Harold J. Dunlap

Harold Jay Dunlap (May 24, 1904 - April 4, 1978) was an American surgeon and Bronze Star-recipient, serving New Rochelle, New York. He served as a member of the Army Medical Corps during World War II. Dunlap served as Director of Surgery for New Rochelle Medical Hospital, President of the Westchester County Medical Society, and a delegate to the New York State Medical Society.

Early life and education
Born on May 24, 1904 in Canton, Ohio, Harold Dunlap grew up on a small farm with parents John J. and Emma Potter Dunlap. He was one of seven children and the only one to graduate college. In 1927, Dunlap graduated from Mount Union College in Alliance, OH with a Bachelor of Science, and he continued his education at Western Reserve Medical School in Cleveland, Ohio. In 1931, he obtained an M.D. He was a member of Sigma Alpha Epsilon and Nu Sigma Nu. He interned and completed his residency at Grasslands Hospital (now Westchester Medical Center) in Valhalla, New York between 1931 and 1937.

Military service
Between April 25, 1941 to January 7, 1946, Dunlap served in the Army Medical Corps. He ranked as a colonel, serving briefly at Fort Dix in New Jersey in the Tilden General Hospital, before being sent on active duty orders in the European Theater. At Tilden, he was Chief of Surgery and he acted as a surgeon in Belgium, England, France, and Holland.

Dunlap was awarded the American Theater Ribbon and the European Ribbon. He was awarded a Bronze Star by Leonard T. Gerow for his meritorious achievement on December 28, 1944, when the SS Empire Javelin was struck by an enemy torpedo in the English Channel. He was released on Honorary Relief in 1945.

Medical career
After completing his residency in 1937, Dunlap began his career on staff at the New Rochelle Medical Hospital. In 1939, he became an adjunct surgeon, and in 1941, he was promoted to associate surgeon. In 1959, Dunlap became the Director of Surgery at the New Rochelle Medical Hospital. In 1964, he stepped down to become a consultant for the surgical department, adding residency students and his fellow staff. Dunlap was named Director Surgery Emeritus in 1973 and remained as such until his retirement. Dunlap also assisted at Grasslands Hospital, Lawrence Hospital (now NewYork-Presbyterian Westchester), and Mount Vernon Hospital.

By 1962, Dunlap had held acting roles as diplomate of the American Board of Surgery, 1959 President of the Westchester County Medical Society, member and delegate of the New York State Medical Society Board of Directors, and Fellow of the American College of Surgeons. He also served on the Medical Board at the New Rochelle Medical Hospital in 1951, 1952, and from 1958 to 1964. In 1956, he was chairman of the New Rochelle Physicians' Committee for Eisenhower and Nixon. He was the New Rochelle Red Cross Disaster Medical Director in 1960

Dunlap operated on Buffalo Bob Smith, Richard Roundtree, Molly Guion, Walter Kerr and Jean Kerr, Bob Keeshan, Alex Quaison-Sackey, Walter Slezak, Louis Nizer, Arthur Murray, Norman Kent, Allie Sherman, Theodore G. Ehrsam, Louis Rukeyser, and Ugo Mochi. He performed numerous surgeries with high fatality risks that resulted in overall success.

Personal life
In March 1928, Dunlap got engaged to Marguerite "Peg" Scranton of Alliance, Ohio. Scranton obtained a nursing degree in 1934 and they married after her education was complete, on April 6, 1935 in Greenwich, Connecticut. They moved to New Rochelle, New York in 1937, before residing in the Larchmont Woods neighborhood as of March 1955. They were members of the Presbyterian Church. They had three children.

Death
After Harold's retirement in 1976, he and Scranton moved to Pompano Beach, Florida. Dunlap died there in 1978.