Butler, Allan Macy

Allan Macy Butler (1894-1986), LittB, 1916, Princeton University; MD, 1926, Harvard Medical School, was Chief of the Children’s Medical Service at Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston and Professor of Pediatrics at Harvard Medical School from 1942 to 1960. An early believer in reform of the American ‘fee-for-service’ health care system, Butler advocated for government-paid medical care for the elderly and for low-income people, making him a pioneer in health maintenance services .

Allan Macy Butler was born in Yonkers, New York on April 3, 1894. Upon graduating from Princeton University, Butler served in Europe in World War I in both the British and American armies. He returned to the United States to work as a bond salesman and labor negotiator prior to entering Harvard Medical School in 1922. Butler was appointed Chief of the Children’s Medical Service at Massachusetts General Hospital and Professor of Pediatrics at Harvard Medical School, positions he held from 1942 to 1960. From 1960 to1962, following his retirement from Massachusetts General and Harvard, Butler helped establish the Community Health Association in Detroit, Michigan’s first official prepaid health care program based on preventive medicine. He also served as Director of Clinical Services and Chief of Pediatrics of the Metropolitan Hospital, Detroit. From 1962 to 1968, Butler held several teaching and consulting positions, among which were: Special Consultant to the Bureau of Maternal and Child Health of the California State Department of Public Health ; Consultant for the Head Start program in Washington, D.C.; Lecturer in the Department of Pediatrics at Stanford University; and Director of Medical Education at St. Luke’s Hospital, San Francisco. Butler was also part of a small resident staff at the Center for the Study of Democratic Institutions in Santa Barbara, California, a policy institute that sought to broaden the public debate on a number of issues, including war, democracy, dissent, and community action.

Butler’s professional appointments often fell in line with his political activities. Throughout his career, he actively contributed to professional publications, both as an editor and writer. In 1937, as the Associate Editor of the New England Journal of Medicine, Butler wrote a series of articles making recommendations on improving health care delivery in the United States, which were met with resistance. The American Medical Association opposed any changes to the current system, saying that Butler’s proposal was a step toward socialized medicine. In 1940, he was forced to resign. Butler was a dedicated opponent of the Vietnam War and a supporter of abortion rights, nuclear disarmament, and nonviolent resistance. He was put on trial for participating in Un-American activities under the Subversive Activities Control Act of 1950 .

Butler contributed to advancements in pediatric medicine through his research in fluid and electrolyte metabolism (derived from life-raft studies conducted during World War II), metabolic disorders, and treatments for diarrhea and dehydration. He received the American Pediatric Society's highest award, the John Howland Medal, in 1969.

In 1921, Butler married Mabel Churchill, daughter of American novelist Winston Churchill, and had three children: Margaret Butler, Beverly Butler, and Allan Butler, Jr. Butler died at his home in Tisbury, Massachusetts in 1986.

From the guide to the Papers, 1916-1986 (inclusive), 1930-1969 (bulk), (Center for the History of Medicine.Francis A. Countway Library of Medicine.)