David Keith Ballow (October 1804 – 29 September 1850) was the government medical officer in

Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

, Queensland, Australia and the first doctor to establish a private practice in Brisbane.

Early life

David Keith Ballow was born in October 1804 at Montrose, Scotland, the eldest son of John Ballow. He studied at the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the City of Edinburgh Council, town council under th ...

Medical career in Sydney

He immigrated to

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

in 1834. On 21 October 1837, in Sydney, he married Catherine Campbell, the youngest daughter of Captain D. McArthur, of the 2nd Royal Veteran Battalion. In December 1837, Dr Ballow was appointed Assistant Colonial Surgeon in Sydney.

Medical career in Brisbane

In March 1838, he was placed in charge of the Government Hospital in

. Ballow and his wife arrived in

as it transitioned from being a penal colony to a free settlement. He later become the Resident Surgeon of the Moreton Bay General Hospital. He was also the coroner for the Brisbane district and the visiting surgeon of the gaol. On 8 August 1850, the immigrant ship ''

Emigrant Emigration is the act of leaving a resident country or place of residence with the intent to settle elsewhere (to permanently leave a country). Conversely, immigration describes the movement of people into one country from another (to permanentl ...

'' arrived in

Moreton Bay Moreton Bay is a bay located on the eastern coast of Australia from central Brisbane, Queensland. It is one of Queensland's most important coastal resources. The waters of Moreton Bay are a popular destination for recreational anglers and are ...

with

typhus Typhus, also known as typhus fever, is a group of infectious diseases that include epidemic typhus, scrub typhus, and murine typhus. Common symptoms include fever, headache, and a rash. Typically these begin one to two weeks after exposu ...

on board. The ship was quarantined at

Dunwich Dunwich () is a village and civil parish in Suffolk, England. It is in the Suffolk & Essex Coast & Heaths National Landscape around north-east of London, south of Southwold and north of Leiston, on the North Sea coast. In the Anglo-Saxon ...

Stradbroke Island Stradbroke Island, also known as Minjerribah, was a large sand island that formed much of the eastern side of Moreton Bay near Brisbane, Queensland until the late 19th century. Today the island is split into two islands: North Stradbroke Is ...

away from Brisbane. Forty people on the ship died, including the ship's surgeon Dr George Mitchell. Initially Dr Mallon came from Brisbane to care for the quarantined patients at Dunwich but he too contracted the infection. Dr Ballow took his place and also contracted the disease. Dr Kearsey Cannan took charge after Dr Ballow's death. He put his tent on Bird Island, visiting his patients as required from there and managed to avoid catching the disease. While Dr Mallon recovered, Dr Ballow died at Dunwich on 29 September 1850.

Memorials

Dr Ballow was buried in the

Dunwich Cemetery Dunwich Cemetery is a heritage-listed cemetery at Bingle Road, Dunwich, Queensland, Dunwich, North Stradbroke Island in the City of Redland, Queensland, Australia. It was built from 1847 to 1952. It is also known as One Mile Cemetery. It was ad ...

; the cemetery has a memorial stone for Dr Ballow and the other victims of typhus. Ballow Road at Dunwich is believed to be named after him. A white marble memorial tablet was also placed in St John's Cathedral in Brisbane. The heritage-listed

Ballow Chambers Ballow Chambers is a heritage-listed office building at 121 Wickham Terrace, Spring Hill, City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It was designed by Lange Leopold Powell and built from 1924 to 1926 by John Hutchinson. It was added to the Queen ...

building of medical suites is named after him and the building has a plaque about Dr Ballow.

References

External links

*
Colonial Secretary's papers 1822-1877

State Library of Queensland State Library of Queensland (State Library) is the state public reference and research library of Queensland, Australia, operated by the Government of Queensland, state government. The Library is governed by the Library Board of Queensland, whi ...

- includes digitised letters written by Ballow to the

Colonial Secretary of New South Wales Colonial or The Colonial may refer to: * Colonial, of, relating to, or characteristic of a colony or colony (biology) Architecture * American colonial architecture * French colonial architecture * Spanish colonial architecture Automobiles * Col ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ballow, David 19th-century Australian medical doctors 1804 births 1850 deaths History of Brisbane People from Montrose, Angus