China Doctor of John Day, Oregon

by Jeffrey Barlow, Christine Richardson

The remarkable story of Ing Hay, the "China Doctor" who became the most famous and capable frontier physician in the John Day country of Eastern Oregon. Serving patients from the late 19th century to 1948, he was a traditional Chinese physician who, with his herbal medicines, worked more cures than the laboratory-oriented doctors of the area. Illustrated. 160 pages.

118 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 1979

Reviews

[M.D. Robinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting.

[Krista · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an interesting book about how the Chinese fit into the settling of Eastern Oregon. It started out with broad brush strokes about Chinese emmigration in that era in general, and then focused more narrowly on the town of John Day, Oregon.

While the title refers to one of the prominent Chinese men in John Day during that era, Ing ('Doc') Hay, the book really focuses on two men, Ing ('Doc') Hay, and Lung On. I would have liked to have learned more about the 'pulse reading' that 'Doc' Hay did, but I doubt that there is much original reference material to work with on that subject. It's interesting that this Chinese herbalist could cure so many more diseases than the medical 'professionals' could at the beginning of the 20th century.

Now I want to take a trip out to John Day and visit the Kam Wah Chung & Co. Musuem that was Hay and On's main place of business, contained their living quarters, and was the social hall for the local Chinese community.

It is now operated in conjunction with the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department and is one of the premier surviving examples of a nineteenth century Chinese apothecary shop. It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 2005.

[Shun-Sho · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting portion of Oregon history but written in the older style of biographies -- very little substantiation of facts and much requirement of the reader to take the book as gospel. But, it's an accessible little volume and it does discuss an area that's lesser known in Asian-American history.

[Atty · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fascinating true story about a Chinese herbalist. I've been doing some research, and while this book is more historical, I love the subject matter.