The Father of Obstetrics and
Gynecology in Ontario 1810-1878

Plaque location: 41 Spruce Street

Dr. Edward Mulberry Hodder was born December 30, 1810 in Sangate, Kent, England. He was educated on the Isle of Gurnsey and in France. He became a midshipman in the Royal Navy, but after a year, he left the Navy to study medicine in London, Paris and Edinburgh.

He married Frances Tench in 1834, and they left for Canada in 1838. First, he practiced in Queenston, and then moved to Toronto in 1843.

In 1850, he and James Bovell founded the Upper Canada School of Medicine and subsequently joined the medical school of Trinity College.

Dr. Hodder was president and chair of many medical associations and was one of the first to use carbolic acid as an antiseptic in surgery. He continued teaching until 1871.

Together with a fellow sailing enthusiast, he founded the Royal Canadian Yacht Club.