If any one can … contribute a mite even to the welfare of his fellow beings, there need be no concern but that it will find lodgment and not be lost.
Dr. Chapin was born in New York, educated in Philadelphia, and later graduated from Williams College and Jefferson Medical College in 1853. In 1854, he served as House Physician at the New York Hospital and later moved to Utica State Hospital under Dr. John P. Gray. He resigned the Utica position in 1858 and, in 1860, joined the staff of a private sanitarium in Canandaigua, New York. During his time, he was appointed to a Board of Commissioners by the New York State Legislature to plan and oversee construction of the new Willard (N.Y.) State Hospital for chronic patients.Dr. Chapin was appointed superintendent of the new hospital in 1869. He is credited with helping to eliminate the care of the insane in almshouses and move their care to state hospitals.
In 1884, Dr. Chapin became Physician-in-Chief of the Department of the Insane at the Philadelphia Hospital, succeeding Dr. Kirkbride. He remained in this post until 1911, when he resigned and moved to Canandaigua, N.Y., where he died. He had been active with the Philadelphia authorities concerning the future of the Blockley Asylum, part of the Philadelphia Almshouse, making recommendations for establishing a new type of psychiatric clinic leading to improved care for patients, but his plan was rejected. Dr. Chapin was President of the Association of Medical Superintendents of American Institutions for the Insane (1888–1889).