Alfred Austin Lendon (c. 1877 – 29 June 1935) was a medical doctor, of whom it was said few practitioners have exerted a wider influence on medical science in South Australia.

History

Lendon was born in

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

and educated at

Maidstone Grammar School Maidstone Grammar School (MGS) is a grammar school in Maidstone, England. The school was founded in 1549 after Protector Somerset sold Corpus Christi Hall on behalf of King Edward VI to the people of Maidstone for £200. The Royal Charter for ...

King's College, London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of King George IV and the Duke of Wellington. In 1836, King's ...

, and

University College, London , mottoeng = Let all come who by merit deserve the most reward , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £143 million (2020) , budget = � ...

, where he gained his MD. and MRCS. degrees, and arrived in South Australia in 1883. In 1884 he was, as a Government Medical Officer, sent to Bordertown to suppress an outbreak of

smallpox Smallpox was an infectious disease caused by variola virus (often called smallpox virus) which belongs to the genus Orthopoxvirus. The last naturally occurring case was diagnosed in October 1977, and the World Health Organization (WHO) c ...

, and was a member of the Medical Board from 1899 to 1932 and its president from 1912. In 1885 he was elected to the board of the

Adelaide Children's Hospital The Women's and Children's Hospital is located on King William Road in North Adelaide, Australia. It is one of the major hospitals in Adelaide and is a teaching hospital of the University of Adelaide, the University of South Australia and Flin ...

, which at the time consisted only of the Way block, and was active in three major stages of expansion. He replaced Dr. William Peel Nesbitt (died 1894) as honorary medical officer from 1885, served as consulting surgeon, and succeeded the founder Dr Allan Campbell as Vice-President, and was senior vice-president when he died. He served as honorary physician to the Adelaide Hospital 1891–1894. He was president of the South Australian branch of the

British Medical Association The British Medical Association (BMA) is a registered trade union for doctors in the United Kingdom. The association does not regulate or certify doctors, a responsibility which lies with the General Medical Council. The association's headquar ...

for two separate terms. He was President of the

District Trained Nursing Society The Royal District Nursing Service (RDNS) is a not-for-profit community health and care provider with headquarters in Keswick, a suburb of Adelaide, South Australia. It was established in 1894 in South Australia as the District Trained Nursing ...

from 1898, and saw it progress from a near-bankrupt organization to a vigorous, progressive and well-endowed institution. He also served for several years as national president of the

Australasian Trained Nurses Association Australasian is the adjectival form of Australasia, a geographical region including Australia, New Zealand, and New Guinea. Australasian may also refer to: Institutions Commercial * Australasian Correctional Management, private company running p ...

. He was appointed patron of both organizations on his retirement. He was an occasional lecturer at the University of Adelaide and several collections of his lectures have been published.

Publications

*Lendon, A. A. Clinical Lectures on Hydatid Disease of the Lungs (1902) London, Bailliere, Tindall and Cox. *Lendon, A. A. Nodal fever, febris nodosa : synonyms: erythema nodosum, erythema multiforme (1905) He also edited several books on hydatid disease by John Davies Thomas (1844–1893).

Other interests

He was founder and first president of the Numismatic Society of South Australia, president of the Commonwealth Club 1919–1922, and a longtime member of the

Royal Geographical Society of Australasia On 22 June 1883, the Geographical Society of Australasia started at a meeting in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. A branch was formed in Victoria in the same year. In July 1885, both the Queensland and the South Australian branches started. In ...

, SA branch.

Family

Lendon married Lucy Isabel Rymill (31 March 1865 – 22 April 1929), daughter of

Henry Rymill Henry Rymill (1 May 1836 – 21 February 1927) and Frank Rymill (27 November 1837 – 26 May 1915) were brothers prominent in business and public service in the 19th century South Australia. Henry "Harry" Rymill and Francis "Frank" Rymill were ...

on 26 August 1889. *Dr. Guy Austin Lendon (1895–1970) *Dr. Alan Harding Lendon (1903– ) *Dorothy Isabel Lendon (1890– ) They had a home on Brougham place, North Adelaide He died after a long illness, and was privately cremated.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lendon, Alfred Austin 1870s births 1935 deaths 20th-century Australian medical doctors

History

Publications

Other interests

Family

Archives

References