An Early History of Chiropractic: The Palmers and Australia

An Early History of Chiropractic: The Palmers and Australia (Fig 1) is more than an early history of chiropractic in Australia from 1905 to 1945. It is an exhaustive discussion of the earliest days of Palmer chiropractic education from 1897 to 1945. Dr Peters is uniquely qualified to write this book. As a Palmer graduate, he returned to Davenport, IA, for Palmer Lyceum/Homecomings to access the books, journals, and pamphlets in the Palmer College Special Collections. As the former editor of the Chiropractic Journal of Australia, he was able to identify and obtain primary resources in Australia and New Zealand. The result is a well-written book, replete with information that is well documented. His writing style is factual, with little editorializing and sensationalism. The book’s primary audience include chiropractors interested in the early Palmer School history and other health care professionals in Australia. The book is organized in 8 sections, spanning 531 pages. The first section presents methodology and introduces the primary research question: who were the early graduate chiropractors in practice in Australia? The second section addresses the research question and is a detailed investigation of the early Australian chiropractors, starting with Barbara Brake, who received a 3-month certificate from the Palmer School of Chiropractic (PSC) in 1905. During the next 40 years, 71 chiropractors would practice in Australia; 63 of them were PSC graduates. For the reader wanting more details, a short profile of each chiropractic graduate and charts of their national origins, age at commencement of chiropractic study, prechiropractic education, previous occupations, and chiropractic school are provided. The book is documented with copious endnotes.