Skip to main content

SLU Department of Surgery History

Saint Louis University School of Medicine's Department of Surgery has a decades-long history of vision and innovation that has helped revolutionize the surgical field. 

Black and white photo of a group of surgeons seated before several microphones.

From left, Russell Kraeger, M.D.; John Schweiss, M.D.; Vallee L. Willman, M.D.; George Kaiser, M.D.; Hendrick Barner, M.D.; and J. Gerard Mudd, M.D., speak to the press following Saint Louis University's first successful heart transplant in 1972.

Shaping the Future of Surgery

The Department of Surgery was established in 1837 under the leadership of William Beaumont, M.D., a military surgeon and pioneering physiologist. For decades, it served as a cornerstone of the medical school’s curriculum and research mission; however, the 1950 appointment of C. Rollins Hanlon, M.D., as department chair ushered in a period of groundbreaking clinical advancements for the region.  

Portrait of C. Rollins Hanlon
C. Rollins Hanlon, M.D.

C. Rollins Hanlon Impact

  • First Full-Time Chair: Hanlon became the first full-time, salaried clinical chair at SLU. Previously, University physicians earned most of their income through private practice and taught as part-time volunteers. 
  • Surgical Innovation: Hanlon started the first cardiac catheterization lab west of the Mississippi and soon after, established an animal laboratory to research cardiac surgery and transplantation.
  • Medical Milestones: Hanlon performed the first open heart surgery, followed by surgeries for the first prosthetic valve, pacemaker and coronary bypass. His protégé, Vallee L. Willman, M.D., led a team of SLU surgeons to perform the first heart transplant west of the Mississippi. 
  • Modernization: Hanlon started the University’s modern surgical residency program.
  • Department Growth: During Hanlon’s 19-year tenure, the department grew to 30 full-time faculty members, and he established cardiothoracic, plastic, neurological and urological surgery divisions with their own dedicated training programs. 

Today, University surgeons treat patients at multiple hospitals across the St. Louis region. The department now has nine surgical divisions, over 80 faculty members, and research ranging from cancer drug trials to surgical device interventions and artificial intelligence.  

SLU Surgeons: A Legacy of Firsts

Black and white group photo of surgeons posing in white coats and neckties.
Members of Chairman C. Rollins Hanlon's first residency class, which included Vallee L. Willman, M.D., who would follow Hanlon as department chair.
  • 1951: first cardiac catheterization lab west of the Mississippi
  • 1956: first open heart surgery in St. Louis
  • 1962: first prosthetic valve surgery in St. Louis
  • 1965: first pacemaker surgery in St. Louis
  • 1969: first coronary bypass in St. Louis
  • 1970: first kidney transplant in St. Louis
  • 1972: first heart transplant in the Midwest
  • 1999: first simultaneous liver-kidney transplant at SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital