Dr. Walter Scott Brown (1906-1985) was one of the first Black physicians in Seattle and he undertook groundbreaking work in the field of plastic and reconstructive surgery.

Brown was born in Birmingham, Alabama and moved to Seattle in 1931 after graduating from medical school. He opened a practice and remained a practicing surgeon until shortly before his death. Brown entered the army in 1942 and worked as a flight surgeon, learning techniques such as dermabrasion and using full-thickness skin flaps to close wounds. After World War II, Brown returned to Seattle, opening his own clinic in 1948, where he focused his practice more and more on plastic surgery. In addition to his medical practice, Brown was Clinical Associate Professor of Surgery at the University of Washington, and frequently gave medical testimony in court. In 1979, Brown received an honorary doctorate from Seattle University.

Caption information source: “Walter Scott Brown, MD, 1906-1985,” by James W. Pritchett, MD, retrieved from http://tinyurl.com/WalterScottBrown
Caption information source: “Recognition and Respect: Contextualizing the History and Contributions of Black American Plastic Surgeons,” by Joshua Zev Glahn, Rachel C. Hooper, and Paris M. Butler, PRS Global Open, Volume 11, No. 8, August 2023, retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10419338/