The Little Doctor of the Foothills
Essanay released this one-reel silent on May 21, 1910. This was one of a dozen or so movies that this studio filmed during their three-month stay in Santa Barbara in 1910. Gilbert M. 'Broncho Billy' Anderson directed and performed in this film, along with Clara Williams.
When an attractive female doctor arrives in a Western town, the cowboys pretend to be sick, one after another. The doctor is wise to their "illnesses," however. When she tires of these fakers, she takes action. The next time a cowboy is "sick," she pulls out her butcher knife. The cowboy suddenly recovers.
When another cowboy is accidentally shot, the doctor assumes it is another fake report, and refuses to go to the scene. The injury is real, however, and the cowboy is brought to the doctor. She is horrified to see that it is a real injury, and takes care of him ASAP. As the movie ends, she falls in love with her patient.
This movie was said to be filmed somewhere around Hope Avenue, which was still a rural area.