Historical marker details the life of famous doctor from Evergreen

This week’s featured historical marker is the “ERNEST STANLEY CRAWFORD, M.D.” marker in downtown Evergreen.

The marker is located just off the sidewalk on the east side of West Front Street across from the block of buildings that contain the local State Farm office and Joy’s gift shop. There’s printing on both sides of this marker, but the wording is identical on both sides. This marker was erected and dedicated on May 16, 1992 by the City of Evergreen and the Evergreen-Conecuh County Public Library’s Heritage Committee. What follows is the complete text from the marker:

----- 0 -----

“In Honor of Native Son ERNEST STANLEY CRAFORD, M.D.: This pioneer surgeon, teacher and medical statesman was born May 12, 1922 in Evergreen. He worked at Conecuh Drug Company as a youngster and graduated from Evergreen High School (1940). His undergraduate degree was received from the University of Alabama (1943), his M.D. from Harvard Medical School (1946) and he completed his surgical training at Massachusetts General Hospital (1954). An intense interest in the newly developing fields of open heart surgery and replacement of major blood vessels drew Dr. Crawford to Houston, Texas, where he worked for the next 37 years at Baylor College of Medicine, becoming full Professor of Surgery in July 1966. A master surgeon with tireless devotion to the education of young surgeons and to the betterment of mankind, Dr. Crawford became internationally renowned for surgical techniques he developed for the treatment of aneurismal disease of the aorta. He became a member of every major international vascular society, lectured in many countries and his textbook “Diseases of the Aorta” became a reference source in vascular surgery. Dr. Crawford profoundly influenced the field of surgery and the lives of many individuals throughout the world.”

----- 0 -----

There are a few things about Crawford’s life that aren’t mentioned on the marker. Between 1947 and 1949, he served as an officer in the U.S. Navy at the U.S. Naval Hospital in Portsmouth, N.H. In regard to his famous book, “Diseases of the Aorta,” he was actually the book’s coauthor. His partner in writing that book was his son, Dr. John Lloyd Crawford II. Ernest Stanley Crawford, who died in 1992, was also the co-inventor of the Baylor Rapid Autologous Transfusion System, a machine that recycles a patient’s washed red blood cells during surgery.

This marker is also just a short distance away from a number of other historic markers in the downtown Evergreen area. Others markers in the area include the one in front of the former Alabama Baptist Children’s Home site, the marker in front of Evergreen Baptist Church and the marker at the Old L&N Depot that discusses the history of the City of Evergreen.

In the end, visit this site next Wednesday to learn about another local historical marker. I’m also taking suggestions from the reading audience, so if you know of an interesting historical marker that you’d like me to feature, let me know in the comments section below.