RCSI Heritage Collections

One of the nicest aspects of working in Heritage Collections is the people that we meet along the way. Be it in person in our reading room in Mercers building, reading about them in an 18th century letter or coming across them in a snapshot of time in a sepia coloured photograph. We are always meeting people!  Last month we were fortunate enough to meet the Moorhead family- Cari, Susan and Peter, who had got in touch with us earlier on this year with the view of donating a very unique and interesting piece of surgical equipment. The piece was a set of surgical tools encased in a solid wooden box with the engraving: Thomas J Crean Surgeon Imperial Light Horse 1899 The name on the engraving is quite a familiar one here in RCSI. Born in Dublin in 1873 Thomas Crean studied in Clongowes College and completed his medical studies in RCSI gaining his Licentiateship in 1896 and his Fellowship in 1902. He then went on to have a successful and active career in the British Army as a soldier an...

On 22nd April Irish Doctors in the First World War , a book by Patrick Casey, Kevin Cullen and ex-RCSI Council member Joe Duignan, will be launched in the College. 'This unique book records the experiences of Irish doctors who joined the British armed forces and describes their journey from the relative calm, of a pre-war medical career to the horrors of the First World War.' - Irish Academic Press  WW1 material on display in the College Numerous staff and students from RCSI made the trip over to Europe to use their medical skills and training in saving those who were fighting on the front line in WW1. During and after the WW1 the College continuously compiled the names of these doctors through despatches, newspaper reports, contact with families etc and created the RCSI Roll of Honour 1914-1918. This honours list was produced to remember and celebrate the compassion, medical skill and unselfish nature of those staff and students, some of whom were n...

It's fast approaching exactly 100 years since the start of the Great War. A war that saw numerous atrocities and millions die in battle. Large numbers of staff and students from the College went over to play their part in the effort to save some of these lives. One man, Professor of Surgery, at the time went and was lucky enough to return after the war in 1918. His name was George Jameson Johnston . George Jameson Johnston (1866 - 1926) Johnston was born in Dungannon, Co. Tyrone, in April 1866. He attended the Royal School in his town before entering Trinity College. Even though he took his courses in Trinity Johnston chose to take his medical degrees from the Royal University. He was First of First Honourmen and First-class Exhibitioner at his B.A examination. He was also First Honourman in Anatomy and Prizeman in Midwifery in Trinity. Johnston, before and after qualification, conducted large private classes or what we would know as 'grinds' now. He graduate M....