[1] Lawrence had been a disciple of Sekl Loeb Wormser, the Baal Shem of Michelstadt, and Rebecka was the daughter of Rabbi Josef ben Maÿer.
He attended the academy in Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, as well as public and high schools in Philadelphia.
He served as assistant physician in Blackwell's Island Hospital from 1851 to 1852 and as deputy coroner of New York City in 1853.
He held that position from 1854 to 1859, organizing the hospital's medical administration and formulating its records and monthly reports that were still in use decades later.
[2] During the American Civil War, Blumenthal served in the Third Regiment of the New York National Guard with the rank of surgeon-major.