Dentist; born in
Hartford, Vt., Jan. 21, 1815; received an academic education and after learning dentistry began practice in his native city, in 1840; after long seeking a means of preventing pain while extracting teeth, he made several unsuccessful experiments with various substances, and then declared that the only efficient treatment was that of nitrous oxide.
It was not, however, until Dec. 11, 1844, that he put this agent into practical use, by having a tooth extracted from his own mouth without feeling pain.
He then began to use the gas in extracting teeth from other
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306]
persons.
He was the author of
A history of the application of nitrous-oxide gas, ether, and other vapors to surgical operations.
He died in New York City, Jan. 24, 1848.
A bronze statue of
Dr. Wells has since been erected in
Bushnell Park,
Hartford, bearing an inscription crediting him with the discovery of anesthesia, although his claims and those of
Drs.
Charles T. Jackson,
John C. Warren,
William T. G. Morton, and
Gardiner Q. Colton, formed the cause of a notable controversy.