July 20, 2004 – “It is with sadness that I announce that one of the founders of our clinic, Bill Seybold, died Monday at the age of 89,” said Spencer Berthelsen, M.D., Chairman, Board of Directors, Kelsey-Seybold Clinic. The Clinic was started in 1949 by Mavis P. Kelsey, M.D. Dr. William D. Seybold joined the practice in 1951 and played a leading role in the development of Kelsey-Seybold Clinic.
Dr. Seybold met Dr. Kelsey while in medical school at The University of Texas Medical School in Galveston. They became close friends while in training at the Mayo Clinic. Dr. Seybold and Dr. Kelsey, both fifth generation Texans, were drawn back to Texas to practice in the new Texas Medical Center. Dr. Seybold joined Dr. Kelsey after his first year practicing in Houston. This was a time when critics said the concept of a Texas Medical Center would not succeed because it was too far from downtown. The Texas Medical Center and the Kelsey-Seybold Clinic succeeded well beyond even the founders’ imaginations.
Dr. Seybold was a revered general and thoracic surgeon serving as Chief of Staff of St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital from 1968 to 1971 as well as the Chief of Surgery. He served as the Chief of Staff of Kelsey-Seybold Clinic in the early 70’s and retired in 1979.
“Dr. Seybold was loved by his patients and was truly a great physician,” noted Dr. Kelsey. “He was very popular with the medical students and medical residents he taught, and he was highly respected by his fellow surgeons. He played a leading role in the development of Kelsey-Seybold Clinic.”
Born in 1915 in Temple
William Depsey Seybold was born in Temple, Texas, on February 15, 1915. He graduated from Temple High School in 1932 with highest honors and continued to win highest honors throughout his career. He studied premedical subjects at The University of Texas in Austin and was awarded a B.S. Degree in Medicine from The University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston in 1936. He obtained his medical degree in 1938 and spent two years as an Instructor in Anatomy before interning at Barnes Hospital, St. Louis, Missouri.
Dr. Seybold married Frances Randolph Rather on May 3, 1941, before accepting a Fellowship in Surgery at the Mayo Clinic. His fellowship was interrupted by duty in the U.S. Navy during World War II where he served as a Lieutenant Junior Grade on a naval troop ship.
Joined Drs. Kelsey and Leary in 1951
Dr. Seybold returned to the Mayo Clinic in 1947 when he was appointed to the surgical staff as Instructor in Surgery at the Graduate School of the University of Minnesota. He served three years on the Mayo staff. When Mrs. Seybold developed multiple sclerosis and wanted to be with her family in Texas, Dr. Seybold left his colleagues at the Mayo Clinic and entered private practice in Houston. In 1951, Dr. Seybold joined Dr. Kelsey and Dr. William V. Leary in practice at what became Kelsey-Seybold Clinic. Similar to the Mayo Clinic model of combining primary and specialty medical services in one location, Kelsey-Seybold Clinic was the first of its kind in the Houston area. Now celebrating 55 years of caring for Houston’s families, the Clinic started by Drs. Kelsey, Seybold and Leary is one of the most experienced and largest providers of healthcare in the Southwest.
Dr. Seybold was living in Dallas at the time of his death.
