Records Of The Glasgow Medical Society

Minute books, 1814-1856; Treasurer’s Account Book of the Glasgow Medical Society 1814-1866 and the (Royal) Medico-Chirurgical Society of Glasgow 1866-1924; Essays 1815-1843.

The Glasgow Medical Society was founded in 1841 and is considered to be the parent institution among the medical societies in Glasgow. At its first meeting it took the name Glasgow Medical and Surgical Society but this was changed at the second meeting to the Glasgow Medical Society, perhaps in view of the litigation in the early 19th century between the Faculty of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow and Glasgow University over the status of surgical degrees. The society met in the Faculty Hall in St. Enoch's Square and from the outset, due to a system of fines which remained in operation until 1846, secured regular attendance. The Society's activities included the compulsory reading of papers by members in rotation and occasional discussions on prevalent diseases. Subjects regularly cropping up in these essays include phlebotomy and fever, with less frequent discussions on medical ethics and reform, and medical education. The Society amalgamated with the (Royal) Medico-Chirurgical Society of Glasgow in 1866.

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Descriptive list available in the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow. See also NRAS Survey 1909.