North Country Orthopaedic Group

It was the summer of 1959, a time best remembered in the North Country for the opening of the St. Lawrence Seaway, when a young Yale School of Medicine graduate, Walker R. Heap, MD, introduced the practice of orthopaedic surgery to northern New York.

Dr. Heap arrived in Watertown in July of that year, having just completed his orthopaedic training at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. He wasted no time starting his new practice. Within a few weeks of his arrival, he saw his first orthopaedic patient in his new office at 161 Clinton Street.

Dr. Heap’s reputation as a skilled surgeon grew quickly, and within a few short years, he found himself unable to keep up with the growing demand for his services. Turning to his orthopaedic training program, Dr. Heap persuaded fellow alumnus James B. Fish, MD, to join him in his work.

The surgeons’ practice continued to grow through the 1960s. By 1970, the practice had recruited a third Michigan-trained orthopaedist, David O. Van Eenenaam, MD, and moved its offices to a new 11, 000-square-foot facility at 622 Washington Street. It also formally incorporated its business, adopting the name North Country Orthopaedic Group, PC, or NCOG.

The field of orthopaedics continued to change rapidly over the next few decades and NCOG responded accordingly. The practice systematically recruited newly trained orthopaedic surgeons to the group to ensure it always offered the latest surgical techniques and medical advances to its patients – a philosophy we still follow today.