James Whitehead (1812 – 9 April 1885) was an English physician.

Biography

Whitehead was born at

Oldham Oldham is a town in Greater Manchester, England. It lies amongst the Pennines on elevated ground between the rivers River Irk, Irk and River Medlock, Medlock, southeast of Rochdale, and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative cent ...

in 1812. He was the son of John Whitehead, who had a wide reputation in the district as a herbalist and dealer in simples. James, after working as a boy in a cotton-mill, attended the Marsden Street school of medicine in Manchester, and was a pupil first of Mr. Clough of Lever Street, and afterwards of Mr. Lambert of Thirsk. He was admitted a licentiate of the

Society of Apothecaries The Worshipful Society of Apothecaries of London is one of the livery companies of the City of London. It is one of the largest livery companies (with over 1,600 members in 2012) and ranks 58th in their order of precedence. The society is a me ...

of London on 11 September 1834, and on 15 December 1835 he became a member of the

College of Surgeons The Royal College of Surgeons is an ancient college (a form of corporation) established in England to regulate the activity of surgeons. Derivative organisations survive in many present and former members of the Commonwealth. These organisations ...

. He was admitted a fellow of the College of Surgeons after examination on 14 August 1845. He graduated M.D. at the

university of St. Andrews The University of St Andrews (, ; abbreviated as St And in post-nominals) is a public university in St Andrews, Scotland. It is the oldest of the four ancient universities of Scotland and, following the universities of Oxford and Cambridge, t ...

in 1850, and he became a member of the

Royal College of Physicians of London The Royal College of Physicians of London, commonly referred to simply as the Royal College of Physicians (RCP), is a British professional membership body dedicated to improving the practice of medicine, chiefly through the accreditation of ph ...

in 1859. Whitehead visited France and Germany in 1836, and on his return to England in 1838 he began to practise his profession in Oxford Street, Manchester. In 1842 he was appointed demonstrator of anatomy at the Marsden Street school of medicine, and in the same year he married Elizabeth, daughter of Thomas Hayward Radcliffe, who died on 20 Sept. 1844. In 1856 he founded, jointly with Dr. Schoepf Merei, the Clinical Hospital and Dispensary for Children, which became subsequently the Manchester Clinical Hospital for Women and Children. He was lecturer on obstetrics at the Royal School of Medicine, and for fifteen years he acted as surgeon to St. Mary's Hospital for Women and Children. In 1851 he moved into Mosley Street, where he conducted a large practice until 1881, when he retired to live on an estate he had purchased at Sutton in Surrey. He died, after a long illness, on 9 April 1885, and is buried in the Ardwick cemetery, Manchester. Whitehead's works were: * ‘On the Causes and Treatment of Abortion and Sterility,’ London, 1847, 8vo; republished in America, 1848. * ‘On the Transmission from Parent to Offspring of some Forms of Disease,’ London, 1851, 8vo; 2nd edit. 1857. * ‘The Wife's Domain, by Philothalos,’ 1860, 8vo; 2nd edit. 1874. * ‘Notes on the Rate of Mortality in Manchester,’ 1863, 8vo. * Jointly with Dr. Merei, a report on children's diseases, being the first ‘Report of the Clinical Hospital,’ Manchester, 1856, 8vo.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Whitehead, James 1812 births 1885 deaths 19th-century English medical doctors Members of the Royal College of Surgeons of England Fellows of the Royal College of Surgeons of England Alumni of the University of St Andrews Members of the Royal College of Physicians 19th-century British surgeons English surgeons