Clarence Gonstead

Clarence Selmer Gonstead (July 23, 1898 - October 2, 1978) was a Doctor of Chiropractic and creator of the Gonstead technique. He established a large chiropractic facility in Mount Horeb, Wisconsin.

Early life

Clarence Gonstead was born in Willow Lake, South Dakota on July 23, 1898, the son of Carl and Sarah Gonstead. A few years later, his family moved to a dairy farm in Primrose, Wisconsin. As a boy, Gonstead was interested in repairing tractors and early automobiles, something that would come in handy later in life.

At the age of 19, Gonstead was bedridden with rheumatoid arthritis.^[1] After exhausting all other medical methods, his aunt sought help from a chiropractor named J. B. Olson in Madison, Wisconsin. After some treatments, Gonstead could walk again. This inspired Gonstead to become a chiropractor himself. He would later enroll in the Palmer School of Chiropractic in Davenport, Iowa.

Gonstead continued work as an automotive engineer in Madison and later Racine. The job allowed him to save enough money to pay for school, but more importantly, it taught him basic mechanical engineering concepts that he would later apply to his chiropractic practice.

While enrolled in the Palmer School of Chiropractic, Gonstead became a member of the chiropractic fraternity Delta Sigma Chi.^[2] Gonstead earned a Doctor of Chiropractic degree in 1923 and returned to his native Wisconsin. He would first practice with Olson, the man who inspired him to become a chiropractor, before establishing a practice in Mt. Horeb, Wisconsin. His younger brother Merton would join his practice in 1929 for a few years before starting his own practice. Clarence would remain a sole practitioner for the next twenty years.

Career

Gonstead's method of chiropractic practice was an extension of his training at the Palmer School of Chiropractic. While Gonstead was a student, school president Dr. B.J.Palmer began promoting the neurocalometer (NCM), a chiropractic invention of chiropractor Dossa Evins.^[3] Gonstead assisted in various efforts to improve the quality of these two instruments.

In the 1940's Dr. Gonstead became a consultant for Electronic Development Laboratories (EDL). EDL made the original Nervoscope, a competitor device to the NCM. Over the years, Gonstead helped the company define the device's sensitivity, parameters, and function. Dr. Gonstead also worked with various X-ray companies to optimize full-spine 14x36 X-ray exposure, primarily the use of split screens to account for varying patient density on the lateral film.^[4]

Dr. Gonstead is recognized for applying basic mechanical principles first learned as an auto mechanic to analyzing the spine by using weight-bearing X-ray films. He used his expertise to develop an original chiropractic technique that proved to be successful in treating patients.^{[citation needed]} Gonstead later taught other chiropractors his techniques in a series of seminars.

Gonstead's first office was one of the first chiropractic offices that was not a home office. It was located above the bank building in downtown Mount Horeb, Wisconsin.^[5] In 1939, Dr. Gonstead built the first Gonstead Chiropractic Clinic in downtown Mount Horeb. In 1964 he opened a second clinic just outside of Mount Horeb which treated 300 to 400 patients per day. It was designed by John Steinmann.^[6] The next year, 1965, a motel was constructed next to the clinic to accommodate out-of-town patients and chiropractors attending his seminar.

Colleagues began visiting Dr. Gonstead to observe his methods beginning in the late 1940's. In 1954, a formal program started that led to an organized seminar series. Over the next few years, a group of professional teachers helped to organize a formal teaching system, leading to an ongoing seminar program that offers classes across the country.

Later life

In 1974, Gonstead sold his clinic and seminars to Drs. Alex and Doug Cox. He died on October 2, 1978, at the age of 80. His clinic continues operation under the ownership of the non-profit C.S. Gonstead Chiropractic Foundation.^[7]

See also

• History of chiropractic

References

External links

• Gonstead Clinical Studies Society official website
• The History of Clarence S. Gonstead, D.C.