Abstract
Each generation has an obligation to remind succeeding ones about the people, ideas, and events that have gotten us to this point. This essay and an accompanying oral history trace the origins of family medicine through the life of someone who helped found it--John P. Geyman, MD. He is one of the most published family physicians in the United States. In addition to being a rural family physician, he was one of the first residency directors in family medicine and the first editor of the discipline's first academic journal. His career weaves 4 themes together in interesting and creative ways: commitment to the work of clinical practice, a sense of responsibility for strengthening clinical education, a belief that clinical care should be based on science and delivered within a rational system of health care, and a love of flying. His story also exemplifies the generation of general practitioners who started family medicine but who retained both a personal understanding of the complex nature of independent practice and a reliance on community.