A small collection of papers of Professor William Stirling (1851-1932) reflecting his interests in physiology, and in the promotion of medical knowledge to the general public.
Most of the material concerns Stirling's work as a public lecturer on a wide range of medical and biological topics, particularly his work for the Combe Trust. The Combe Trust was set up under the will of George Combe (1788-1858), a Scottish solicitor and phrenologist, who left money for public lectures on health. Stirling appears to have been its main lecturer in the north of England. It also includes several research notebooks compiled during the course of his career.
The collection comprises:
- A notebook of Stirling dated 20 October 1873 from his time at the University of Leipzig, which describes the dissection of a dog;
- A notebook dated 1880-1882 describing analyses of blood, human and animal;
- A notebook containing an analysis of frog lungs, c.1888-1889;
- A copy of Stirling's Outlines of physiological chemistry, which was used for teaching at the University of Aberdeen (1881);
- A notebook compiled by Stirling listing recipients of his book, Some apostles of physiology (1902);
- A notebook on chemical physiology c. 1914-1915;
- A manuscript lecture of Stirling's from 1915 which deals with inter alia embryology and digestion.
- A notebook relating to his lectures on eyesight (1927-1930);
- A large collection of syllabuses, notices and posters for Stirling's public lectures (1891-1931), most of which were delivered under the auspices of the Combe Trust at locations in Lancashire, Cheshire, West Riding, Derbyshire and Staffordshire, including subjects such as 'Foods and digestion' (1904), 'Preservation of health' (1915), 'Gateways of health' (1924-1931) [97 items];
- Lectures notes (typed) on 'The romance and beauty of plant life';
- Cuttings reporting Stirling's lectures, 1906-1916 [14 items];
- Reports of the Combe lectures delivered by Professor Stirling (Aberdeen 1882);
- Booklet: Combe lectures examination questions, 1895-1899;
- A notebook concerning Combe lectures on the senses, 1910,
- A letter from F. P. Milligan to Edward Brockbank, 19 June 1930, which outlines the objectives of the Combe trust, and includes a typescript copy of the trust settlement (1858), dated at Edinburgh.