Adams, Bertrand R. 1907-2007.

Bertrand R. Adams was born November 29, 1907, on a farm south of Webster City, Iowa. During high school, he became interested in art, and upon graduation he enrolled in an art correspondence course through the Federal School of Commercial Designing (now Art Instruction Schools). He received his diploma from the school in 1932 and also graduated with a BFA (1932) from the University of Iowa in the same year.

Adams, along with 13 other artists, was selected by Grant Wood to assist in painting a set of murals for the Iowa State College (University) Library in 1934. Adams was later commissioned by the United States government to complete two murals for placement in post offices. One was for the Dubuque, Iowa, post office, titles "Early Settlers Dubuque" and the other for the post office in Siloam Springs, Arkansas, titled "Lumbering in Arkansas."

After over a decade of pursuing a career in art, Adams decided to change course and attended the Des Moines Stull College of Osteopathy (now Des Moines University.) He received his license to practice in 1943. He interned at the Detroit Osteopathic Hospital, and in 1944 opened an office in downtown Ames, Iowa, as an osteopathic physician. Adams eventually moved his office into the lower level of the house he built in Ames and retired from practice in 1991.

Adams was a very inquisitive man. As a physician he was interested in all kinds of medical research related to a wide spectrum of areas including diet, exercise, nutrition, and organic food and was also willing to explore less mainstream fields such as acupuncture, reflexology, and electronic medicine. Adams also had a number of equally varied interests outside of his medical profession. He studied hypnosis, auras, psychic phenomena, graphology, phrenology, astronomy, astrology, religion, architecture, and gardening. He devoted many hours to professional, civic, and religious groups and associations.

Adams first met Mary E. Beymer while both were attending art school at the University of Iowa. They eventually married in Des Moines in 1956. They had no children together, but helped raise Mary's nephew, William Wolters. Bertrand Adams died December 15, 1994.