John van Salee de Grasse

Life & Legacy

John van Salee de Grasse (or John Van Surley DeGrasse, June 6, 1825– November 25, 1868) was the first black medical doctor admitted to a United States medical society and a commissioned physician during the American Civil War. Born June 1825 in New York City to Count George DeGrasse and Maria Van Surly. At fifteen, he enrolled in Oneida Institute in New York, later pursuing medical studies at Aubuk College in Paris. DeGrasse earned his medical degree with honors from Bowdoin College’s Medical School of Maine in May 1849, becoming the second African American to do so in the United States. Following graduation, he practiced medicine in Paris alongside renowned surgeon Alfred A.L.M. Velpeau before returning to the U.S. in 1851. He supported abolitionism and efforts to resist the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 by aiding in organizing vigilante groups to oppose slave hunters in Boston.
In 1863 Grasse served as an assistant surgeon with the 35th United States Colored Infantry Regiment. During the American Civil War, de Grasse served in the Union Army as a surgeon with the 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment, the first unit formed of the United States Colored Troops.