James Bennett McCord (April 5, 1870 – October 5, 1950) was an American medical missionary and physician who founded the McCord Zulu Hospital and spent over three decades treating mostly African, Native, and mixed race patients in Durban, South Africa. He pioneered the training program for the first African nurses, worked towards the establishment of a medical school dedicated to training black doctors, and shared his life story in his autobiography titled My Patients Were Zulus.
Early life and education
James B. McCord was born on April 5, 1870, in Toulon, Illinois, to Robert L. McCord, a Congregational minister in Iowa and Illinois, and Helen D. McCord (née Hopkins), who came from a farming and politically involved family in Illinois. McCord studied at Oberlin College’s preparatory school before continuing on to attend the college. He graduated in 1891 and then attended medical school at Northwestern University. After receiving his medical degree in 1895, he interned at Mercy Hospital in Chicago.
Personal life
McCord met his wife, Margaret McCord (née Mellon), whose parents were former medical missionaries in South Africa, at Oberlin College, and they married on August 14th, 1895. They had six children together: Jessie, Mary, Robert, Laura, William, and Margaret. Unfortunately, Jessie and Laura both unexpectedly passed away in 1919, and although the McCords did not mention it publicly, their daughters’ deaths and the ensuing grief noticeably changed them.
McCord was an avid chess player, and he not only founded the Durban Chess Club but also actively competed in tournaments even after his retirement and return to America. He continued playing until his death and was the oldest to compete in the 1950 U.S. National Chess Championship.
Mission
Call to Serve
During his time at Oberlin College, McCord worked with the Student Volunteer Movement, which inspired him to serve as a missionary. He originally wanted to serve as a minister but realized he was best suited for another job. With his wife Margaret's encouragement, he had pursued medicine in hopes of being a medical missionary. During his internship at Mercy Hospital, McCord enquired the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions for a position and learned that he would not be able to get paid yet due to a lack of funding, so he ended up working in Lake City, Iowa, until 1899 when the Board notified him of a position in Natal, South Africa.
Adams Mission
McCord began learning isiZulu, the Zulu language, for a year, and after, he intended to take over and run the Adams Mission, which was previously managed by Dr. B.N. Bridgman until 1898, in Amanzimtoti, South Africa. However, a new law mandated that a British medical degree was required to practice medicine in Natal, so McCord studied at the Royal College of Surgeons in London, England from 1901 to 1902.
Upon returning to Natal in 1902, it was clear that Adams Mission's location was inaccessible for many patients, as they traveled far to receive care. As word spread about McCord's successful work, more patients journeyed to come see him, and by 1903, McCord was treating 400 patients a month.
Early Years in Durban, South Africa
The McCords were especially convinced to move their practice because of one patient who died from dysentery after walking to Adams Mission for treatment. Durban, South Africa was considered to be a more suitable location, since it was a growing city and closer to a greater population of African, Native, and mixed race people that McCord wanted to serve. In 1904, on 76 Beatrice Street, Greyville, the McCords opened a dispensary, with multiple medicine and consulting rooms, as well as a waiting room, a space reserved for multiple purposes from religious services (since religion was heavily integrated into the dispensary's operations) to evening school. In the first year of operation, more than 4,000 people visited the dispensary to seek treatment, and there was a wide range of conditions seen, including but not limited to indigestion, pneumonia, malaria, and tuberculosis.