William Oswald Gibson Taylor FRCPGLAS (16 March 1912 – 4 September 1989) was a Scottish consultant ophthalmologist who became a leading expert on

albinism Albinism is the congenital absence of melanin in an animal or plant resulting in white hair, feathers, scales and skin and pink or blue eyes. Individuals with the condition are referred to as albino. Varied use and interpretation of the term ...

. In 1979 he founded the Albinism Fellowship in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

Education and early career

William Taylor graduated from 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 , ...

, (MB, ChB) in 1934. Following graduation, Taylor decided to specialise in ophthalmology, working at the Glasgow Eye Infirmary. His research interests began in 1938 at

Moorfields Eye Hospital Moorfields Eye Hospital is a specialist NHS eye hospital in Finsbury in the London Borough of Islington in London, England run by Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. Together with the UCL Institute of Ophthalmology, which is adjacen ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

. In 1940 he joined the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

and served as an ophthalmologist in East Africa and Scotland during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. In 1945 he became a Fellow of the

Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow, is an institute of physicians and surgeons in Glasgow, Scotland. Founded by Peter Lowe after receiving a royal charter by James VI in 1599, as the Glasgow Faculty, it originally exis ...

. In February 1946 he was the unsuccessful Scottish National Party candidate at the

1946 Glasgow Cathcart by-election The 1946 Glasgow Cathcart by-election was held on 12 February 1946. The byelection was held due to the death of the incumbent Conservative MP, Francis Beattie. It was won by the Conservative candidate John Henderson. References ...

to become

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members o ...

for the

Glasgow Cathcart (UK Parliament constituency) Glasgow Cathcart was a burgh constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1918 until 2005, when it was replaced by the larger Glasgow South constituency. It elected one Member of Parliament (M ...

. Later that year he was appointed as consultant ophthalmologist at

Kilmarnock Infirmary Kilmarnock Infirmary was a general hospital in Kilmarnock, Ayrshire. History Kilmarnock Infirmary opened in 1868 in Portland Street, to meet the needs of the growing population in Kilmarnock. The original building was designed by the prolific ...

in Ayrshire.

Albinism

Over thirty years Taylor developed the orthoptic department into a 36-bed unit with three consultants and research facilities. He published numerous scientific papers on various subjects, notably

epicanthus An epicanthic fold or epicanthus is a skin fold of the upper eyelid that covers the inner corner (medial canthus) of the eye. However, variation occurs in the nature of this feature and the possession of "partial epicanthic folds" or "slight ...

colour vision Color vision, a feature of visual perception, is an ability to perceive differences between light composed of different wavelengths (i.e., different spectral power distributions) independently of light intensity. Color perception is a part of ...

and albinism. Through his research on colour vision, Taylor developed a specific interest in albinism. He became one of the world's leading experts on the subject; continuing his research until his death aged 77. In 1979 he established the Albinism Fellowship to provide information, advice and support for people with albinism, their families and other interested parties. He travelled the world as the international organiser of the Albinism Fellowship.

Awards

* Mary Harkness prize in 1963. * William Mackenzie Medal in 1977. * Edridge Green prize in 1978 from the

Royal College of Ophthalmologists The Royal College of Ophthalmologists, founded in 1988, is an independent professional body and one of the Medical Royal Colleges. They set the standards and examinations for medical doctors aiming to become ophthalmologists, and provide surgical ...

References

External links

Albinism Fellowship
{{DEFAULTSORT:Taylor, William 1912 births 1989 deaths People educated at Strathallan School Alumni of the University of Glasgow British ophthalmologists British Army personnel of World War II Fellows of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow 20th-century Scottish medical doctors Scottish National Party politicians Albinism 20th-century surgeons