Eben Byers

Eben Byers was an American socialite, sportsman, and industrialist best known for winning the 1906 U.S.

Eben Byers was an American socialite, sportsman, and industrialist who won the 1906 U.S. Amateur golf championship and later died from radium poisoning after consuming the patent medicine Radithor. His case became a landmark early-20th-century warning about the dangers of radioactive medicines.

Who he was

Born Ebenezer McBurney Byers in Pittsburgh in 1880, he came from a wealthy industrial family. He was known in business and social circles and as an amateur golfer, winning the U.S. Amateur championship in 1906.

What happened

After an injury in the late 1920s, Byers began taking Radithor, a patent medicine containing radium salts dissolved in water. He developed severe radiation-related illness, including jawbone cancer, and died in 1932. His death drew major public attention to the risks of radioactive consumer products.

Why it matters

Byers’ death is frequently cited as a key example of the dangers of unregulated health products and medical quackery. It contributed to early public understanding of radiation risks and is often used in discussions of radium poisoning and the history of medical regulation.