History - Knobbs Chiropractic

Chiropractic embraces the science of life, the knowledge of how organisms act in health and disease, and also the art of adjusting the neuroskeleton.” –D.D. Palmer, founder of modern chiropractic

The profession of chiropractic, as a unique form of health care, dates back to 1895, when Daniel David Palmer, a schoolteacher, became interested in healing and treatment methods that did not use medicines or vaccines to treat people with ailments. In 1885, Palmer moved his family to Ottumwa, Iowa to learn more about curative treatments that relied primarily on the body’s ability to heal itself. Two years later, he opened the Palmer Cure & Infirmary in Davenport. But it wasn’t until he treated a man who had suffered a back injury in 1895 that D.D. realized the curative power of spinal realignment. Intrigued by the improvement in the man’s pain level and function, Palmer pursued his interest in the spine as a locus of healing. Subsequently, Palmer found that ailments such as seizure, flu, headache, ear and stomach pain, and sciatica all responded very well to the spinal manipulations he referred to as “hand treatments.” Eventually, D.D. coined the term chiropractic—chiro (from the Greek, meaning “hand”) and practic (meaning “practice”). He renamed his clinic the Palmer School & Infirmary of Chiropractic, and in 1898 began accepting his first students.

As a professor, D.D. Palmer returned to his own studies of anatomy and physiology to learn more about the fundamental connection between a person’s spine and their overall health. He soon came to realize the power of spinal adjustment to correct vertebral displacement and misalignment (subluxation), and that by manipulating a person’s spine he could reduce—and in some cases completely eliminate—the nerve interference causing the patient’s pain, discomfort, or chronic illness. Thus, chiropractic became a viable alternative to medicinal practices that focused on relieving symptoms rather than discovering the root cause of an individual’s dis-ease.

Between 1906 and 1913, D.D. Palmer published two books, The Science of Chiropractic and The Chiropractor’s Adjuster. He died at the age of 68, at which time his son Bartlett Joshua Palmer (B.J.) took over the practice to carry on his father’s work. B.J. is credited with developing chiropractic into a clearly defined and unique health care system.