The Resume

(October 3, 1803-June 29, 1855)
Born in Nevis, Saint Kitts and Nevis
Physician and inventor
Settled in Apalachicola, Florida (1833)
Received a patent on a machine to make ice (1851)

Why he might be annoying:

He gave up his medical practice to work on his ice machine full time.
He was unable to financially compete with the practice of harvesting ice from New England lakes and storing it for sale in sawdust-lined ice houses.
He went bankrupt when his financial backer died.
His claim of being 'the father of refrigeration' is challenged by boosters of Australian engineer James Harrison, who launched a commercially successful ice-making venture the year Gorrie died.

Why he might not be annoying:

In Apalachicola, in addition to being the resident physician at two hospitals, he also was, at various times, mayor, city treasurer, postmaster, notary public, president of the local branch of the Bank of Pensacola, and a founding vestryman of the Trinity Episcopal Church.
He became interested in refrigeration as a means of cooling sick rooms to reduce fevers and make patients more comfortable.
The original model for his ice-making machine is at the Smithsonian.
The University of Florida medical school bestows a John Gorrie Award each year to 'the best all-around student showing promise of becoming a practitioner of the highest type.'

Credit: C. Fishel

Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

• Bankruptcy
• C. Fishel's Profiles [Series 84]
• Freemasons
• I am an Episcopalian
• I Earned a Doctorate
• Inventors
• Look at Me, My Picture Is Art
• Mayors
• National Statuary Hall Collection at the US Capitol (Ranked: 9)
• People with John or Mary in their Names
• Profiles 53001-53250 (Ranked: 53085)

Year In Review:

In 2023, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
In 2022, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
In 2021, Out of 7 Votes: 0% Annoying