Person Page - 1686

     Frank Elmer Kirkendall was born on 20 November 1873 at Licking Co., OH.¹ He was the son of Capt. James William Kirkendall and Caroline Larimore. Frank Elmer Kirkendall married Elizabeth Fisher on 15 September 1899 at Columbus, Franklin Co., OH. Frank Elmer Kirkendall died on 17 July 1944 at age 70.

     Freeman Bourdette Kirkendall was born on 17 August 1895 at Omaha, Douglas Co., NE. He was the son of Freeman P. Kirkendall and Julia Burgert. Freeman Bourdette Kirkendall married Mary C. Cooper, daughter of Samuel Cooper and Sigred L. (?), circa 1922. Freeman Bourdette Kirkendall lived on 24 April 1940 at 225 Thorn Street, Sewickley, Allegheny Co., PA, married, sand and gravel salesman, first name "Francis" on census listing. Mary and Freeman, Jr. are not listed on the 1940 census, probably they were there with Freeman, Sr. in the same household. DLB 2020.¹ He lived at Coffeyville, Montgomery Co., KS. He married Marion Elizabeth Robertson. Freeman Bourdette Kirkendall died on 20 May 1982 at Coffeyville, Montgomery Co., KS, at age 86. He was buried in May 1982 at Fairview Cemetery, Coffeyville, Montgomery Co., KS, Findagrave #50335862.

     Freeman Bourdette Kirkendall Jr. was born on 3 October 1923 at Omaha, Douglas Co., NE. He was the son of Freeman Bourdette Kirkendall and Mary C. Cooper. Freeman Bourdette Kirkendall Jr. died on 9 January 1942 at Sewickley, Allegheny Co., PA, at age 18. He was buried in January 1942 at Sewickley Cemetery, Sewickley, Allegheny Co., PA, Findagrave #159427026.

     Freeman P. Kirkendall was born on 15 February 1843 at Kirkersville, Licking Co., OH. He was the son of James William Kirkendall and Delilah Gilmore. Freeman P. Kirkendall married Medora D. Fell, daughter of Kersey H. Fell and Jane (?), on 1 January 1866 at McLean Co., IL. Freeman P. Kirkendall lived on 1 July 1870 at Bloomington, McLean Co., IL, in the household of Medora's parents, dry goods merchant.¹ He married Julia Burgert circa 1883. Freeman P. Kirkendall died on 29 September 1922 at Omaha, Douglas Co., NE, at age 79. He was buried on 1 October 1922 at Forest Lawn Cemetery, Omaha, Douglas Co., NE, Findagrave #157000944.

     Harriet Don Kirkendall was born on 3 November 1904 at Youngstown, Mahoning Co., OH. She was the daughter of Relna Don Kirkendall and Bessie G. Ensminger. Harriet Don Kirkendall married Oral Detmer Shannon, son of Enos Clifton Shannon and Harriet Alma Heaven, on 19 July 1923 at Spencer, Clay Co., IA. Harriet Don Kirkendall and Oral Detmer Shannon were divorced before 25 April 1930 at Des Moines or Chicago. Harriet Don Kirkendall lived on 25 April 1930 at Wrightwood Ave., Chicago, Cook Co., IL, living with her mother. She married Simon D. O'Donnell, son of William O'Donnell and Henrietta Birchall, before April 1940. Harriet Don Kirkendall died on 29 November 1944 at Chicago, Cook Co., IL, at age 40. She was buried in December 1944 at Irving Park Cemetery, Chicago, Cook Co., IL, Headstone shows her surname "Shannon".

     Howard Richard Kirkendall was born on 5 February 1922 at Ogden, Boone Co., IA. He was the son of William Walter Kirkendall and Ada Marie Platter. Howard Richard Kirkendall married Zelia Virginia Wirtz, daughter of Alfred Gottlieb Wirtz and Bernice Josephine Curry, on 31 August 1944. Howard Richard Kirkendall died on 19 July 1991 at age 69. He was buried in July 1991 at Glenwood Cemetery, Ogden, Boone Co., IA, Findagrave #102915668.

     James Freeman Kirkendall was born on 7 April 1869 at Licking Co., OH.¹ He was the son of Capt. James William Kirkendall and Caroline Larimore.
Note: NEWSPAPER ARTICLE - The Granville (Ohio) Times, Friday, April 8, 1887

Jas. Kirkendall, Jr., of Outville, and Frank Hunter of Lancaster, left some time since for Nebraska, where they expect to locate. We wish the boys success. James Freeman Kirkendall married Hazel Viola Wood, daughter of John H. Wood and Mary Ann McDonald, on 3 July 1899 at Omaha, Douglas Co., NE, no children. James Freeman Kirkendall died on 19 April 1935 at Chicago, Cook Co., IL, at age 66. He was buried in April 1935 at Rosehill Cemetery and Mausoleum, Chicago, Cook Co., IL, Findagrave #98041752.

     James Stuart Kirkendall was born on 11 September 1903 at Louisville, Jefferson Co., KY. He was the son of Charles Allen Kirkendall and Mary Ellen Bainter. James Stuart Kirkendall began military service Kentucky National Guard, 138th Field Artillery. He married Content Douglas Lansing, daughter of Edward T. Lansing and Marianne (?), on 3 February 1929. Occupation: Geologist with gas company in 1930 at Ashland, Boyd Co., KY. James Stuart Kirkendall lived in 1930 at Ashland, Boyd Co., KY, census p.14A. He died on 7 June 1990 at age 86 date per SSDI.

     Note: Birth date based on headstone legend:
"Died Feb. 13, 1848, aged 41 Yr. & 4 M."

Headstone still barely legible, is lying face up on the burial plot as of April, 1999 (seen and photographed by Donald L. Boyd). Buried next to first wife Catherine Gilmore and an infant (presumed to be Mary, b. 1832), who have identical style headstones, also still legible.

James Kirkendall was born in Pennsylvania, presumably a descendant of Luur Jacobszen Van Kuykendaal, born about 1650 in New Amsterdam, and his wife Grietje Tack, through their son Cornelius, but further research of Pennsylvania records is required to identify his ancestry.

James William Kirkendall was born on 13 October 1806 at Pennsylvania. He married Catherine Gilmore, daughter of John Gilmore and Ann S. Brumfield, circa 1830. James William Kirkendall married Delilah Gilmore, daughter of John Gilmore and Ann S. Brumfield, on 7 June 1835 at Fairfield Co., OH. James William Kirkendall died on 13 February 1848 at Licking Co., OH, at age 41. He was buried on 13 February 1848 at Luray Cemetery, Licking Co., OH, Findagrave #40727005.

     Capt. James William Kirkendall was born on 12 June 1838 at Etna, Licking Co., OH.² He was the son of James William Kirkendall and Delilah Gilmore. Capt. James William Kirkendall began military service between 1861 and 1865 Civil War Service, U.S. Army

Ohio Volunteer Cavalry, Company D, 1st Regiment

Enlisted 5 August 1861, Camp Chase, Ohio
5' 7" tall, fair complexion, black eyes, black hair
Occupation at the time of enlistment: Farmer

October 7, 1862: In pursuit of Gen. Bragg's army, received a disabling gunshot wound to his right hand in a skirmish with rebels near Springfield, Kentucky the day prior to the Battle of Perryville. He returned to fight after having his hand treated by the Surgeon.

February 12, 1863: As First Sergeant of Captain S. G. Hamilton's Company D, First Regiment, OVC, received commission as 2nd Lieutenant at age 24.

April 8, 1864: Received promotion to Captain.

September 13, 1865: Mustered out.

He married Caroline Larimore, daughter of James Larimore and Ann Eliza DeWald, on 30 October 1866 at the home of the bride, Union Twp., Licking Co., OH, Ceremony by Rev. H. W. Hiestand.² Capt. James William Kirkendall died on 13 April 1909 at Columbus, Franklin Co., OH, at age 70.² He was buried in April 1909 at Green Lawn Cemetery, Columbus, Franklin Co., OH, Find A Grave Memorial# 39549827.

     Julia Kirkendall died on 14 February 1992. She was born on 14 February 1992.

     Louella L. Kirkendall was born on 18 September 1867 at Licking Co., OH.¹ She was the daughter of Capt. James William Kirkendall and Caroline Larimore. Louella L. Kirkendall died on 20 February 1939 at Columbus, Franklin Co., OH, at age 71 OBITUARY - The Granville (Ohio) Times, February 23, 1939

Heart Attack Fatal To Louella Kirkendall
Miss Louella L. Kirkendall, who for 40 years has served as stenographer and secretary to the grand secretary of the Grand Lodge of Ohio, I. O. O. F., died suddenly at her home, 2678 Valleyview drive, Columbus, Monday night.
She was a native of Union township, Licking county, the family having resided near the B. V. Price farm about 40 years ago.
Miss Kirkendall had been at her office as usual Monday, her death following a heart attack. She was a life-long resident of Columbus and had been active in Odd Fellowship, working through the Rebekah organization with which she was affiliated in Columbus.
Funeral services were held at 2 p.m., Wednesday at the residence. Three brothers and a sister, Frank, Carl and Charles Kirkendall and Mrs. A. Rodgers, survive her.


Note: Did not marry.

     Marianne Yates Kirkendall was born on 8 October 1941 at Midland Co., TX. She was the daughter of James Stuart Kirkendall and Content Douglas Lansing. Marianne Yates Kirkendall died in April 1979 at Nashville, Davidson Co. (probably), TN, at age 37.

     Martha Kirkendall was born circa 1834 at Licking Co., OH.¹ She was the daughter of James William Kirkendall and Catherine Gilmore. Martha Kirkendall lived on 21 September 1850 at Kirkersville, Licking Co., OH, living with grandmother Nancy (Brumfield) Gilmore and her uncle Bromfield Gilmore. The census doesn't show her surname, but indicated erroneously that it was the same as the others in the family.¹ She married K. H. Stevenson on 11 February 1853 at Fairfield Co., OH. Martha Kirkendall married (?) Mueller circa 1875.
Note: Lost at sea during visit to Germany.

     Mary Elizabeth Kirkendall was born circa 1832 at Licking Co., OH. She was the daughter of James William Kirkendall and Catherine Gilmore. Mary Elizabeth Kirkendall was buried circa 1835 at Luray Cemetery, Licking Co., OH, Findagrave #40726717. She died circa 1835 at Licking Co., OH.

     Nancy Stuart Kirkendall was born on 27 December 1935. She was the daughter of James Stuart Kirkendall and Content Douglas Lansing. Nancy Stuart Kirkendall was educated at Tulane University, New Orleans, LA. She died.

     Olive Kirkendall was born on 10 March 1837 at Licking Co., OH. She was the daughter of James William Kirkendall and Delilah Gilmore. Olive Kirkendall married Freeman P. Thomas. Olive Kirkendall married Saul P. Lyon, son of Stephen Lyon and Juda (?), circa 1877.¹ Olive Kirkendall lived on 20 June 1900 at Vasquez Precinct, Jefferson Co., CO.¹ She lived on 18 May 1910 at Ames Street, Berkeley Precinct, Jefferson Co., CO.² She died on 5 January 1911 at Eugene, Lane Co., OR, at age 73 OBITUARY -- Eugene Morning Register, 6 JAN 1911:

LYONS -- At 227 West Eighth street, Thursday, January 5, at 6 a.m., Mrs. Olive Lyons, aged 74 years.
Deceased was the mother of Free Thomas of this city. Her husband died recently in Denver, Colorado. The deceased has been a great sufferer for the past two years and during the past few days has been in terrible pain. She was conscious till the last.
Funeral service will be held at Gordon's chapel on Friday afternoon at 2 o'clock conducted by Rev. H. S. Wilkinson and interment will be made at the Odd Fellows cemetery.

She was buried on 6 January 1911 at Eugene Pioneer Cemetery, Eugene, Lane Co., OR, unmarked grave purchased by her son Free Thomas Jr.

     Olive Dell Kirkendall was born on 17 August 1878 at Licking Co., OH.¹ She was the daughter of Capt. James William Kirkendall and Caroline Larimore. Olive Dell Kirkendall married Archibald Rodgers, son of Maj. Andrew Denny Rodgers and Eliza Griscom Sullivant, on 15 November 1904 at Columbus, Franklin Co., OH. Olive Dell Kirkendall died on 16 February 1973 at New Carlisle, Clark Co., OH, at age 94. She was buried in February 1973 at Green Lawn Cemetery, Columbus, Franklin Co., OH, Find A Grave Memorial# 47958718.

     Relna Don Kirkendall was born on 26 October 1880 at Licking Co., OH.¹ He was the son of Capt. James William Kirkendall and Caroline Larimore. Relna Don Kirkendall married Bessie G. Ensminger, daughter of Charles T. Ensminger and Caroline Christiana Reynolds, in September 1903 at Columbus, Franklin Co., OH. Cause of death: on 29 December 1918 Liver Cancer. Relna Don Kirkendall died on 29 December 1918 at Franklin Co., OH, at age 38. He was buried at Green Lawn Cemetery, Columbus, Franklin Co., OH, Find A Grave Memorial# 79131402.

     Dr. Walter Murray Kirkendall M.D. was born on 31 March 1917 at Louisville, Jefferson Co., KY.¹ He was the son of Charles Allen Kirkendall and Margaret Caplinger. Dr. Walter Murray Kirkendall M.D. married Margaret Jane Allen, daughter of William Thomas Allen and Grace Mary Payne, on 31 March 1948. Occupation: Medical Doctor. Dr. Walter Murray Kirkendall M.D. died on 11 July 1991 at Chicago, Cook Co., IL, at age 74

W.C. Kirkendall's Eulogy of Walter Murray Kirkendall Delivered during funeral of Walter M. Kirkendall July 17, 1991 Saint Michael's Catholic Church, Houston, Texas:

Thank each of you for attending and for your thougts and prayers. I can't tell you what a comfort this has been to my mother and our family during this all too sudden travail. After the service all of you are invited across the street from the church here for a gathering. Please join us.

My brother Tom and I want to share with you some remembrances and thoughts from the family about Dad and his life.

We are comforted in a sense in knowing that life goes on -- birth and death are the eternal cycle from which none of us are immune. Dad died in the Chicago-area while there to attend my cousin Sarah's wedding. As my brother Jim mentioned, that really is a beautiful symmetry.

But although this is the natural course of things that Dad too should pass from this temporary existence, it is not only fitting but necessary that we pause to reflect on the life of this truly remarkable man.

I've heard many wonderful anecdotes from many wonderful people this week about Dad, his foibles, his passions, his humor - but anecdotes aren't adequate to tell the full measure of this man. Very few people can honestly say that their father was the best person they ever knew but I believe Walter's kids can.

When I think of Dad, the foremost attribute I remember - the underpinning of all the others we will mention - was his integrity. Somebody called him "the last truly honest man" and in many ways he was.

He didn't lie

He wasn't obfuscatory

He was rarely disingenuous unless absolutely necessary to win an argument at the dinner table when he had taken a clearly untenable position simply for the sake of argument.

He was totally honest about everything - except, of course, golf, about which he was an incurable optimist. My cousin Joe said that the night before he died, Dad was trying to find a driving range to practice on. Totally unrealistically, he believed the next swing might be the perfect one.

Dad once told me that "an honest man never minds having his change counted." He lived by that bromide - in fact, I suspect no one ever made change for him that he did not count. Quintessentially fair, though, he expected his to be counted as well.

He never sought an unfair or unearned advantage in any situation in his professional or personal life---although some of his golfing friends might dispute that after being subjected to his 1st tee soliloquies. One friend of mine, a notoriously parsimonious dentist in Seguin, played once with my dad several years ago with a new friendly wagering game Dad was promoting, called "Wolf". When the game was over and the wagers computed, my friend had shot about an 80 and Dad shot his usual 105-110 — and my friend owed Dad about $30.
Thereafter this friend wanted to know whenever Dad came to town -- so he could be gone.

In addition to the sense of fairness (or possibly because of it) he had the rare habit of expecting the best from people because he expected people to act as he did.

But he understood one truism of life--you can never be happy with other people if you hold them to the same standards you hold yourself.

Quite possibly some former students or residents would dispute that but you must remember his altruism--the people he was concerned with while teaching were not so much his pupils as their future patients.

He would demand excellence but no more than a person was capable of. Because of these attributes he could extract that which was good from everyone he encountered and promote their continued excellence.

He could be understanding and forgiving, with time, and, unlike many at his level of achievement, adaptable.

That is not to say he was passive or never angry or frustrated but he got over it, put it in perspective and his belief in people allowed him a remarkable resilience and persistence. Which, of course, is the major reason he survived in the politics of academic medicine--surely the most labyrinthine since the court of Louis XIV.

A true egalitarian, he never met a person from whom he couldn't learn something. He could as easily have a good time speaking to the gas station attendant as to a judge or university president. Being in politics and elective office myself, I pride myself on that quality but Dad outstripped us all because he noticed people. He could joke with them or share a frustration with them. He had many, many patients from very different walks of life with whom he remained close because they had made that "connection" he was so good at making. Naturally and incurably curious, Dad regarded each person as a resource.

He had no personal pretensions of any kind. When the young kids would visit his office, we would wonder why everyone else's office was so neat, no piles of articles, no notes pinned to wall, no boxes piled up in the corner. The fact is that Dad didn't care a whit what his work area looked like as long as he knew where everything was and he could work in relative peace and efficiency.

Service to people and to the community was one of the most important attributes he preached to us. When we wrote his obituary, it was amazing how often the word serve or service had to be used:

he served in the army;
he served as a teacher;
he served as a doctor;
he served as a consultant;
he served on numerous boards and committees;

and all without regard to compensation. That is not to say he didn't enjoy it when he got compensation but it was never the primary reason. His goal, his primary goal, was to be productive (which was possibly his favorite word in the English language) and to leave the world a better place.

He knew that the only way for the world to work is for everyone to make the best contribution possible--and he did, every single day of his life.

But the defining aspect of his life will always be his family. He told me once that he always knew that his greatest joys and his greatest sorrows would be in his family. He got his priorities right very early.

When we were young he worked long hours and very hard but he gave up everything else to raise a family. No golf until we were old enough to join him, no private hobbies or sanctuaries. Every moment away from the hospital was devoted to his family.

This man who liked order and the scientific method in his work loved chaos at home--the more the merrier. Remember the song from Les Miserables? "Master of the house, keeper of the zoo. . ." That was Dad. Nothing thrilled him more than seeing a half dozen or more cars in the driveway when he came home.

Mom and Dad will leave many legacies but their family is the greatest. Not many people can say they have done the sheer physical act of having and raising 10 children but to have 10 productive & reasonably well-adjusted adults thrilled him to no end. And he has had, and the lessons he left will have, the same kind of impact on his grandchildren.

Funerals for Christians represent sadness at a temporary separation. We will always have Dad here in spirit but we cannot help but grieve at all our loss.

Jesus said "in my father's house are many rooms. . ." When we someday join Dad in that house I know that he will have explored every room, in the company of his beloved grandson, Walter Hugh, who predeceased him this year, will know every person in those rooms and will be impatiently wondering what took us so long.


Matthew Kirkendall's Eulogy of Walter Murray Kirkendall Delivered during Memorial Service for Walter Murray Kirkendall, M.D. July 18, 1991 University of Texas Medical School, Houston, Texas

Dr. Ribble and Dr. Willerson:
My family is honored to be with the University of Texas Medical community today to share our sorrow at the death of Dr. Kirkendall.

You all were very important to him and in truth represented an extended family for him - bound by his love for the practice of medicine.

He had a productive life with a medical career that spanned 50 years and gained a national reputation for clinical and academic excellence. Many of you helped him in his work and share in his accomplishments.

I've talked to so many of you over the last several days and thank you for your condolences and kindness to our family. I was struck, though, by how often it was personal interaction with him that was so important. Ward service together, committee assignments, discussion of a problem, or just a joke in the hallway — many such events over months and years established for you individually many of his endearing qualities. So many of you noted that you would just stop in on a regular basis to exchange ideas.

His office was on the first floor and his door was always open. This kind of activity gives the school its life and soul.

I'd like to share some memories of Dr. Kirkendall with you.

He was born in Louisville, Kentucky and supposedly obtained his demanding nature and southern charm from his mother, one of the Caplinger girls who were notorious Southern belles of the day. These women were known for a series of Byzantine-like feuds where one or another wouldn't talk for months at a time. Walter noted that while growing up he often wouldn't know which aunt he was officially allowed to talk to. All of this may have prepared him for the intricate politics of a career in academic medicine. But he preferred cooperation rather than confrontation. Many of you noted to me that he seemed to be a man without enemies and above criticism.

He went to the University of Louisville Medical School and this provided the only deep, dark secret I know about him - in that he planned to become a surgeon. It was the needs of the U. S. Army which determined his career as an internist.

He served in North Africa and Italy with distinction during World War II. His medical citation noted his organization of a field hospital provided excellent medical care with limited supplies and became the model for such facilities in the entire theatre. He was always quite reticent about his wartime service and never gave many details. However he did note that a portrayal of General Patton in one movie was "too nice to the S.O.B."

He came to the University of Iowa after the war to finish his medical residency. It was during this time that he met Margaret Allen who was an R.N. at the university hospital. Apparently, their relationship developed slowly, Dad had the reputation of being rather the General Patton of the medicine wards. The courtship was marked by a series of fits and starts with Margaret vowing more than once to be done with the 30 year old spoiled, confirmed bachelor. Thankfully, for myself and my 9 brothers and sisters, things finally worked out. The marriage they developed over 43 years was marked by profound love and respect. Margaret was supportive and a partner in all his accomplishments and endeavors. Woe unto the poor person who implies to Margaret Kirkendall that a housewife and mother is not a career woman.

He was always very competitive and loved to challenge someone. A patient evaluation was part of the Internal Medicine board exam at that time. Dr. Kirkendall drew a patient with dyspnea reportedly from COPD, which had been diagnosed by several dozen examiners prior to that time. Walter disagreed with that diagnosis and found mitral stenosis instead. His examiner could not hear a murmur, but he was a gastroenterologist who had access to the correct diagnosis, but felt unsure of himself when confronted by the self-assured candidate. He asked another examiner, a cardiologist, his opinion, who agreed with the diagnosis of mitral stenosis. So was started the legend, soon to become the bane of a generation of medical students, residents and fellows of Dr. Kirkendall's preeminence at physical diagnosis.

Through his life, Dr. Kirkendall received many awards and honors. Those that he cherished the most were the teaching awards he received from his students. It is so appropriate that he should be remembered as a teacher. He so often tried to impart not just medical information to students but some of his joy and enthusiasm in the practice of medicine. Admittedly, this could be painful at times — such as trying to commit large tracts of Debocolin and DeGowin physical diagnosis to memory. But he also tried to foster curiosity — to instill the need to research a problem because so much of medicine has to be self-taught and the need to reeducate oneself never ends.

He had rigid standards — but then his predominate concern was for competent patient care. He always had great compassion for his patients and felt whatever their background or means, they were due his best effects. A patient had come to pay his respects and when asked what he remembered best about Walter he said "he's my doctor who'd do just about anything to keep me well." A fitting epitaph for any physician.

Another physician when surveying Walter's life noted that he had always been a builder, that each place he went he would build a foundation and not an empire. Each institution would have a chance to grow and develop. It was this urge to build which attracted him to Houston and the University of Texas — to help create a new medical school, one without limitations that with work and care might become one of the preeminent schools in the country — this challenge continued to stimulate him. Margaret had long ago given up hope that he might retire one day, but took solace in knowing every day he was happy and doing what he wanted and loved to do.

My Father's death has left a great void in our family. It is a period of transition for us, but also for you. Walter knew better than most that things change — he always sought to grow in his life, for if you didn't, you risked stagnation.

But he exhibited qualities that helped him deal with new situations and these should be important to us in our personal and professional lives:

Kindness and honesty.

Compassion to patients and loyalty to friends, and always an insatiable curiosity.

He leaves us challenges — that as physicians, nurses, and medical personnel, we strive always to improve patient care and as colleagues we make a commitment to continue to build this university.

Try to hold his memory with us.

In the library or in the hall when you pass his old office — remember his door was always open.

Dr. Walter M. Kirkendall: husband, father, physician, teacher, friend.


MEMORIAL
WALTER MURRAY KIRKENDALL
CHEVES M. SMYTHE
JOHN W. ECKSTEIN

Walter M. Kirkendall died suddenly and unexpectedly on Saturday morning, July 13, 1991. He was born March 13, 1917, in Louisville, Kentucky, and graduated from the University of Louisville School of Medicine in 1941. He interned at the University of Iowa in 1941-42 and, after a three-year stint in the Army in North Africa and Italy, returned to Iowa to complete his training in medicine. There he married Margaret Allen in 1948. He spent 26 years at Iowa developing a national and international reputation as a student of hypertensive disease.

Walter, a happy, competitive house officer, was fond of quoting, "Residents are people who reside in the hospital." He followed this dictum and was the first to arrive on the wards in the morning and last to leave. He became a role model for students and younger house officers. He made popular the "game" of upstaging colleagues by uncovering physical signs and important details of the patient's history which others had missed. Thus when William B. Bean arrived in 1948 to be the Head of the Department of Internal Medicine, the intensity of the search for missed heart murmurs and skin lesions was established. Bean understood the value of this emphasis on precision and thoroughness in clinical data gathering as an important teaching technique.

Walter joined the Iowa faculty in 1949 and played a major role in the development of the Department during the next 23 years. He belonged to that special group of young physicians who returned from World War II to become the new academic leaders. His colleague, Mark Armstrong, remembers Walter Kirkendall at the bedside in those post-war years insisting that malignant hypertension could be reversed, that cardiac edema could be treated, and that bacterial endocarditis need not be a mandatory death warrant. This optimistic view of therapeutic intervention was a remarkable change from the sense of therapeutic powerlessness which these men inherited from their pre-World War II professors. Armstrong believes that Kirkendall's attitude of therapeutic optimism, which he held throughout his life, was one of his greatest contributions to the education of his students.

Kirkendall developed a program of teaching and research in hypertension and renal disease for which he received national and international recognition. This was to continue throughout his professional career. His first publications involved various aspects of renal disease, and by 1955 there were papers on the effects of drugs in patients and hypertension. After 1960, virtually all his 85 abstracts and 72 papers can be considered studies of the clinical pharmacology of hypertension. He was active in many organizations including the American Heart Association, the American College of Physicians and those clinical and research societies concerned with hypertension and kidney disease. For the National Institutes of Health he was chairman of the Heart Training Committee B from 1966 to 1970. He was a member of the Executive Committee of the National High Blood Pressure Education Program of the NIH, and a member of the NIH Policy Board on the Study of Sodium, Potassium and Weight Reduction in Hypertension. He was a member of the Merit Review Board for Nephrology in the Veterans Administration; he chaired the Board from 1968-1970. He was a member of the Executive Committee of the V.A. Cooperative Study of the Effects of Withdrawal of Antihypertensive Medication. One of his favorite organizations was the American Heart Association's Council for High Blood Pressure Research where he served on all important committees of this council and went through the offices.

He became the first Chief of Medicine at the Iowa City Veterans Administration Hospital in 1952, and in that role he helped initiate an affiliation which later became a model for Dean's Committee Hospitals. He directed the Cardiovascular Research Laboratories at Iowa from 1958 to 1970 and the Renal-Hypertension Division from 1970-1972. During his years at Iowa, he directed or participated in the training and academic development of many residents, fellows and junior faculty members. Each of these persons became close friends and professional colleagues. It would be difficult to count the number of deans and associate deans, professors of medicine, division directors in cardiology and nephrology, and faculty members in pharmacology and physiology whose careers were advanced because of Walter's help and advice. He was liked and his help and counsel was appreciated.

In 1972 he went to Texas as the first Professor and Chairman of the Department of Medicine at the new University of Texas Medical School at Houston. He remained there as an active contributor to the work of the Department and its major teaching program at Hermann Hospital until the day of his death. Walter was not the retiring type. Indeed, his name is on an abstract to be presented four months after his death.

This outline epitomizes much about him: two institutions served loyally for over twenty years each, one area of medicine persistently studied for a lifetime. But it does not present his unique and endearing qualities. He truly cared about people. As Chief of Medicine, he was devoted to his residents and development of their careers. He was an outstanding and gifted teacher of medical students. Although he possessed an acutely developed and sometimes applied critical sense, his was a generous spirit which could forgive much.

Any account of his life must include his family. Walter and Meg raised ten children-seven sons, three daughters and now twenty-two grandchildren. As one of his sons said at the memorial service, "He must have been doing something right because all of us have turned out to be reasonably well-adjusted and productive human beings." He was a caring father and was deeply involved in transferring to his children those values which guided his life. These principles were evident daily in Walter's work. He brought to clinical medicine the same qualities he brought to everything he did: thoroughness, fairness and profound concern for his patients, their problems and their families and understanding humor. Patients rich or poor, famous or unknown, in Iowa or Texas sensed this as did students and residents. It was from his being a superior physician that he was awarded the respect which allowed him to be so effective in Medical School and Hospital affairs.

As the years went by, Walter became the father, the patriarch of the faculty of the University of Texas Medical School at Houston. Many parts of his personality came together to make this role almost inevitable. As a result his always open door was entered by a stream of people seeking advice, or just in for a chat, and this included everyone from junior medical students to the most senior members of the faculty. The value placed on his judgment also led to yet another role as the person to whom both Medical School and Hospital turned when a firm and even hand was needed. Thus, he chaired the Committee for the Protection of Human Subjects, the Student Evaluation and Promotion Committee, served repeated terms on the Curriculum Committee, and was repeatedly appointed to lead internal department review committees.

Walter had other facets. Any conversation about him invariably turns to anecdotes about his detestation of wastefulness; the clutter of his office; his sense of humor; his competitiveness; his stress on physical fitness especially after his first myocardial infarction in 1972, his suspicion that the sodium ion is bad for your health, and golf. He loved the game, and in his arrangement of teams, bets, presses, his unremitting verbal psychological warfare against his opponents, his delight in winning, we all saw much of his zest for living.

As one could predict, the attendance at this unusual, much loved, active man's funeral was huge, as it was at a memorial service held for him at the Medical Center. Not only the numbers, but the extraordinary range and diversity of people who came to honor him, added up to a powerful statement of his positive influence on many lives.¹

     William Walter Kirkendall was born on 6 September 1882 at Boone Co., IA. He married Ada Marie Platter on 23 June 1915 at Boone, Boone Co., IA, After William's death, Ada remarried to Leroy Littleton and is buried with him. William Walter Kirkendall died on 17 September 1930 at Boone Co., IA, at age 48. He was buried in September 1930 at Glenwood Cemetery, Ogden, Boone Co., IA, Findagrave #23011841.

     Grace Agnes Kirkham was born on 16 October 1909. She married Lyle Edward Howard on 20 September 1927 at Jefferson Co., IA. Grace Agnes Kirkham died on 12 January 1998 at Maricopa Co., AZ, at age 88 Dates per SSDI, last residence Phoenix.

     (?) Kirkpatrick married John Lane.

     Amanda Kirkpatrick was born on 24 January 1874.¹ She was the daughter of James Kirkpatrick and Alice (?) Amanda Kirkpatrick married Samuel Henry Arnold, son of Rev. John Stouffer Arnold and Hannah Strickler, on 4 September 1906.¹

     Amanda Jane Kirkpatrick was born on 17 November 1835 at Fayette Co., OH.^1,2 She was the daughter of Thomas Kirkpatrick and Elizabeth Parrett. Amanda Jane Kirkpatrick married Rev. Timothy Welles Stanley, son of Gen. Timothy Robbins Stanley and Prudence Welles, on 29 August 1861 at Fayette Co., OH.³ Amanda Jane Kirkpatrick died on 8 February 1923 at Delaware, Delaware Co., OH, at age 87. She was buried in February 1923 at Oak Grove Cemetery, Delaware, Delaware Co., OH, Findagrave #16960645.

     Augustus Kirkpatrick was born circa 1842 at Fayette Co., OH.¹ He was the son of Thomas Kirkpatrick and Elizabeth Parrett.¹

     Billy Jo Kirkpatrick was born on 13 January 1971. He was the son of Marilyn Anderson. Billy Jo Kirkpatrick died circa 1972.

     Blanche Kirkpatrick was born on 10 December 1876. She married George Franklin South, son of Job South and Sarah A. Porter, on 31 December 1896 at Wetzel Co., WV. Blanche Kirkpatrick died on 10 January 1901 at age 24. She was buried in January 1901 at Jackson Family Cemetery, Knob Fork, Wetzel Co., WV, Findagrave #135985064.

     Blanche Fern Kirkpatrick was born on 26 February 1904 at Tennessee Twp., McDonough Co., IL. She was the daughter of George Melvin Kirkpatrick and Anna Maude Mourning. Blanche Fern Kirkpatrick married Robert Kenneth Pennington, son of Archie Pennington and Amy Musgrove, on 11 July 1925 at McDonough Co., IL. Blanche Fern Kirkpatrick married Richard Ellis Bidle, son of George Bidle and Anna Ellis, after 1934. Blanche Fern Kirkpatrick died on 11 April 1966 at Pana, Christian Co., IL, at age 62.

     Burdette Frank Kirkpatrick was born on 23 July 1912 at McDonough Co., IL. He was the son of Frank Kirkpatrick and Grace Louella Neff. Burdette Frank Kirkpatrick began military service WW II, U.S. Navy, then served 26 years as a commissioned officer. He died on 12 November 2003 at Urbana, Champaign Co., IL, at age 91 OBITUARY - Star Courier, Kewanee, Illinois 18 November 2003

WYOMING -- B.F. "Kirk" Kirkpatrick, 91, of Champaign and formerly of Wyoming, died at 5:45 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2003, at Manor Care Health Service of Urbana. Graveside services will be at 2:30 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 15, at Pleasant Valley Cemetery, rural Wyoming. The Rev. Dr. Ted Snider will officiate. Memorials may be made to a charity of the donor's choice. Wyoming Funeral Home is in charge of local arrangements.
Born July 23, 1912, in McDonough County, Illinois, the son of Frank and Grace (Neff) Kirkpatrick, he married Mary Owen on June 12, 1963, in Urbana. She survives, as does a son, Alan Kirkpatrick of San Diego; and two grand children. His parents, five brothers and a sister preceded him in death.
He was a World War II Navy veteran, serving 26 years as a commissioned officer. He was a graduate of Western Illinois University, Macomb, and the University of Illinois Law School.
He was a professor of business law for 20 years at the University of Illinois, Champaign, retiring in 1972. He was a member of the Illinois Bar Association, Champaign County Bar Association, Alpha Delta law fraternity and First Presbyterian Church in Champaign, and was past president of the University of Illinois Social Faculty Club. He also was a lifetime member of the American Legion in Champaign.