Doctors Thomas and Dora Walker: For the Sake of the Children

Dr. Dora Walker [2001.052.0139E]

In the fall of 1916, Doctor Thomas Walker arrived in Great Falls. He saw a bustling city with potential and needs. Dr. Walker then married Dora Von Holdt and brought her out to join him in his practice. They established Walker Laboratory in the Tod Building and did testing for doctors, court cases and the police department. They both had a passion for children and a specialty in childhood communicable diseases such as mumps, chickenpox and scarlet fever. During WWI they took over the practice of Dr. C. T. Titus while he was in war service. It was during this time that Dr. Dora developed a specialty in x-ray, thinking it would help their lab business. In 1919, Cascade County and Great Falls established the City County Health Department.

In 1925, Dr. Thomas was appointed City County Health Officer and immediately began a campaign to eradicate Diphtheria and Goiter. Examinations of all the school children in Cascade County were held to try and minimize the disease. Corrections were made to the exams to include dental exams and recommendations like using iodized salt in cooking helped to reduce mortality rates exponentially. These simple things also helped to prevent heart disease later in life. Dr. Thomas said that prevention was the main focus of his plan.

In 1925, there had been 125 cases and 12 deaths from diphtheria. The administration of toxin anti-toxin for diphtheria wiped the disease from the county almost instantly. Dr. Thomas preached to the parents, asking them to be sure to check their children for fevers as an easy to detect sign of disease or have sore throats checked by the family doctor before sending their children to school. In 1927, infantile paralysis and meningitis never reached epidemic levels in Cascade County. 80 percent of the children seen in the dental clinics that year had decaying teeth. Education was key to parents helping their children. Vaccines were proven, even though new, to help fight scarlet fever, smallpox and other diseases that tend to cut young lives short.

 Above: Pamphlets put out by City County Health for parent education [2003.129.0050]

While Dr. Thomas was fighting in the schools, Dr. Dora was helping with the pre-school children’s clinics, visiting homes of small children throughout the county. In one year, the mortality rate decreased from 63.2 per 1000 live births to 43.5 per 1000. Dr. Dora spoke to several women’s groups on the importance of the school health system and family cooperation to stop the spread of disease among children. She spoke on the dangers of neglecting children from ages 2 to 6. Checking children’s habits like sucking on fingers and eating at regulated times was also emphasized.

The results of their combined efforts were shared with the Great Falls Tribune in May of 1929:

“That this work is bearing fruit, is shown by the fact at the present time, children in the first grade and kindergarten classes in the schools of Great Falls have less than one-seventh as many defects as the children in these classes had six years ago. Likewise, there are several kindergarten classes in Great Falls, 90 percent of whose members have no defects – not even a single decayed tooth.”

Not long after that statement, Lincoln Public school was the first to obtain 100 percent dental correction for the entire school.

Great Falls Tribune, October 5, 1930, Pg. 25

Dr. Thomas and the work of many other fantastic physicians had made Great Falls the medical and dental center for the entire state of Montana for a decade. In 1930, the Medical Arts Company was established and built the Medical Arts Building at 501 1st Ave North.

“The majority of cases are, or should be, diagnosed in the physician’s office before the patient is referred to the hospital for treatment or before treatment is carried out in the office…. So rapid has been the development of scientific methods in the diagnosis of disease that the thorough and complete examination of a patient often requires the use of scientific apparatus costing thousands of dollars. Obviously, not every physician, nor even every group of physicians, can install such equipment nor is it necessary when the physicians are located in a building where such equipment is available. Even in the matter of books and journals the burden is unusually heavy for the individual physician or dentist who would keep abreast of the times unless the information is made available through a medical library.

“Likewise, that friendly co-operation and assistance rather than jealous competition, which is just as essential to progress and development in the medical as in the industrial and business world, is fostered by the association of physicians in one building, where each individual is ever ready to advise and assist his fellow worker. Realizing these facts, and being determined that Great Falls should maintain its position as the medical center of Montana, after a number of general meetings and a thorough survey of conditions in this and other cities, the Medical Arts Building Company was organized for the purpose of erecting a Medical Arts building in Great Falls.” - Great Falls Tribune January 26, 1930.

Medical Arts Building [2022.005A.0880]

Pharmacy inside the Medical Arts Building [2007.040.0389]

In 1937, Dr. Dora was recognized by the Great Falls Business and Professional Women’s Club, as she was the only woman roentgenologist (radiologist) working independently in the United States. The only other worked at the Mayo clinic. Both Walkers kept busy with various medical associations at the local and state levels. Dr. Thomas kept up his fight against communicable diseases, while Dr. Dora diversified into cancer education. During WWII, Dr. Thomas once again served as City County Health Officer from 1944-45. Dr. Thomas passed away in 1950, and Dr. Dora sold Walker Laboratories in 1952. Dr. Dora passed in 1969. Their work saved so many and established better healthcare in the state of Montana.

-Megan Sanford, Archives and Operations Manager