Wilson T. Sowder, MD, MPH, Florida's state health officer for nearly 30 years and former president of the Florida Public Health Association, died Feb.16 in Jacksonville, Fla., a few days before his 97th birthday.
As state health officer for Florida from 1945 to 1974, he directed the establishment of full-time health departments in each of the state's 67 counties. He also launched programs in air and water pollution control, radiation surveillance, mosquito control, chronic disease, mental health and was instrumental in establishing medical and dental scholarship programs.
An APHA member, Sowder received his medical degree from the University of Virginia School of Medicine in 1932.
In 1934 he entered the U.S. Public Health Service and served in U.S. Marine hospitals in Baltimore and Seattle.
In 1960, Sowder simultaneously served as chair of the APHA Executive Board and as president of the American Association of Public Health Physicians.
Born Feb. 27, 1910, in Callaway, Va., Sowders lived in Jacksonville, Fla., for more than 60 years.
