William Barker (1810–1873) was the second professor of

chemistry Chemistry is the science, scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a natural science that covers the Chemical element, elements that make up matter to the chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules and ions ...

at the

Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland The Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI) is a medical professional and educational institution, which is also known as RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences, Ireland's first private university. It was established in 1784 ...

from 1850 to 1873. Barker was born in Dublin in 1810 as the son of Francis Barker M.D., professor of chemistry at

Trinity College Dublin , name_Latin = Collegium Sanctae et Individuae Trinitatis Reginae Elizabethae juxta Dublin , motto = ''Perpetuis futuris temporibus duraturam'' (Latin) , motto_lang = la , motto_English = It will last i ...

.Frederic Boase
Barker, William
in ''Modern English Biography'' (2018) He was educated in Arts and Medicine in

, and in 1832 took the degree of B.A. in 1835 that of M.B. and in 1842 proceeded to the M.D. degree. He was a fellow of the College of Physicians, of which, in 1854, he became vice-president but he never practised as a physician. In 1836, he began to lecture on Chemistry in the Richmond School Dublin and in 1850 succeeded Prof.

James Apjohn James Apjohn (1 September 1796 – 2 June 1886) was the Irish chemist known for the discovery of new minerals. Life James Apjohn (1796-1886) was a renowned and respected chemist and physicist who lived and worked in Dublin during the 1800s. ...

as the Chair of Chemistry in the

RCSI The Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI) is a medical professional and educational institution, which is also known as RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences, Ireland's first private university. It was established in 1784 ...

. While this would be unusual today, in the latter part of the 19th century and early part of the 20th century the cultivation of chemical sciences and the practice of medicine were frequently associated with the same person. Barker died in Dublin 11 September 1873 at the age of 63.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Barker, William 1810 births 1873 deaths Scientists from Dublin (city) 19th-century Irish chemists Fellows of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland Alumni of Trinity College Dublin Medical doctors from Dublin (city)