John MacFarlane (31 July 1813 – 6 July 1873) was a Scottish-born Australian physician and politician. He was born in

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

and studied medicine at

Glasgow University , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...

, qualifying in 1837. MacFarlane was the first to describe desmoid tumours. He worked as a ship's doctor until 1840, when he settled in

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

and opened a practice. In 1847 he married Agnes Grace Johnstone. He was honorary physician at Sydney Infirmary from 1847 to 1869 and an examiner for the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one of the country's si ...

in 1856; he was also awarded an honorary degree from the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb nor ...

. In 1860 he was president of the Australian Medical Association. He was a member of the

New South Wales Legislative Council The New South Wales Legislative Council, often referred to as the upper house, is one of the two chambers of the parliament of the Australian state of New South Wales. The other is the Legislative Assembly. Both sit at Parliament House in th ...

from 1858 to 1861 and from 1861 to 1870. He died in

on , survived by his wife Agnes, two daughters and three sons.

References

1813 births 1873 deaths Members of the New South Wales Legislative Council Colony of New South Wales politicians {{Australia-politician-stub