Daniel Arnoldi

Life & Legacy

Daniel Arnoldi (March 7, 1774 – July 19, 1849) was a Canadian medical doctor. He was born in Montreal and received his education in England and Montreal, obtaining his medical licence in 1795. He practised in many towns in what is now Quebec and Ontario before establishing a practice in Montreal. He became a medical examiner in 1812, but was excluded in 1823 when the governor decided that only doctors from Montreal General Hospital could be examiners. In 1831, when the power to appoint examiners was transferred to a licensing board chosen by doctors, Arnoldi was appointed to the board. He became the board's chair in 1834 but resigned a few months later when he disagreed with the politics of the board.
In 1836 Arnoldi was fined 10 shillings for assaulting a black man. During the Lower Canada Rebellion he was accused of desecrating a corpse, but this was disputed by a parish priest. In 1847 he was appointed the first president of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Lower Canada. He was infected with cholera in 1849 and died later that year.