# David Williams Cheever > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/David_Williams_Cheever > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/David_Williams_Cheever.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Williams_Cheever > Source revision: 1353591495 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) **David Williams Cheever** (November 30, 1831 – December 27, 1915) was an American [medical doctor](/source/Medical_doctor) who was a leading [surgeon](/source/Surgeon) and [philanthropist](/source/Philanthropist) in [Boston](/source/Boston) during the late-19th and early-20th centuries. ## Early life Cheever was born in [Portsmouth, New Hampshire](/source/Portsmouth,_New_Hampshire), on November 30, 1831, to Charles Augustus and Adeline (Haven) Cheever. He was a seventh-generation descendant of [Ezekiel Cheever](/source/Ezekiel_Cheever) and both his father and grandfather ([Abijah Cheever](/source/Abijah_Cheever)) were surgeons. He prepared for college under a private tutor and graduated from [Harvard College](/source/Harvard_College) in 1852 and [Harvard Medical School](/source/Harvard_Medical_School) in 1858. He also spent a summer semester at the [Boylston Medical School](/source/Boylston_Medical_School). He interned at the Massachusetts state hospital on [Rainsford Island](/source/Rainsford_Island).[1] ## Career Upon graduating from medical school, Cheever opened an office in [Boston](/source/Boston). He briefly served as a volunteer surgeon during [American Civil War](/source/American_Civil_War). From June 2, 1862, to August 2, 1862, he was the acting assistant surgeon at the Judiciary Square Hospital in [Washington, D.C.](/source/Washington,_D.C.) When [Boston City Hospital](/source/Boston_City_Hospital) opened in 1864, he was appointed a visiting surgeon. He also worked as a surgeon at the [Boston Dispensary](/source/Boston_Dispensary) and was an editor of the *[Boston Medical and Surgical Journal](/source/The_New_England_Journal_of_Medicine#History)*.[2] He continued to work as a family physician after becoming a surgeon.[3] In 1913, he became a professor emeritus of the city hospital.[2] From 1860 to 1868, Cheever was a demonstrator in anatomy at Harvard Medical School. In 1866, he was appointed an assistant professor of anatomy. He became an acting professor of clinical surgery in 1868 and a full professor seven years later. He was appointed a professor of surgery in 1882 and remained in this role until 1893, when he became a professor emeritus. From 1896 to 1908, he was a member of the [Harvard Board of Overseers](/source/Harvard_Board_of_Overseers).[2] ## Philanthropy In 1889, Cheever established a fund to provide surgical instruments to each graduate of the City Hospital surgical department. In 1893, the established a scholarship at Harvard Medical School for first year students.[2] He was president of the Massachusetts Medical Benevolent Society, which provided aid to struggling physicians and their families.[1] ## Personal life and death On October 9, 1860, Cheever married Anna C. Nichols. That had five children – David (1861–1864), Alice (1862–1948), Helen (1865–1960), Marion (1867–1897), Adeline (1874–1964), and [David](/source/David_Cheever) (1876–1955).[2] David followed in his father's footsteps, becoming a surgeon at the [Peter Brent Brigham Hospital](/source/Brigham_and_Women's_Hospital) and teaching at Harvard Medical School.[3] Adeline Cheever was the wife of surgeon George Shattuck Whiteside.[3] Cheever resided at 557 [Boylston Street](/source/Boylston_Street) in Boston.[3] He had a summer home in [Cohasset, Massachusetts](/source/Cohasset,_Massachusetts) for 21 years, but after his daughter Marion drowned there, the family spent its summers on a farm in [Dedham, Massachusetts](/source/Dedham,_Massachusetts).[1] Cheever was a member of the [College of Physicians of Philadelphia](/source/College_of_Physicians_of_Philadelphia), a fellow of the [American Academy of Arts and Sciences](/source/American_Academy_of_Arts_and_Sciences), vice president of the [St. Botolph Club](/source/St._Botolph_Club), and president of the [Massachusetts Medical Society](/source/Massachusetts_Medical_Society) (1888–1890) and [American Surgical Association](/source/American_Surgical_Association) (1888). From 1895 to 1907, he was a member of the [Mount Auburn Corporation](/source/Mount_Auburn_Cemetery). During this time, he became an advocate of cremation.[2] Cheever was politically independent, but usually voted [Republican Party](/source/Republican_Party_(United_States)). He did not belong to a church.[1] Cheever died on December 27, 1915, at his home after a brief illness.[3] ## References 1. Gay, George Washington (July 20, 1916). ["Memorial Addresses: David Williams Cheever, A.M., M.D., LL. D."](https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Boston_Medical_and_Surgical_Journal/Dco9AQAAMAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=%22David+Williams+Cheever%22&pg=PA71&printsec=frontcover). *The Boston Medical and Surgical Journal*. **CLXXV** (3): 71–77. Retrieved 26 December 2025. 1. Edes, Grace Williamson (1922). [*Annals of the Harvard class of 1852*](https://archive.org/details/annalsharvardcl00edesgoog/page/46/mode/2up?q). pp. 43–46. Retrieved 26 December 2025. 1. "Dr David W. Cheever Dies At Age Of 84". *The Boston Globe*. December 28, 1915. --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [David Williams Cheever](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Williams_Cheever) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Williams_Cheever?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.