Dr William Douglas
The news of the death of Dr. William Douglas, at the age of nearly
84, will be received with great regret by a wide circle of friends
in the British Medical Association, for he was for many years one of
the best known and best liked members of the Representative Body. He
was, in fact, the only man who had been a member of that Body and
had attended every meeting from its commencement in 1903 up to the
meeting at Cardiff last year, aind during the whole of that time he
represented the Maidstone Division.
William Douglas was the
son of Alexander Douglas of Belfast, and was born in that city in
1845. He was educated at Queen's College, Belfast, and in the
University of Edinburgh, and took the degree of M.D. of Queen's
University of Ireland in 1869. He was for some years in practice at
Leamington, and after a time devoted himself entirely to tho private
treatment of mental disease. He was a member of the Royal
Medico-Psychological Association and of the Society for the Study of
Inebriety. He travelled very considerably, residing at one time
professionally at Madeira, and acting also as a surgeon on the
Cunard Line. He took a keen interest in all branches of tlhe
profession, and everyone who knew him will remember him as a most
interesting conversationalist. But he will chiefly be remembered for
the very active part he took in the Irish Medical Schools' and
Graduates' Association and in the British Medical Association.
Dr. Douglas was recognized as the mainspring of the former
society, and was iever seen to greater advantage thani in the
organization and carrying out of its dinners and luncheons. He was
for a long time secretary of the society and had been its president;
but the mere mention of his official connection with the body
conveys little impression of the keen interest he took in it, and
the affection which he inspired amongst his colleagues. He was an
active member of the British Medical Association for fifty years;
taking a prominent part in the many meetings at the time of the
reconstruction of 'the Association at the beginning of the century,
and was a strong supporter of those who believed that the
Association would be best served by placing it on a more democratic
basis. He took little part in any of the central work of the
Association, but was very influential in his own area, and could
always be relied upon to do anything within his power for the
Association. He was at one time President of the Kent Branch. During
recent years he resided at Staines, but advancing age caused no
deterioration of his marvellous memory of Association affairs or
diminution of his interest in them.
His grandson was Keith
Castellain Douglas (1920–1944), the war poet.
The following was contributed by Clare Groves:
Dr William Douglas was born in Belfast in 1845. He studied medicine at Queens University, Belfast and at Edinburgh University, later taking the higher qualification of M.D. at Queens. He travelled extensively as a young man, working as a ship's surgeon for the Cunard Line. He met his Canadian wife - Anna Marie Fuller - in America whilst on his travels, and they married in Pittsburgh, USA in 1881. The couple arrived in England that same year to set up his practice in Leamington Spa, Warwickshire. Leamington in late Victorian times was a thriving, fashionable spa town, well connected by railway to London and the provinces, and thus likely to provide him with a lucrative practice. The couple moved into Dalkeith House in Clarendon Place in 1882 where his two sons were born. The new Mrs Douglas described herself as an authoress, and was later celebrated for inventing a hospital bed. She was actively involved in her husband's activities in the town.
As with many provincial doctors in the late Victorian era, Douglas established himself as a leading light in the running of Leamington. He worked for the Town Improvement Association, campaigning for the upgrade of the Pump Rooms. He was on the Warwickshire Council of Conservative Associations and helped to establish the Working Mens' Club and the Leamington Primrose League. (The Primrose League is a story in itself). He lectured to the townsfolk on sanitation, and taught First Aid for the St John Ambulance. He was the president of the Leamington Institute. He worked part time for the Leamington Provident Association providing health care for those townsfolk on lower incomes. In between times, he campaigned for Home Rule in Ireland, looked after Irish medical graduates, and was an active member of the British Medical Association. Detailed through the pages of the Leamington Spa Courier from 1881 to 1897, his exploits suggest enormous energy and commitment to good causes. If this makes us feel slightly unworthy, it must be remembered that Dr Douglas did not need to lift a finger to help with the running of their household, this was all done by his wife, and a small army of servants, with a governess for the children.
Dr Douglas was trained as a general practitioner, but his interests were in the treatment of mental illness and alcoholism. Unusually for a GP, he was also member of the Medical Psychological Association, later known as the Royal College of Psychiatry. He belonged to the Society for the Study of Inebriety - again an unusual choice for a GP. Apart from his general practice sessions at the Leamington Provident Association, he devoted himself entirely to the private treatment of mental disease. Douglas followed the tradition of many of the psychiatrists of the time and offered his home to wealthy patients who wanted a resident doctor to look after their needs.
His first resident patient was a man called Robert Mynors who moved into Dalkeith House to live with Douglas and his family in 1890. Mynors was part of the Mynors dynasty - an untitled, County family with its family seat at Weatheroak Hall, Kings Norton. Born in 1817, and trained in law at Oxford University, Mynors had then practiced at The Inner Temple. He inherited Weatheroak Hall on the death of his father in 1842, but continued to work as a Justice of The Peace in Kings Norton, and also farmed the extensive lands owned by his family. He never married so had no children. In 1884, he supervised renovation and enlargement of the Hall, but only six years later he needed a the care of a resident physician and had moved to Leamington. Robert Mynors was Douglas's house guest until his death in January 1895, age 77. His condition isn't recorded, but given Dr Douglas' interest in sobriety, alcoholism is one possibility, and dementia another. Weatheroak Hall is now a golf clubhouse and wedding venue, and it is worth a peek online to appreciate the size and opulence of Robert Mynors' estate.
Dr Douglas's next patient wanted to stay in his own home. This was a gentleman by the name of Alfred de Stern. Alfred was the elder son of Sir Herman De Stern, a prominent Jewish banker who was said to be one of the richest men in England at the time of his death. Unfortunately, Alfred had suffered from severe mental illness since he was a young man. He was not capable of inheriting his father's business interests and estates, so these were passed to the younger son, Herbert. Herbert went on to further increase his family's fortunes, founding his own bank and was eventually created a baronet for services to banking. Meanwhile, Alfred was independently wealthy. He lived with his parents for the early part of his life, but as they became less able to cope with him, he bought his own mansion - Brandfold, in Goudhurst Kent. By the time Dr Douglas moved in to Brandfold in 1897, Alfred De Stern was 47 years old. He was cared for by an team of servants and mental nurses supervised by Douglas. In the 1901 census, Alfred was described as being 'a lunatic for more than 30 years', perhaps suggesting schizophrenia.The attractions of being a resident physician must have been tempting for Douglas. Brandfold was large enough that he could keep his own family with him, he didn't have to pay to maintain a household and found himself residing in a very grand mansion with beautiful grounds whilst being paid a handsome wage. This idyllic existence lasted until 1917 when Alfred de Stern died. Douglas moved to London where he was living alone In Kensington by 1921. (Mrs Douglas disappeared from the record after the 1891 census). He later moved to Staines, where he died in 1929. An effusive obituary printed in the BMJ paid tribute to the man who had been an influential member of the BMA for many years, and an important part of the Irish Medical Schools and Graduates Association. He was described as 'a most hospitable and kindly gentleman'.
Sources
Sources for this article include:
• British Medical Journal
Any contributions will be
gratefully accepted
Errors and Omissions
|
|
The Forum
|
|
What's new?
|
|
We are looking for your help to improve the accuracy of The Douglas
Archives.
If you spot errors, or omissions, then
please do let us know
Contributions
Many articles are stubs which would benefit from re-writing.
Can you help?
Copyright
You are not authorized to add this page or any images from this page
to Ancestry.com (or its subsidiaries) or other fee-paying sites
without our express permission and then, if given, only by including
our copyright and a URL link to the web site.
|
|
If you have met a brick wall
with your research, then posting a notice in the Douglas Archives
Forum may be the answer. Or, it may help you find the answer!
You may also be able to help others answer their queries.
Visit the
Douglas Archives Forum.
2 Minute Survey
To provide feedback on the website, please take a couple of
minutes to complete our
survey.
|
|
We try to keep everyone up to date with new entries, via our
What's New section on the
home page.
We also use
the Community
Network to keep researchers abreast of developments in the
Douglas Archives.
Help with costs
Maintaining the three sections of the site has its costs. Any
contribution the defray them is very welcome
Donate
Newsletter/Magazine
You can subscribe to our periodic magazine and
newsletters here>>>.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
