James Hervey (''c.'' 1751 in London – 1824) was an English physician and pioneer of smallpox vaccination in London. After education at a school at Northampton and then at home under a private tutor, James Hervey, at age 16, matriculated on 17 November 1767 at

Queen's College, Oxford The Queen's College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford, England. The college was founded in 1341 by Robert de Eglesfield in honour of Philippa of Hainault. It is distinguished by its predominantly neoclassical architecture, ...

. He graduated there A.B. 1771, A.M. 1774, M.B. 1777, and M.D. 1781. Hervey was elected physician to

Guy's Hospital Guy's Hospital is an NHS hospital in the borough of Southwark in central London. It is part of Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust and one of the institutions that comprise the King's Health Partners, an academic health science centre. ...

in 1779, was admitted a Candidate of the Royal College of Physicians in 1781, and was elected F.R.C.P. in 1782. He regularly practised for some years at

Tunbridge Wells Royal Tunbridge Wells is a town in Kent, England, southeast of central London. It lies close to the border with East Sussex on the northern edge of the Weald, High Weald, whose sandstone geology is exemplified by the rock formation High Roc ...

during the summer season. Hervey was Gulstonian lecturer in 1783,

Harveian orator The Harveian Oration is a yearly lecture held at the Royal College of Physicians of London. It was instituted in 1656 by William Harvey, discoverer of the systemic circulation. Harvey made financial provision for the college to hold an annual feas ...

in 1785, and

Lumleian lecturer The Lumleian Lectures are a series of annual lectures started in 1582 by the Royal College of Physicians and currently run by the Lumleian Trust. The name commemorates John Lumley, 1st Baron Lumley, who with Richard Caldwell of the College endowed ...

from 1789 to 1811. He was the National Vaccine Establishment's first appointed registrar. He died in early 1824. In 1812, Hervey reported for the Board of the National Vaccine Establishment that during the year 1811 the surgeons appointed by the Board's authority to nine stations in London vaccinated 3,148 people and distributed 23,794 effective doses of vaccine lymph to the public.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hervey, James 1751 births 1824 deaths People from Northampton Fellows of the Royal College of Physicians Alumni of The Queen's College, Oxford 19th-century English medical doctors 18th-century English medical doctors Physicians of Guy's Hospital Vaccinologists British immunologists Smallpox vaccines