Dr James Kirkwood Slater

OBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

FRSE Fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE) is an award granted to individuals that the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Scotland's national academy of science and Literature, letters, judged to be "eminently distinguished in their subject". ...

FRCPE The Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh (RCPE) is a medical royal college in Scotland. It is one of three organisations that set the specialty (medicine), specialty training standards for physicians in the United Kingdom. It was establish ...

(1900 – 8 October 1965) was a 20th-century British neurologist.

Life

He was born in 1900 the son of William Work Slater and his wife, Jenny Wilson Kirkwood. The family lived at "Westfield" a villa on Colinton Road in Edinburgh, and his father had offices at 13 Rutland Square. Slater was educated at

Edinburgh Academy The Edinburgh Academy is a Private schools in the United Kingdom, private day school in Edinburgh, Scotland, which was opened in 1824. The original building, on Henderson Row in Stockbridge, Edinburgh, Stockbridge, is now part of the Senior Scho ...

1914 to 1917. He then studied medicine 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 ...

graduating

MB ChB A Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (; MBBS, also abbreviated as BM BS, MB ChB, MB BCh, or MB BChir) is a medical degree granted by medical schools or universities in countries that adhere to the United Kingdom's higher education tradi ...

in 1924. He then became Physician at the

Edinburgh Royal Infirmary The Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh (RIE) was established in 1729, and is the oldest voluntary hospital in Scotland. The new buildings of 1879 were claimed to be the largest voluntary hospital in the United Kingdom, and later on, the Empire."In Comi ...

then Consulting Physician at the Deaconess Hospital. He also lectured in clinical

neurology Neurology (from , "string, nerve" and the suffix wikt:-logia, -logia, "study of") is the branch of specialty (medicine) , medicine dealing with the diagnosis and treatment of all categories of conditions and disease involving the nervous syst ...

at the University of Edinburgh. In 1937 he was elected a Fellow of the

Royal Society of Edinburgh The Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE) is Scotland's national academy of science and letters. It is a registered charity that operates on a wholly independent and non-partisan basis and provides public benefit throughout Scotland. It was establis ...

. His proposers were Sir Robert William Philip,

Arthur Logan Turner Arthur Logan Turner FRCSEd FRSE LLD (4 May 1865 – 6 June 1939) was a Scottish surgeon, who specialised in diseases of ear, nose and throat (ENT) and was one of the first surgeons to work at the purpose-built ENT Pavilion at the Royal Infirmary ...

, Sir Sydney Alfred Smith, and

Edwin Bramwell Edwin Bramwell FRSE Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh, FRCPE (11 January 1873 – 21 March 1952) was a British Neurology, neurologist. He was President of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh from 1933 to 1935. Life He was b ...

. In the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

he served in the

Royal Army Medical Corps The Royal Army Medical Corps (RAMC) was a specialist corps in the British Army which provided medical services to all Army personnel and their families, in war and in peace. On 15 November 2024, the corps was amalgamated with the Royal Army De ...

in Italy and received a military

in 1944. In the 1950s he was Senior Psychiatric Registrar. He was then living at 7 Walker Street in Edinburgh's West End. In 1952 he was elected a member of the

Aesculapian Club The Aesculapian Club of Edinburgh is one of the oldest medical dining clubs in the world. It was founded in April 1773 by Dr. Andrew Duncan. Membership of the club is limited to 11 Fellows of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh and ...

. In 1961 he was elected President of the

Harveian Society of Edinburgh The Harveian Society of Edinburgh was founded in April 1782 by Andrew Duncan (physician, born 1744), Andrew Duncan. The Society holds an annual Festival in honour of the life and works of William Harvey, the physician who first correctly des ...

. He was a contemporary of Sir Walter Mercer. He died in Edinburgh on 8 October 1965. He is buried in

Morningside Cemetery, Edinburgh Morningside Cemetery is a cemetery in south List of graveyards and cemeteries in Edinburgh, Edinburgh. It was established in 1878 by the Metropolitan Cemetery Company, originally just outwith the then city boundary, the nearest suburb then b ...

. The grave lies on the south wall towards the south-west.

Family

He married Margaret Claire Byrom Bramwell, daughter of Dr Edwin Bramwell. Their children include Admiral Jock Slater.Entry for Admiral Sir Jock Slater, ''

Who's Who A Who's Who (or Who Is Who) is a reference work consisting of biographical entries of notable people in a particular field. The oldest and best-known is the annual publication ''Who's Who (UK), Who's Who'', a reference work on contemporary promin ...

2010'',

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, 2010,

References

1900 births 1965 deaths Medical doctors from Edinburgh People educated at Edinburgh Academy Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh Royal Army Medical Corps officers British Army personnel of World War II Office bearers of the Harveian Society of Edinburgh Members of the Harveian Society of Edinburgh Officers_of_the_Order_of_the_British_Empire {{UK-bio-stub