A Nyíregyházi Jósa András Múzeum évkönyve 50. (Nyíregyháza, 2008)

Helytörténet - Harsányi Gézáné: Nagykálló porában - Dr. Jósa András nyomában

In the dust of Nagykálló Following Dr. András Jósa's footprints Dr. András Jósa arrived to Nagykálló in 1864 to start his physician practice. There were three of his outstanding ancestors who worked in the seat of County Szabolcs, among them the most significant - from the aspect of the young doctor - Dr. István Jósa, the grandfather. He was the first chief physician of the county from 1787 until 1837, that is to say, for 50 years. He did not succeed in founding a hospital, though he considered it to be urgently necessary. He made a fund with the help of which his grandson fulfilled his dream and formed the first 8-bed, later 84-bed Nagykálló hospital. In publications Dr. András Jósa was characterised as the "last polyhistor". Though on the first place, he was a practising physician, and there were legends about his life-saving operations, beside that he had organised the health service of the whole county, founded hospitals, obtained money, experimented, published a number of scientific and other articles, being also a belletrist, founded a museum, civilian organisations, associations. He was a true humanist. He lived and worked in Nagykálló for 20 years and was widely known and respected. Despite of it, it is not easy to find his footprint in Nagykálló. It was a matter of mere chance that we succeeded in identifying his house, the „Kondorhegy Castle", because in his age no registers of title deeds existed. The document attesting to his credits of 1875 and 1876 evidences that Jósa's home was in the building today occupied by the Mayor's Office of Nagykálló. That was the place where he cured people, where his six daughters were bom. His memory is preserved on marble tablets on the former hospital and his home. András Jósa was a great humanist trying to give, to help. He loved Nagykálló and truly deserves the respect and commemoration of the succeeding generation on the 90

th anniversary of his death. Mrs Géza HARSÁNYI H^1320 Nagykálló Nagybalkányi út 16. e-mail: harsanyi_gezane@freemail.hu