Jedediah Hyde Baxter Jedediah Hyde Baxter ( March 11 , 1837 – December 4 , 1890 ) was a United States Army Brigadier General who served as Surgeon General of the United States Army . Early life . Jedediah H . Baxter , the son of Portus Baxter and Ellen Janette Harris , was born in Strafford , Vermont on March 11 , 1837 . He attended Perkins Academy in South Woodstock and St . Johnsbury Academy , and studied at Norwich University for two years . He graduated from the University of Vermont in 1859 , and received his medical degree from UVM in 1860 . Baxter subsequently completed his internship and residency at Bellevue and Blackwell ' s Island Hospitals in New York City . Civil War . In June , 1861 Baxter enlisted for the American Civil War , joining the 12th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry as regimental surgeon . He served until April , 1862 , when he was appointed as a brigade surgeon in the Army of the Potomac . He took part in the Peninsula Campaign , including the Battles of Yorktown , Hanover Court House , and Seven Pines . Baxter later served as head of Campbell General Hospital in Washington , D . C . He ended the war as Chief Medical Officer of the Provost Marshal ' s Bureau with the rank of Major . In 1865 he received brevet promotions to Lieutenant Colonel and Colonel of Volunteers , and in 1867 he received a brevet as a Colonel in the regular Army . Post Civil War . After the war the Army ' s health care professionals were organized as the Medical Department , and Baxter was appointed Assistant Medical Purveyor with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in the regular Army . In 1871 he received a Master of Arts degree from UVM . In March , 1872 Baxter was appointed Chief Medical Purveyor , and in 1874 he was promoted to Colonel . In 1875 Baxter graduated from Columbian University ( now George Washington University Law School ) with a Bachelor of Laws degree . Baxter ' s duties included serving as personal physician to the President of the United States . He attended James A . Garfield ' s family , but was out of town when Charles J . Guiteau shot Garfield in July 1881 . As a result , Baxter did not examine Garfield following the shooting or treat him during his subsequent illness . By the time he rushed back to Washington , Doctor Willard Bliss had taken charge and would not let Baxter see the wounded President . According to contemporary accounts , Bliss stated that Baxter was attempting to see Garfield out of a desire for personal glory and fame , a charge which had the effect of causing Baxter to minimize his involvement so that Bliss would not seem to be correct . In fact Bliss had only recently been readmitted to the District of Columbia Medical Society , which had expelled him in 1870 over his advocacy for African American doctors to be admitted , and his willingness to consult with homeopath s at a time when most medical professionals were allopath s , and disdained homeopathy . Bliss likely maintained his lead role as a way to restore his own reputation . Army Surgeon General . In August 1890 , Baxter was named the Army ' s Surgeon General and promoted to Brigadier General , appointed by President Benjamin Harrison , who was a longtime patient . Baxter ' s appointment had been championed by Secretary of War Redfield Proctor , a fellow Vermonter and Civil War veteran . Death and burial . Baxter became ill with uremia soon after assuming his new duties . He suffered a stroke as a result and died in Washington , D . C . on December 4 , 1890 . Baxter was buried at Arlington National Cemetery , Section 2 , Grave 1000 . Marriage . In 1876 Baxter married Florence Tryon ( November 11 , 1845 – February 12 , 1914 ) of Boston , Massachusetts . They had no children . Other . Baxter was a member of the Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States . He was the author of 1875 ' s " Statistics , Medical and Anthropological , of the Provost - Marshal - General ' s Bureau " . This invaluable reference work contains records and analysis of physical examinations and other medical data for more than one million men who served the Union in the Civil War . The Army hospital in Spokane , Washington was named for Baxter .