Wright, Louis Tompkins (1891–1952)

US physician, surgeon, and civil-rights leader who specialized in head injuries and fractures, but also venereal disease and cancer.

Wright was born in LaGrange, Georgia, and studied at Clark University, Atlanta, and at Harvard Medical School. From 1919 he worked at the Harlem Hospital, New York, rising to director of surgery in 1942 and director of the medical board of Harlem Hospitals in 1948. He was the first black doctor to be appointed to a municipal hospital position in New York City. In 1929 he also became the first black police surgeon in the history of the city. Wright was chair of the board of directors of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People for 17 years.

Wright originated the intradermal method of vaccination against smallpox in 1918. He devised a brace for neck fractures, a blade for the treatment of fractures of the knee joint, and a plate made of tantalum for the repair of recurrent hernias. He also became an authority on the venereal disease lymphogranuloma venereum, and was the first physician to experiment with the antibiotics Aureomycin and Terramycin. In 1948, Wright moved into the field of cancer research and studied the effectiveness of chemotherapeutic drugs.