Conrad Ramsey Lam was born in 1905 in Ogelsby, Texas, the oldest of ten children. He graduated from Tahoka High School as valedictorian of his class and entered Simmons College (now Hardin-Simmons University) in Abilene on a partial scholarship for playing trumpet in the college's "Cowboy Band." He served as business manager for college publications, including The Corral and The Simmons Brand. He earned his tuition by working as a "music man" and teaching the children of five nearby communities how to play their band instruments.
Lam entered Yale University in 1927. Upon graduation in 1932 he was awarded an internship at Henry Ford Hospital. After completing his internship, Dr. Lam became a surgical resident under Dr. Roy D. McClure, then Surgeon-in-Chief at the Hospital. He eventually became chief resident under Dr. McClure, and was appointed a member of the staff in 1938. He was the youngest member of the HFH staff at the time. During his residency, he enjoyed a mentor-protegee relationship with Dr. McClure which lasted until McClure's death in 1951.
Dr. Lam quickly became a gifted surgeon and an avid researcher. Among his first projects was a collaboration with Dr. McClure on research regarding the treatment of burns. Throughout the 1930s and 1940s he worked on research and the publication of findings and surgical experiences. His interests were far-reaching and included: burn treatment, heparin, penicillin, surgical correction of esophageal and thoracic deformities and traumas, thyroid, and surgical correction of cardiac and venous malformations.
By the early 1950s Dr. Lam had become an accomplished cardiac surgeon - a specialty then in its infancy. He trained with Drs. Alfred Blalock and Helen Taussig to learn their newly developed surgical techniques for the correction of Tetrology of Fallot in "blue babies." He pioneered the use of this procedure, as well as use of heart-lung machines, in the midwestern United States. He developed or helped to develop new surgical procedures for the correction of such cardiac and thoracic conditions as mitral valve stenosis and congenital esophageal stenosis.
Dr. Lam retired from active surgery in 1975, becoming a consultant at the Hospital. The following year he established the Henry Ford Hospital Archives in a small office in the Clara Ford Nurses Home. For fifteen years Dr. Lam collected, preserved and provided access to historical information, photographs and others materials documenting the history of the Hospital. In addition, he regularly wrote a column called "Echoes of a Surgeon's Trumpet" for Rounds, the HFH newsletter for the medical staff. Dr. Lam was respected and well-liked among Hospital staff and employees, and was therefore trusted with their historical treasures. Through his efforts, important documents including the papers of the first Physician-in-Chief and a large collection of photographs dating back to 1909 were preserved. He became the institutional memory of the Hospital, and was considered the authority on its history.
In 1941, when most of his friends and colleagues thought he would be a lifelong bachelor, Dr. Lam married Marian Smith, a dietetic intern who had come to HFH from North Dakota. They had four children. Mrs. Lam continues to support the historical collections through the Friends of the Sladen Library and Conrad R. Lam Archives and the Conrad R. Lam Memorial Endowment Fund. In 2003 she graciously donated funds to create the Henry Ford Hospital Historic Wall and Exhibit on the main campus.
Dr. Lam continued to be active in music throughout his life. He was, for many years, the director of the Franklin Village Band, in which Marian Lam played the bass drum. The Band performed at HFHS events regularly.
Dr. Lam died in 1990, at the age of 85, having spent his entire career of 58 years at Henry Ford Hospital. He is still spoken of with affection by those many HFHS staff and employees who remember him.
Melanie Bazil
Conrad R. Lam Archives
A Division of the Sladen Library & Center for Health Information Resources
Conrad Ramsey Lam was born in 1905 in Ogelsby, Texas, the oldest of ten children. He graduated from Tahoka High School as valedictorian of his class and entered Simmons College (now Hardin-Simmons University) in Abilene on a partial scholarship for playing trumpet in the college's "Cowboy Band." He served as business manager for college publications, including The Corral and The Simmons Brand. He earned his tuition by working as a "music man" and teaching the children of five nearby communities how to play their band instruments.
By the early 1950s Dr. Lam had become an accomplished cardiac surgeon - a specialty then in its infancy. He trained with Drs. Alfred Blalock and Helen Taussig to learn their newly developed surgical techniques for the correction of Tetrology of Fallot in "blue babies." He pioneered the use of this procedure, as well as use of heart-lung machines, in the midwestern United States. He developed or helped to develop new surgical procedures for the correction of such cardiac and thoracic conditions as mitral valve stenosis and congenital esophageal stenosis.
In 1941, when most of his friends and colleagues thought he would be a lifelong bachelor, Dr. Lam married Marian Smith, a dietetic intern who had come to HFH from North Dakota. They had four children. Mrs. Lam continues to support the historical collections through the Friends of the Sladen Library and Conrad R. Lam Archives and the Conrad R. Lam Memorial Endowment Fund. In 2003 she graciously donated funds to create the Henry Ford Hospital Historic Wall and Exhibit on the main campus.
