Bonesetter Reese
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Bonesetter Reese (1855 - 1931) became one of the most beloved figures in early 20th major league baseball for his ability to get injured athletes "back in the game." Celebrated nationally as the "baseball doctor" by the time of his death, Reese's early origins offered no indication of the prestige he would enjoy in later life.
John D. Reese was born in Rhymney, Wales, to a coal miner who died while Reese was still an infant. With the passing of his mother about a decade later, Reese was left an orphan and immediately went to work at the Welsh ironworks. At that point, he was taken in by an ironworker named Tom Jones, who taught Reese the trade of "bonesetting," a term Welshmen used for treatment of strains of muscle and tendon, not actually setting broken bones. Reese remained under Jones' tutelage until he left for the United States in 1887, at age 32.
He became a coal miner and then roller's helper at Jones & Laughlin Steel in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and moved to Youngstown, Ohio, where he took a job at the Brown-Bonnell Mills. He attended Case University (now Case Western Reserve University) in Cleveland (for three weeks). Reese and his wife, Sarah, raised five daughters: Mary Ann, Sarah, Gertrude, Elizabeth and Kathryn. Sarah (his wife) died in 1911.
Reese's involvement with baseball players was a sideline. He preferred baseball players but also worked with other athletes. The primary focus of his practice was treating his one-time colleagues, the mill workers of Youngstown. Reese's unique ability to manipulate muscles and ligaments put working men and ballplayers alike back to work, giving him the reputation of miracle worker in some circles.
He died at age 86, in 1931, at Youngstown. His passing was noted in the Youngstown Daily Vindicator like that of a major head of state. His obituary noted that he treated patients as they came in, that the famous had to stand in line. Patients paid what they could afford, while widows and orphans of mill workers were not charged for his services. Seven years before his death, the baseball publication Sporting Life paid tribute to Reese's contribution to baseball noting, "[he] has prolonged the active life of countless baseball stars and preserved them for the fans of the country to cheer."
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