William Branch Porter was born June 7, 1888 in Amelia County, Virginia. Raised in Powhatan County, he attended Fort Union Military Academy and Hampden-Sydney College. He graduated in medicine from the University College of Medicine in 1911. Porter taught at the medical schools of Harvard and the University of Pennsylvania before returning to Richmond. During World War I, Porter served as a member of the cardiovascular unit in Base Hospital 45, a unit made up of doctors from the Medical College of Virginia. After the war, Porter became chief of medical service at Lewis-Gale Hospital in Roanoke. In 1927, after two years abroad, he accepted a position as Professor of Medicine at MCV. He became the first full time medical professor in the school's history and focused the school on teaching and medical research. Porter was a member of many medical societies including the American Medical Association, American Heart Association, and the Medical Society of Virginia. He was Chairman of the Medical Section of the Southern Medical Association in 1935, and served as President of the Richmond Academy of Medicine in 1941. He consulted regularly with the Veterans Administration and the Surgeon General of the Army. In 1956, after 29 years, Porter retired. He was elected emeritus professor, and the medical school established the William Branch Porter Professorship in Medicine that same year. An award of a silver plated stethoscope, similar to one given to Porter by Dr. William Osler, is given each year to the top medical school student in internal medicine.