As Attending Physician to Congress, George Calver received a special perk: Every Representative who visited him gave the doctor a signed photograph. Calver amassed a collection of congressional headshots inscribed with personal notes to him. These signed photos, now in the House Collection, reveal relationships and personalities in Congress.
The doctor ordered his patients to exercise, relax, and get away from stress. His congressional patients weren’t used to being ordered around, but they took the doctor seriously. Calver’s care led to his appointment as the Attending Physician of the Senate as well as the House, and a promotion to the rank of rear admiral. During his 38 years of service, Calver received $1,500 annually from Congress and benefits that included a car and chauffeur, in addition to his naval salary. The attending physician provided good medical care to all Representatives and Senators, and he made no distinction “between a Republican bellyache and a Democratic bellyache.”
Many of the autographed photos read like testimonials. Representative Thomas Blanton proclaimed Calver “a damn good Scout,” and Lex Green called him “the best Dr. in DC.” Justin Leroy Johnson swore that Calver’s “guidance kept me in perfect health during my 14 years in Congress.” Walt Horan’s exclamatory inscription testified to the good work and persistence of the physician: “Since 1928 a watch-dog on the lives of members of the Congress. I can personally adjudge that members have lived longer and more effectively because of him! No greater service to the legislative branch exists!”
As the physician, “I’m the only man they can’t talk back to on Capitol Hill,” Calver grinned. Although Members didn’t talk back to the doctor, they wrote back to him—with a smirk. “Best wishes to a great guardian of some careless congressmen,” wrote Francis Case. Several Members poked fun at the doctor’s instructions. Joseph Byrns, Jr., signed his photo “To Dr. Calver, who gives us all orders.” But the most sarcastic was Frank Bowman: “To Dr. Geo. W. Calver, a commander in the U.S. Navy and commander-in-chief of the U.S. Congress, who regulates the air we breathe, supervises the food we eat and otherwise interferes with our constitutional rights of personal freedom,— with regards of a friend.”
Sources: The New York Times, January 29, 1939 and October 12, 1966; The Washington Post, February 28, 1972; Charles Hamilton, The Book of Autographs (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1978).
This is part of a series of blog posts exploring the art and history of photographs from the House Collection.
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