loving person who thrived on routine. He always wore a jacket, tie, and creased trousers, and though he was quiet, he had a wonderful sense of humour. Over his fifty-one years practicing in Uxbridge, Dr. Mellow helped deliver over 1200 babies without ever losing a single mother. In April 1963, he passed away in the same hospital he helped to found, leaving many cherished memories in his wake, along with a collection of artefacts from his long career that are now preserved in the Museum.
To learn about these artifacts and more, visit our online collection catalogue by clicking the button below.
