In 1895, German physicist Wilhelm Röntgen noticed a strange glow coming from a screen while experimenting with cathode ray tubes in his laboratory. He had discovered a mysterious new radiation that could pass through solid objects and leave a ghostly impression on a photographic plate. He called his discovery, X-rays.
A few weeks later, Röntgen produced the first X-ray image—of his wife’s hand. “I have seen my death,” she said, after seeing the shadowy image of her bones and wedding ring appear through her skin.
When the discovery became public in early 1896, it caused a worldwide sensation. Within the year, doctors were using X-rays to diagnose fractures, locate foreign objects, and peer inside the human body without a scalpel.
“Dentists were some of the first to embrace the new technology,” says director of operations, Charlie Bryan. “X-ray images took the guesswork out of diagnosing cavities and jaw problems.”
“The X-ray machine is considered one of the greatest medical diagnostic devices since the stethoscope,” says president & CEO, John Jenkins. “Now doctors can do more than listen for a problem, they can see it.”
One especially fascinating device from these early days was the fluoroscope—a kind of live-action X-ray machine. The Museum displays a Campbell Brothers Portable X-Ray & High Frequency Apparatus, circa 1920, a prime example of that technology.
“X-ray pictures are cool, but moving X-rays, in real time, is mind-blowing,” says Bryan. “Instead of one static shot, the fluoroscope projects a continuous stream of images onto a screen.”
“It’s the first medical imaging machine,” says Jenkins. “The case contains a high frequency induction coil used to power the fluoroscope, or one of the ultra-violet therapy tubes.”
Portable models, powered by DC batteries, let doctors pack up their X-ray machines and make house calls.
“The idea that you could have a fluoroscope rolled into your living room for a personal X-ray is still mind-boggling,” says co-founder, Jon Winter. “The doctor probably drove to the patient’s house in a Model T.”
Playing With Invisible Fire
If the benefits were obvious, the risks were not. “They thought it was safe, like invisible light,” says Bryan. “They had no idea about the radiation shower they were taking.”
Early machines leaked radiation in all directions. Exposure times were long, unmonitored, and repeated. Patients might get only a rare dose. Doctors, however, bathing themselves in radiation dozens, even hundreds of times.
The result? Chronic burns, hair loss, dermatitis, cataracts, ulcers—even cancer and leukemia. Many early radiologists lost fingers, arms, even their lives:
Clarence Madison Dally (1865–1904), Thomas Edison’s assistant and right-hand man, worked extensively with early fluoroscopes, exposing himself directly to X-rays. He developed severe burns, lost both arms, and died at thirty-nine—becoming the first U.S. fatality from X-ray exposure. Edison abandoned the research, saying: “Don’t talk to me about X-rays. I am afraid of them.”
Elizabeth Fleischman-Aschheim (1867–1905), became one of America’s first female radiographers. She worked daily without shielding or protection and developed painful burns leading to aggressive cancer. Her arm was amputated, but she died at the age of thirty-eight.
Hard lessons to learn, but we did, and today’s advanced X-ray technology has dramatically reduced radiation exposure through improvements in equipment, safety regulations, and the shift to digital and alternative imaging technologies.
X-ray technology has evolved to the point where, the American Academy of Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology now considers dental X-rays so safe, that they actually recommend skipping the lead apron and thyroid collar for routine exams.
“I know it sounds funny, but I feel naked getting an X-ray without that heavy lead vest draped over my body,” says Winter, “Going to the dentist will never be the same.”
Stay grounded.