Sir James Young Simpson, a Scottish doctor who lived from 1811 to 1870, was an important person in the history of medicine. He was the first doctor to show that chloroform could be used to stop pain during surgery in humans. He also helped make chloroform widely used in medical treatments.

Simpson studied many subjects, including archaeology and a topic that was not often discussed at the time: hermaphroditism, which is when a person has both male and female characteristics. He supported the use of midwives in hospitals and many important women visited him for help with health problems related to their reproductive system. Simpson wrote a book called Homœopathy, its Tenets and Tendencies, in which he disagreed with the ideas of a doctor named Hahnemann.

Because of his work in developing gynaecology and improving hospitals, Simpson was given a knighthood. By 1847, he was chosen to be the Queen’s physician in Scotland. Queen Victoria used anesthesia during her childbirth, which helped more people accept its use in medicine.

Simpson was friends with Sir David Brewster and was with him when Brewster died. Simpson’s research on chloroform’s ability to stop pain greatly improved medical surgery.

Education and early career

James Simpson was born in Bathgate, the younger son of Mary Jervais and David Simpson, a baker. He studied at the local school and, in 1825 at the age of 14, began studying for an arts degree at the University of Edinburgh. Two years later, he started medical studies at the same university and graduated with an MBChB. In 1830, he became a licentiate of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, and in 1832, he earned his MD. During his time at the university, he took extra classes, including those taught by surgeon Robert Liston. His MD thesis on inflammation was of high quality, which led Professor of Pathology John Thomson to take him on as an assistant.

As a student, he became a member and later Senior President of the Royal Medical Society, which sparked his lifelong interest in helping the society grow. His first job was as a general practitioner in the Stockbridge district, working from 2 Deanhaugh Street. At the age of 28, he became Professor of Medicine and Midwifery at the University of Edinburgh, succeeding James Hamilton in that role.

Obstetric anaesthesia

Sir Humphry Davy used the first anesthetic, nitrous oxide (laughing gas), in 1799. William T. G. Morton's demonstration of ether as an anesthetic in 1846 was not widely accepted at first because it caused irritation in patients' lungs. Chloroform was created in 1831, but its effects were not studied much at that time. Dr. Robert Mortimer Glover first described chloroform's ability to reduce pain in animals in 1842, which earned him the Harveian Society's Gold Medal. However, he did not use it on humans because he was concerned about its safety.

Dr. James Young Simpson's most important contribution to medicine was introducing anesthesia to childbirth. In 1834, he tested chloroform on humans during an experiment with friends and found it could make people sleep. Dr. Simpson and two assistants, Dr. George Skene Keith and James Matthews Duncan, often tested new chemicals in Dr. Simpson's dining room to see if they had anesthetic effects. After visiting Linlithgow, where he was advised to try chloroform from a local pharmacist, David Waldie, Simpson returned to Edinburgh. On November 4, 1847, Simpson and his friends inhaled chloroform obtained from pharmacist William Flockhart. They felt happy and humorous but then collapsed and woke up the next day. Simpson realized chloroform could be used as an anesthetic. Soon after, his niece, Miss Agnes Petrie, tried it and fell asleep while singing, "I am an angel!"

A common story claims the mother of the first child delivered under chloroform named her baby "Anaesthesia," but this is not true. Simpson's daughter, Eve, wrote about this in his biography, but the child's real name was Wilhelmina. The nickname "Anaesthesia" was given to the baby by Simpson.

Simpson's survival after inhaling chloroform was a lucky accident. If he had inhaled too much, he might have died, which would have made chloroform seem dangerous. If he had inhaled too little, it would not have worked. Simpson's willingness to test new ideas helped him become a pioneer in medicine. Later, he provided chloroform to Florence Nightingale and Queen Victoria, leading to its use in childbirth and military medicine. According to the British Medical Journal, this changed medicine for many years.

A record of Simpson's early use of ether in childbirth was written by doctor Edmund Lund, who visited him in 1847. This account is kept in the University of Manchester's special collections with the reference MMM/12/2.

Other medical contributions

Simpson improved the design of obstetric forceps, and these tools are still called "Simpson's Forceps" in the field of childbirth. He also created the Air Tractor in 1838, which was the earliest known vacuum extractor used to help with childbirth. However, this method became widely used only after the invention of the ventouse more than 100 years later.

In 1859, Simpson described a condition called coccydynia, which is pain in the coccyx, or tailbone. He also introduced treatments such as cutting the tissues connected to the coccyx or removing the coccyx itself. A medical journal called the American Journal of the Medical Sciences referred to coccydynia as "the disease made famous by the recent excellent research of Dr. Simpson of Edinburgh."

Antiquarian research

Simpson joined the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland in 1849 and became its vice-president in 1860. He helped with the history of medicine and archaeology. He wrote several papers about leprosy and syphilis. In these works, he studied the symptoms of these diseases, how historical records compared to modern cases, and the institutions created to care for and separate patients. He also researched medicine in Roman Britain.

Simpson published an important early work on prehistoric rock art titled Archaic Sculptures on Stones and Rocks in Scotland, England, and Other Countries. In this book, he listed and grouped examples of carvings from many parts of the British Isles, often based on his own observations. He also included examples from other countries for comparison. The book includes many illustrations. After Simpson’s death, a collection of his writings about antiquities was published in two volumes.

His great-grand-niece, Margaret E. B. Simpson, later became the first female professional archaeologist in Scotland. It is believed that his interest in antiquarian research may have influenced her career choices.

Personal life

Simpson was a faithful member of the Free Church of Scotland, but he did not sign the Westminster Confession of Faith because he believed it took the book of Genesis as exact and true.

Simpson's main home was Strathavon Lodge, but he also had a house in the city at 52 Queen Street, Edinburgh, and another home in the countryside near Bathgate. The family's main home was Strathavon, Linlithgow.

Marriage and Grindlay family

The Simpson and Grindlay families from Edinburgh were closely connected, forming one large extended family.

In 1839, Simpson married Janet Grindlay (later known as Lady Janet Grindlay Simpson), the daughter of Walter Grindlay, a prominent figure in Edinburgh and Liverpool shipping. Walter was part of the Scottish branch of the landed gentry Grindlay family. Simpson and Walter were cousins, sharing the same grandparents: Alexander Simpson and Isabella Grindlay. Walter’s daughter, Janet (also called “Jessie”), was Simpson’s first cousin once removed. Simpson’s son, Walter Grindlay Simpson, 2nd Baronet, was Walter Grindlay’s nephew and godson.

During his career, Simpson received financial support from Walter Grindlay and his estate on several occasions.

Death and memorials

In 1840, Simpson was chosen as a member of the Harveian Society of Edinburgh and became president in 1848. In 1850, he was elected President of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh and became an international member of the American Philosophical Society in 1863. That same year, he was also chosen as a member of the Aesculapian Club. In 1866, he was created a Baronet of Strathavon in the County of Linlithgow and the City of Edinburgh. He died at his home in Edinburgh in May 1870 at the age of 58. His family was offered a burial spot in Westminster Abbey but refused. Instead, he was buried in Warriston Cemetery, Edinburgh. A memorial bust of Simpson is displayed in a niche at Westminster Abbey in London. On the day of his funeral, a Scottish holiday was declared, with banks and stock markets closed. Over 100,000 people lined the funeral procession on its way to the cemetery, and more than 1,700 colleagues and business leaders joined the procession. A year later, William Flockhart, a chloroform supplier, was buried nearby.

Dr. Alexander Russell Simpson, his nephew, inherited his town house at 52 Queen Street and lived there until his death in 1916. After his death, the house was left to the Church of Scotland. Since then, the building has been used for many purposes, including being taken over by the army during World War II and used as a training center for Sunday School teachers in the 1950s. Today, the house is the location of a charity called Simpson House, which offers counseling services for adults and children affected by alcohol and drug use. A plaque on the building’s wall marks it as the home of James Young Simpson from 1845 to 1870.

In 1879, the Edinburgh Royal Maternity and Simpson Memorial Hospital was named in his honor. In 1939, the Simpson Memorial Maternity Pavilion was also named after him. The current Simpson Centre for Reproductive Health at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh is named in his honor as well. The Quartermile development, which includes the Old Royal Infirmary in Edinburgh, named its main residential street Simpson Loan in his honor.

Coat of arms

The coat of arms of the Simpson Baronets, awarded to James Young Simpson on 3 February 1866, were inspired by his work in medicine and anaesthesia.

In popular culture

Ambrose Parry's historical novels in the Raven, Fisher, and Simpson series, which began in 2018, include Simpson as a main character.

Gallery

• Sir James by James Archer (around 1848)
• Sir James Young Simpson
• Sir James alongside Professor Robert Jameson, Dr. William Alison, Dr. Thomas Traill, Professor James Miller, Sir Isaac Balfour, Dr. John Bennett, of the University of Edinburgh.
• Sir James Y Simpson
• Sir James Young Simpson and Wainhouse (or Muirhouse)
• Sir James Y Simpson, Bart, M.D.
• Lady Janet "Jessie" Grindlay Simpson, a spectator of the first trial of chloroform by James Archer (around 1846)
• The townhouse located at 52 Queen Street, Edinburgh, belonged to Sir James Young Simpson.
• A plate is displayed outside the former home of Sir James in Edinburgh.
• A memorial plaque in St. Giles, Edinburgh.
• Sir James Young Simpson plaque at the University of Edinburgh Medical School.
• The Simpson Memorial Maternity Hospital was built to commemorate Sir James in 1879.
• An illustration from Simpson's book on archaic sculpturing.
• Grindlay-Simpson family grave (marked by a tall obelisk), Warriston Cemetery, Edinburgh.