JOHN T. SHEPHERD was an internationally recognized authority on cardiovascular disease whose exemplary career spanned forty-four years at the Mayo Clinic.

The son and grandson of Presbyterian ministers, Dr. Shepherd continues the fine tradition of Irish storytellers, weaving generous portions of Celtic humor with his historic account of the evolution of the Mayo Clinic into the most renowned medical institution in the United States. From his perspectives over time as Dean of the Mayo Medical School, Director of Research, Director of Education, Chair of the Board of Development, and member of the Mayo Board of Governors, he relates his unique insights into the clinic through a stream of stories about the people and the development of this cutting-edge institution on the Midwestern prairie.

Recounting the dramatic changes that he has observed as well as help effect, Dr. Shepherd also remarks on the colorful cast of colleagues and characters—”from academics to heads of states” who have passed through the Mayo Clinic doors.