Personal Journeys: Sins of the father

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Photos: A son restores the reputation of his father, a respected physician whose fall from grace may have been exacerbated by secret drug trials.

Dr. William Henry Wall Jr., an oral surgeon in Duluth, grew up with deep admiration for his father, Dr. W.H. Wall Sr., whose portrait he holds. Wall's father was a well-liked physician and state senator in Early County whose life took a dark turn.

Sen. W.H. Wall enlists help from his son, nicknamed Lil Doc, casting a vote for the state's new constitution in 1945.

Dr. Henry Wall's father was beginning to spiral out of control when this family photo was taken in the Paradise Room at the Henry Grady Hotel in 1951. From left, Dr. W.H. Wall Sr., his wife, Hallie, Lil Doc and Anne.

Inspired by his father's career in medicine, Lil Doc grew up to become an oral surgeon.

Lil Doc was filled with pride when his father opened Wall Hospital in Blakely in 1948. In retrospect, though, it was the beginning of the end of the family's happy times.

Found guilty of three drug charges, Dr. William Henry Wall Sr. was sent to the U.S. Public Health Service Hospital in Lexington, Ky., commonly called the Narcotic Farm.

The Narcotic Farm, pictured in 1939, was part prison, part drug treatment center and part drug research facility.

A proud William Henry Wall Jr. (left) introduces his first-born son, William Henry Wall III, to his parents in 1964.

Dr. William Henry Wall Jr. takes a break to putt a few golf balls in his Duluth office. In addition to his oral surgery practice, Wall has created several inventions and medical procedures, including a coronary stent and the method cardiologists use for inserting it after angioplasty.

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Dr. William Henry Wall Jr., an oral surgeon in Duluth, grew up with deep admiration for his father, Dr. W.H. Wall Sr., whose portrait he holds. Wall's father was a well-liked physician and state senator in Early County whose life took a dark turn.

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