James Gillingham
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James Gillingham (1839–1924) was a
prosthetic limb In medicine, a prosthesis (: prostheses; from ), or a prosthetic implant, is an artificial device that replaces a missing body part, which may be lost through physical trauma, disease, or a condition present at birth (congenital disorder). Prosthe ...
manufacturer based in
Chard, Somerset Chard is a town and a civil parishes in England, civil parish in the English county of Somerset. It lies on the A30 road near the Devon and Dorset borders, south west of Yeovil. The parish has a population of approximately 14,000 and, at an el ...
in the 19th century and one of the first to have photographs taken of his works.


Early life

Gillingham was educated at Chard School.


Career

Gillingham was a Victorian boot and shoemaker at his Golden Shoe shop until 1863 when he began making artificial limbs from leather and molded like a pair of shoes. His first prosthetic limb was for William Singleton, a local man who lost an arm firing a cannon for a celebratory salute, which Gillingham made at no cost to Singleton. He then made prostheses on a permanent basis. Chard, as a result, became a major centre of the British artificial limb industry. Samples from Gillingham's workshop are on display at the
Chard Museum Chard Museum is a small local museum in Chard, Somerset, England. It opened in 1970, in a converted 16th century listed building, with collections of exhibits about local history and displays related to the lives of notable local residents. His ...
. ''
The Lancet ''The Lancet'' is a weekly peer-reviewed general medical journal, founded in England in 1823. It is one of the world's highest-impact academic journals and also one of the oldest medical journals still in publication. The journal publishes ...
'' medical journal in a 1868 article described Gillingham's prostheses as "strong, light, and durable" and took 10 days to make, were "easy wearing and not likely to get out of repair; simple in construction, and as beautiful as life in appearance." Nicknamed the 'Leather Leg', Gillingham molded the leather to the patient's limb before hardening it. By 1910, he had restored mobility and function to more than 15,000 patients. He took black-and-white photos to show the detail and fit of each prosthetic. Gillingham's story was included in the ''
BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's oldest and flagship channel, and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television b ...
'' 2017 documentary titled ''Invented in…'' that featured the Chard Museum.


Book

In 2001, author Derrick W. Warren wrote the book ''James Gillingham: Surgical Mechanist & Manufacturer of Artificial Limbs'', published by Somerset Industrial Archaeological Society.


References

Place of birth missing Place of death missing People from Chard, Somerset Prosthetic manufacturers 19th-century English people 1839 births 1924 deaths People educated at Chard School {{England-bio-stub