Returning to the Colonies in 1769, Rush opened a medical practice in Philadelphia and became Professor of Chemistry at the College of Philadelphia. After his election to the revived American Philosophical Society in 1768, Rush served as the Society's Curator from 1770 to 1773, as Secretary from 1773 to 1773, and finally Vice President of the Society from 1797 to 1801. Rush ultimately published the first American textbook on chemistry and several volumes on medical student education, and wrote influential patriotic essays.