Papers of: Wilson, [Anna] Justina [Augusta] (1863-1949)

The material comprises notes, taken by Susan H. Cannon, of Wilson's lectures on pathology and the treatment of diseases by Swedish remedial gymnastics.

[Anna] Justina [Augusta] Wilson was born in 1863. Following her marriage she lived in India but returned to Europe following her husband's early retirement. After travelling widely in Europe, and studying massage in Sweden and Germany, she founded a School of Massage in Baker Street, London, about 1909. This later merged with the Swedish Institute in Cromwell Road, London (founded by Dr. Mary Hawkes), with Justina Wilson becoming Head of the merged institution. She embarked upon conventional medical training at the Royal Free Hospital whilst still Head of the Swedish Institute and also whilst in private practice, taking the Scottish triple qualification and the L.S.A. in 1916. She was a clinical assistant at the Hospital for Sick Children, Great Ormond Street, London, and the National Hospital for Diseases of the Heart, and also took charge of the orthopaedic department of the Miller Hospital, Greenwich, before taking charge of the Electrotherapeutic Department of the Royal Free Hospital; she later took the same post at St. Mary's Hospital, London. She obtained the qualifications D.M.R.E. in 1920, M.R.C.P.E. in 1924 and F.R.C.P.E. in 1928; she was also an honorary member of the Chartered Society of Physiotherapists. She died in 1949.

The papers are available subject to the usual conditions of access to Archives and Manuscripts material, after the completion of a Reader's Undertaking.

Purchased from the Royal Society of Medicine, with many other books and papers of Edgar Ferdinand Cyriax, in 1956 (acc.303950).

Described in: S.A.J. Moorat, Catalogue of Western Manuscripts on Medicine and Science in the Wellcome Historical Medical Library (London: Wellcome Institute for the History of Medicine, 1962-1973).

description compiled by Christopher Hilton based upon those in the Library's published finding aid by S.A.J. Moorat. Biographical information drawn from the obituaries of Justina Wilson in The Lancet (1949, ii, pp.1112-1113 and 1206).

Photocopies/photographs/microfilm are supplied for private research only at the Archivist's discretion. Please note that material may be unsuitable for copying on conservation grounds, and that photographs cannot be photocopied in any circumstances. Readers are restricted to 100 photocopies in twelve months. Researchers who wish to publish material must seek copyright permission from the copyright owner.

This material formed part of the papers of Edgar Ferdinand Cyriax, practitioner and historian of Swedish medical gymnastics. Following Cyriax's death in 1955 his collection of material on medical gymnastics was presented by his family to the Royal Society of Medicine.

The Wellcome Library holds numerous other items that also formed part of the collection of Edgar Ferdinand Cyriax relating to manipulative treatment and Swedish medical gymnastics: Cyriax's own papers are held as MSS.2001-2025 and 6054-6060, those of his father-in-law [Jonas] Henrik Kellgren are held as MSS.5406-5409 and 7869-7872, and a work on Swedish medical gymnastics by Amalia Lundgren is held as MS.3348.