Cecil James Watson (May 31, 1901 – April 11, 1983) was an American hepatologist. Watson was born in

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with list of lakes in Minneapolis, thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. ...

to Irish immigrant parents. His father was a doctor and received university education in Canada. The younger Watson enrolled at the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Tw ...

in 1919 to study French, English, and writing. In 1921, Watson began medical studies at the

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

, and transferred to the

University of Minnesota Medical School The University of Minnesota Medical School is the medical school of the University of Minnesota. It is a combination of two campuses situated in Minneapolis and Duluth, Minnesota. The University of Minnesota Medical School is also part of one of ...

the next year, where he completed his degrees. He earned a doctor of medicine and Master of Science degree, followed by a doctorate in pathology in 1928. Watson started his medical career at a clinic in

Minot, North Dakota Minot ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Ward County, North Dakota, United States, in the state's north-central region. It is most widely known for the Air Force base approximately north of the city. With a population of 48,377 at the 2 ...

before moving to Germany in 1930 to work with

Hans Fischer Hans Fischer (; 27 July 1881 – 31 March 1945) was a German organic chemistry, organic chemist and the recipient of the 1930 Nobel Prize for Chemistry "for his researches into the constitution of haemin and chlorophyll and especially for hi ...

. Upon his return to the United States in 1932, Watson began working at Minneapolis General Hospital. By 1934, Watson was assistant professor of medicine at UM. Watson lead the medical school as chairman from 1943 to 1966, stepping down for a position at Northwestern Hospital. Watson was named a member of the

National Academy of Sciences The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) is a United States nonprofit, non-governmental organization. NAS is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) and the Nat ...

in 1959, and the Cecil J. Watson Award was inaugurated in his honor by the Minneapolis Society of Internal Medicine in 1961. Watson died on April 11, 1983, aged 82.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Watson, Cecil 1901 births 1983 deaths University of Minnesota Medical School alumni University of Michigan alumni University of Minnesota alumni University of Minnesota faculty Scientists from Minneapolis American people of Irish descent American hepatologists Members of the United States National Academy of Sciences