Dr. Thomas Masterman Winterbottom (26 March 1766, in

South Shields South Shields () is a coastal town in South Tyneside, Tyne and Wear, England. It is on the south bank of the mouth of the River Tyne. Historically, it was known in Roman times as Arbeia, and as Caer Urfa by Early Middle Ages. According to the 20 ...

– 8 July 1859) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

physician A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...

philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the Public good (economics), public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private goo ...

and

abolitionist Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the movement to end slavery. In Western Europe and the Americas, abolitionism was a historic movement that sought to end the Atlantic slave trade and liberate the enslaved people. The British ...

remembered for describing

African trypanosomiasis African trypanosomiasis, also known as African sleeping sickness or simply sleeping sickness, is an insect-borne parasitic infection of humans and other animals. It is caused by the species ''Trypanosoma brucei''. Humans are infected by two typ ...

and the associated

Winterbottom's sign Winterbottom's sign is a swelling of lymph nodes (lymphadenopathy) along the posterior cervical lymph node chain, associated with the early phase of African trypanosomiasis (African sleeping sickness), a disease caused by the parasites ''Trypanoso ...

Biography

Thomas Winterbottom was the eldest son of Dr. James Winterbottom, a surgeon-apothecary, and Lydia née Masterman, and was educated by the local Curate. He studied medicine at the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

and then the

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

. He was appointed physician to the colony of the

Sierra Leone Company The Sierra Leone Company was the corporate body involved in founding the second British colony in Africa on 11 March 1792 through the resettlement of Black Loyalists who had initially been settled in Nova Scotia (the Nova Scotian Settlers) after ...

in 1792, spending 4 years in Africa. During this period he accepted

John Macaulay Wilson John Macaulay Wilson was an African people, African King, and one of the first Africans to receive a European medical training. He was sent from Sierra Leone to Kingdom of Great Britain, Britain for medical training in either 1794 or 1796. He retur ...

into his household. Wilson went on to become one of the first European trained African medical staff in Africa. In 1793, Winterbottom became one of the founder members of the

Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area in Australia, named after Newcastle ...

Literary and Philosophical Society The Literary and Philosophical Society of Newcastle upon Tyne (or the ''Lit & Phil'' as it is popularly known) is a historical library in Newcastle upon Tyne, England, and the largest independent library outside London. The library is still avai ...

. In 1796 he returned to South Tyneside to take over his father's practice in South Shields. He wrote an account of his time in Africa which was published in 1803, and which contains the description of African trypanosomiasis (Sleeping sickness), for which he is known. He noted that slave traders used the sign of neck swelling as an indicator of sleepiness, and would avoid those slaves; this sign of cervical lymphadenopathy became his eponymous sign. He married in 1803, and settled in

Westoe Westoe was originally a village near South Shields, Tyne & Wear, England, but has since become part of the town and is now used to refer to the area of the town where the village once was. It is also an electoral ward for local politics purposes. ...

. He ran his general practice for 30 years, and published several medical books and papers. He retained his interest in medicine until his death at the age of 93, at the time the oldest doctor in Britain. His wife had died in 1840, and he had no children, so his considerable estate was left to a number of charities which he had supported during his life. The bulk of this bequest was to found the South Shields Marine College, which he had established in 1837. His friends, including Robert Ingham MP and Richard Shortridge MP, ensured that the college opened on 26 March 1866, on the centenary of Winterbottom's birth. The college later became

South Tyneside College South Tyneside College is a large further education college in South Tyneside in North East England. Its main site is in the town of South Shields. The college offers part-time and full-time courses for young students and adults. It was formed i ...

.South Shields Marine College and its Founder
at Lindenbridge Publications & Research Services website

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Winterbottom, Thomas Masterman 19th-century English medical doctors 18th-century English medical doctors 1766 births 1859 deaths Alumni of the University of Edinburgh