In July 1893, a young victim was rushed to Provident Hospital in Chicago with a near fatal stab wound. With the knife still embedded in the man's heart, hospital founder and Surgeon Daniel Hale Williams performed the first known successful open-heart surgery in order to save the victim's life. Dr. Williams had a long list of medical accomplishments including service on the Illinois State Board of Health and a presidential appointment as Surgeon-in-Chief at Freedmen's Hospital in Washington, D.C. Named to the list of the 100 Greatest African Americans in 2001, Dr. Williams was a Prince Hall Freemason.
Dr. Williams' patient in that first successful open-heart surgery, lived for 50 years following the procedure.
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