James Richard Cocke
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James Richard Cocke (1863 – April 12, 1900), who had been blind since infancy, was an American physician, homeopath, and a pioneer hypnotherapist.
He was born in the South of the United States, and had been totally blind since he was an infant.[1] His sight had been completely destroyed when acid was accidentally applied to his eyes when he was just three weeks old.[2]
He moved to Boston around 1885.[3]
He was considered to be "highly educated"; and, despite his total blindness, "was able to go around the city at will", and "could play a piano with much skill":[4]
Dr. James P.[sic] Cocke of Boston, though blind, is one of the most enthusiastic bicycle riders. He rides a duplicate with Mrs. Cocke.[5]
Marriages
Once he had moved to Boston, he married a Mrs. Green of Springfield, Massachusetts:
They did not live long together, and at a subsequent court trial it was proved that before getting a divorce Cocke married a Miss Townsend of Hartford, Conn. His second wife left him, and in the resulting litigation Cocke lost all his money, his standing as a physician, and came so near losing his mind that he was confined for a time in a city institution in Boston Harbor. Four months ago [viz., December 1899] he returned to the city [of Boston] and married a Miss Carlotta Harrington of Ohio …[6]
Miss Harrington, aged 23, was a medical student, and had been acting as Cocke's amanuensis.
They had only been married for about seven weeks at the time of Cocke's suicide in April 1900.[7]
Medical career
Having moved to Boston around 1885, he graduated M.D. from Boston University in June 1892, "having completed the full course of study [including performing dissections], with an average percentage of 96 for the three years".[8] He was the first blind person to do so.[9]
He was a member of the Medico-Legal Society of New York.
Although he studied homeopathy for a time, he made his mark as a student of hypnotism, and as a successful hypnotherapist.
He wrote an important text-book on hypnotism in 1894.
