Mott đã được sinh ra ở Glen Cove, New York, vào năm 1785 (Hình ). Cha ông, Henry, là một bác sĩ gốc tiếng Anh với một nền tảng mạnh mẽ của Quaker. Các gia đình Mott chuyển đến Newton, New York, khi Valentine đã được 6 tuổi. Mott đã tham dự một chủng viện tư nhân ở đó cho đến khi 19 tuổi. | CHAPTER 9 Valentine Mott Courage is not simply one of the virtues but the form of every virtue at the testing point. . Lewis Mott was born in Glen Cove New York in 1785 Figure . His father Henry was a physician of English descent with a strong Quaker background. The Mott family moved to Newton New York when Valentine was 6 years old. Mott attended a private seminary there until the age of 19. Mott never attended college and began medical studies with his cousin Valentine Seaman a New York City surgeon. He also began attending medical lectures at Columbia College. In 1806 Mott received his medical degree then spent an additional year studying with Seaman. Mott s tutelage under his cousin affected him significantly and Mott decided to travel abroad for further surgical training. In the early 19th century Astley Cooper was the most renowned surgical educator in Europe. Americans wanting the best surgical training strived to enroll at Guy s Hospital in London. Mott traveled there in 1807 and soon became Cooper s wound dresser thanks largely to the fine job John Warren had performed 7 years earlier. The 6 months that Mott spent with Cooper profoundly influenced his approach to surgical problems. Mott had tremendous respect and admiration for the skills of his legendary teacher particularly after he witnessed the operation performed on Humphrey Humphreys for a carotid aneurysm. After his apprenticeship with Cooper Mott spent an additional year studying with several other great English surgeons John Abernethy Henry Cline William Blizzard and Evevard Home. Mott returned to New York in 1809 and began to conduct private lessons in surgery. He had the styles of all the great English surgeons to draw upon and his fame as a teacher grew quickly. One year later he became a Lecturer on Surgery and Demonstrator in Anatomy at Columbia College. Mott was proud of his teaching ability and endeavored to impart the principles of surgery in as scientific and systematic a way as .
