Dr. Zina Goodell Harrington was among the earliest and most respected physicians in Mankato, a man whose career bridged medicine, education, civic government, and finance during the city’s formative years.

Born August 20, 1830, in Londonderry, Vermont, to Emery and Calysta (Goodell) Harrington, he moved with his family to Bennington as a boy. He was educated at Westriver Academy and Bennington Seminary before spending three years teaching in Delaware. Drawn to medicine, he studied under Dr. L. G. Whiting of Chester, Vermont, and graduated from Albany Medical College in 1857. He then returned to Chester, where he practiced alongside Dr. Whiting for fifteen years and served for a number of years as superintendent of the Chester public schools—already demonstrating the breadth of his public service.

In the spring of 1871, Dr. Harrington came to Mankato, where he established a medical practice that would continue for nearly half a century. He quickly became one of the city’s most prominent physicians, especially during the early years when outbreaks of smallpox and diphtheria challenged the growing community. Known as tireless, compassionate, and deeply committed to his patients, he earned wide respect among colleagues and citizens alike.

His professional affiliations reflected his standing in the field. He served as president of the Minnesota Valley Medical Association and was active in the Minnesota State Medical Association and the American Medical Association. Licensed in Minnesota in 1884, he maintained an allopathic practice in Mankato for decades. Even late in life, he sought continued learning, spending 1900 and 1901 abroad studying in leading European hospitals and medical schools, and traveling with his wife through Greece, Egypt, and the Holy Land before returning home.

Dr. Harrington’s influence extended beyond medicine. He served on the Mankato Board of Aldermen and, in January 1903, was elected president of the Mankato State Bank, later serving as vice president and director. His leadership in both civic and financial institutions underscored the trust placed in him by the community.

On October 20, 1874, he married Julia E. Robbins of Chester, Vermont. She preceded him in death in May 1918. Dr. Harrington died at his home in Mankato on September 10, 1918, at the age of eighty-eight, the cause recorded as senile debility. His passing marked the end of one of the longest medical careers in early Mankato.

Remembered as genial, kind-hearted, and generous, Dr. Zina G. Harrington exemplified the pioneer professional—educated in the East, seasoned by experience, and devoted to building lasting institutions in a young Midwestern city. He rests in Glenwood Cemetery among the community he served for nearly fifty years.