Morris Fishbein commented that "[u]nfortunately no one has yet been able to determine whether Elisha Perkins was merely a somewhat deluded physician or actually a great impostor." Perkins was the father of Sarah Bushnell Perkins, who is remembered for her pastels. Further reading Eric Jameson. (1961). The Natural History of Quackery. Charles C. Thomas Publisher. Robert Medill McBride, Neil Pritchie. (1956). Great Hoaxes of All Time. R. M. McBride Company. William Snow Miller. (1935). Elisha Perkins and His Metallic Tractors. Yale Journal of Biology and Medicine 8: 41–57. Benjamin Douglas Perkins. (1798). The Influence of Metallic Tractors on the Human Body. London: Printed for J. Johnson. References External links Image of Perkin's metal "tractors" James Lind Library 1741 births 1799 deaths People from Norwich, Connecticut People of colonial Connecticut 18th-century American physicians Deaths from yellow fever Infectious disease deaths in New York (state) Health fraud American fraudsters