“Dr. See See”
By James VanBever
My late mother Anna (Smith) VanBever told me that Dr. Cyril Blaney was a friend of her parents’ and would often visit their house for breakfast. She told me that Dr. Blaney always had a strong opinion about everything and when he gave you his view on something, he would say “You see, you see.” Accordingly, Ma and her family nicknamed the doctor “Dr. See See.” She also told me that if you were not feeling well, Dr. Blaney would come to the house and take pills out of his pocket and tell you to take them until you felt better. Ma didn’t know what the pills were, but she said that you always felt better after you took them. However, she always made the point that Dr. Blaney was a good and caring doctor, who always came when you needed him.
Dr. Cyril A. Blaney was born in Dorchester, Massachusetts on December 11, 1879. He was the son of Cyril C. and Ella Blaney. Cyril was a graduate of the Boston Latin School and the Boston University School of Medicine. He interned at various area hospitals and began practicing in Westford around 1905. “He was a stout man with a goatee.” In 1911 Dr. Blaney married Florence E. Pond, who was a schoolteacher at the Parker Village school in Westford. In addition to being a schoolteacher, Florence was a talented musician in both singing and playing the piano. The couple lived on Boston Road with their three children, Inez, Genevieve, and Cyril who also became a physician.
In addition to his private practice, Dr. Blaney served many roles for the town of Westford. He served as the school physician from 1904 to 1932, poor farm doctor in 1908, Selectman from 1938 to 1953. Blaney was elected to the Westford Board of Health in 1925 and served on that board until the time of his death in 1956. During his time on the Board of Health, he started a yearly treatment for Diphtheria that virtually eliminated the disease from the town of Westford. In 1933, Dr. Blaney was also instrumental in starting a dental clinic between the school department and the Board of Health. While on the Board of Health, Blaney also coordinated the distribution of milk to Westford children who were underweight or undernourished. This proved to be a great assistance in combating malnutrition in Westford during the “Great Depression.”
It was also during this time that Dr. Blaney and the Board of Health began a program to test local dairy cows for tuberculosis. He was also on the Board of Health when the town started testing all school children for that dreaded disease. During his career on the Board of Health, Blaney and the board oversaw anti-rabies treatment for dogs in Westford which had a beneficial effect in eliminating that disease in town. Dr. Blaney also held free Smallpox vaccination clinics for town residents.
Apart from his service to the town of Westford and his private practice, Dr. Blaney always seemed to be there when emergencies struck. Whether it is trying in vain to save a drowned man at Long-sought-for pond, treating a man and his two sons when their horse drawn carriage was struck by an automobile, or assisting in the delivery of a new baby, Dr. Blaney was always at the scene trying to help.
It was also said that the doctor enjoyed a good time during his life. He especially enjoyed horse racing and owned a horse named Knox Gelatin which he raced on the ice on Forge Pond. Dr. Blaney was also an accomplished cribbage player and once won first prize at a cribbage tournament sponsored by the Westford Citizens Committee that was held at the Westford Town Hall that featured thirty players.
Dr. Cyril Blaney died on January 18, 1956. At the time of his death, flags at the town hall and on the Westford Common were flown at half-mast. A long list of town officials and local industrial leaders attended his funeral. The outpouring of grief at the doctor’s passing was so great that a special car had to be used to convey all the flowers to the cemetery after his funeral. Dr. Blaney was buried in the Blaney family lot at Fairview Cemetery in Westford.
Sources:
“Westford Man”, Lowell Sun, November 7, 1905, p. 5.
Ibid. “Forge Village”, April 24, 1947, p. 21.
Ibid. “Attempt to Revive Drowning Man”, July 8, 1951, p. 50.
Ibid. “Westford”, January 14, 1955, p. 13.
Ibid. “Mrs. Florence E. Blaney, March 28, 1955, p. 25.
Ibid. “Forge Village”, May 17, 1955, p. 22.
Ibid. “Westford”, January 20, 1956, p. 10.
Ibid. “Funerals”, January 23, 1956, p. 3.
Day: “Caring for a Town, The Physician of Westford, MA. 1740-1960 Practicing in Westford”. pg. 96
Kennedy: “Westford Recollections of Days Gone By” “On doctorin’ Dosages and Death”, p. 1.
From the Wardsman, 10 June 1916.