Rufus Ashley Lyman

Rufus A. Lyman: Pharmacy's Lamplighter

“…In a short biographical sketch, Lyman's sister-in-law, an early graduate and faculty member of the college of pharmacy, noted that ''he was proprietor of a drug store for 4 years'' but no supporting evidence of this claim has been found. 7 While the decision to become a doctor was formed early, the preparation to get there was not easy. Forgoing apprenticeship, Lyman entered the University of Nebraska as an undergraduate, receiving his bachelor of arts degree in 1897.…”

“…6 After graduation he married Carrie Day, a Nebraska graduate of 1898. 7 The young couple moved to Nebraska City for a year to teach at the School for the Blind, and then moved to Omaha where Lyman entered the Omaha Medical College. Lyman spent one summer as a replacement physician in a Wyoming coal mine; worked as a lamplighter for the city of Omaha, and during his final year, was a lecturer in physiology at the College of Medicine.…”