University of Maryland Baltimore Dental School - Mirror Yearbook (Baltimore, MD)

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Silver Ti nniuerSctr ¥ In 1949 the members of the graduating class, desiring to honor those members of the Faculty and Staff who had given loyal service to the School for twenty-five years or more, decided to establish a Silver Anniversary section in the Mirror. The editions of 1949, 1950, and 1951 congratulated and extended the gratitude of the students and alumni to fourteen men and women who have achieved membership in the Silver Anniversary group. The 1949 issue of the Mirror, which inaugurated the feature, paid tribute to Myron S. Aisenberg ' 22, Professor of Pathology, who has been associated with the faculty since his graduation; Grayson W. Gaver ' 22, Professor of Dental Prosthesis, who began his teaching career at his alma mater in October of 1922; George C. Karn ' 2 3, then Associate Professor of Oral Roentgenology, who served on the faculty from 1923 until his resignation in 1949; Harry B. McCarthy ' 2 3, Director of Clinics, who has taught at the B.C.D.S. since 1923; Mary C. Reed, Accountant for the Clinics, who began her career at the School in 1924; J. Ben Robinson ' 14, Dean, who was honored by students and alumni in June of 1949 in commemoration of his twenty-five years of service in the deanship; Nathan B. Scherr ' 22, then Associate Professor of Operative Dentistry, who began teaching Pedodontia in 1924; Katharine Toomey, Administra- tive Assistant, who is now in her thirty-sixth year of valiant and highly valuable ser- vice to the School; and B. Sargent Wells ' 14 then Assistant Professor of Fixed Partial Prosthesis, who taught from 1915 until his resignation in 1951. Three twenty-five year men were honored by the 1950 Mirror: Karl F. Grempler ' 24, then Instructor in Orthodontics, who taught from 1924 till shortly before his death on February 2 5, 1951; Guy P. Thompson, Associate Professor of Anatomy, who came to the University in 192 5 as Assistant Professor of Zoology; and E. Gaston Vanden Bosche, Professor of Biochemistry, who became a member of the faculty in 1925. The 1951 Mirror honored two members of the Staff of the School: Charles Leroy Deets, Preparator in the Anatomy Department; and Joseph F. Killian, Laboratory Technician. At the annual Class Day Exercises, it has been the custom of the graduating class to present each member of the Twenty-Five Year Group with a copy of the Mirror. The Mirror of 1952 wishes to congratulate the former and present members of this Silver Anniversary Group who have unselfishly and valiantly dedicated their lives to dental education. ■I 6f

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2). vein of the University of Maryland School of Dentistry A. (J5en IKobinAon, . . 5., J c.edJ., sr. Ar.L .aD. Since his graduation in 1914 from the University of Maryland School of Dentistry, Dr. J. Ben Robinson has been an increasingl y valuable source of strength and inspira- tion to the profession. As the Dean of the School from 1924 to the present, he has established and maintained high standards of education and professional service in the world ' s first dental school. For many years, Dr. Robinson has been one of the most outstanding leaders in American dentistry. As a prolific writer, orator, and policy-maker, the Dean has been a stimulating and courageous figure to the students who have passed through the portals of the B.C.D.S. It was a monumental tribute to the leadership of this great man that in June of 1950 the dentists of the State of Maryland named Dr. Robinson dentist of the half- century (1900-1950) for the State of Maryland. To you, Dr. Robinson, the alumni and students express their inestimable gratitude for a good job, well done.

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ADALBERT VOLCK, DENTIST AND ARTIST (This is the first in a series of articles about distinguished graduates of the School.) In studying the history of the dental profession in the United States one is impressed by the versatility exhibited by the large number of dentists who have matched or excelled their professional work by their accomplishments outside the dental office. Ranking high among those few dentists who have achieved fame both in and out of their profession is Adalbert J. Volck who earned national recognition as a dentist and as an artist. Volck was born in Augsburg, Bavaria, on April 14, 1828, the son of Andrew Von Volzsck, a prominent and prosperous manufacturing chemist and landowner. Most of his youth was spent in Nuremberg, where he attended the Polytechnic Institute. During these formative years he became interested in art; this interest was developed and sustained by visits to the studios of many of the famous artists residing in Nuremberg and by summer residence in art colonies in the nearby mountains. When his family moved to Munich, Adalbert entered the University of Munich, where he majored in chemistry. Volck journeyed to America in 1848 and eventually became associated with Dr. Nathan C. Keep, who was interested in the young German ' s abilities in chemistry. While working with Dr. Keep, Volck attended Harvard University and engaged in experiments in the coloring of porcelains. The turning point of Volck ' s career came when Dr. Chapin A. Harris offered him attractive inducements to come to Baltimore. At the B.C.D.S. Volck assisted Dr. Harris in chemistry and completed his requirements for the D.D.S. degree. Volck ' s training in chemistry and his experimental work with porcelain had an important bearing on the development of his professional reputation. A fine technician, he was a pioneer in the use of porcelain in the filling of teeth. In the field of dental anatomy Volck, collaborating with Christopher Johnson, did sDme excellent work in the microscopy of dental tissues. In the field of metallurgy he made an important contribution to his profession by conducting a series of assays on the gold foils supplied to dentists by the manufacturers. True to his high professional ideals, Volck gave staunch support to both the spirit and the force of organized dentistry. A founding member of the Association of Dental Surgeons, he was one of its most active supporters throughout his professional career. He was a charter member of the Maryland State Dental Association, formed in 1883. Until his retirement in 1902 Volck devoted himself ceaselessly to the best interests of dentistry. He earned a national reputation not only as a highly capable practitioner but also as a valuable contributor to the great progress in the art and science of dentistry accomplished during the period of his half century of practice. The predilection for creative art that Volck had demonstrated during his youth lay dormant for many years. His place as a prominent figure in American art was not achieved until the Civil War, when his caricatures in sup- port of the Southern cause brought him wide recognition. Over the years Volck developed astonishing versatility and achieved expert craftsmanship in several fields of art. In 1872 he founded the Maryland Academy of Fine Arts. Through his school he contributed much to art in Mary- land. The school existed for only three years, but in those years Volck trained several of Baltimore ' s leading artists. The most remarkable feature about the school was that Volck served as the entire faculty, giving capable instruc- tion, based upon his own training and experience, in oils and water colors, modeling, etching, and repousse work in copper and silver. Among the best known works of Volck are The Elaine Shield, a bronze shield depicting characters from the King Arthur mythology; The Silver Tankard, the motif of which is the German legend of Siegfried and Brun- hilde; The Shield to Confederate Women, executed in silver to record the bravery and the patient endurance, the pluck of the finest women in the world. Volck also did some exquisite work in the media of ivory and porcelain. Adalbert Volck is one of the twenty-four dentists included in the Dictionary of American Biography. {7 y