The two-volume Manual of Diseases of the Nervous System, published in 1886 and 1888, remains a foundational text in clinical neurology. Its author, William Richard Gowers, spent four decades at the National Hospital for the Paralysed and Epileptics in London, refining the diagnostic methods that defined his era of medicine and establishing himself as a central figure in his field.
Early Development and Education
Born in 1845 in London, Gowers experienced significant personal loss early in life, with his father and siblings dying by the time he was eleven. After a period spent at school in Oxford, he briefly attempted farming in Yorkshire before entering a medical apprenticeship in Coggeshall, Essex, under Thomas Simpson. Encouraged by local ministers, he prepared for the University of London matriculation, passing in the First Class Division in 1863. He subsequently pursued his studies at University College London, where he was mentored by figures such as William Jenner and John Russell Reynolds.
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Gowers served as the Medical Registrar at the National Hospital for the Paralysed and Epileptic from 1870 to 1872, eventually rising to become a physician at the institution. He maintained a private consultancy on Queen Anne Street and held a professorship at University College London starting in 1887. Beyond his clinical work, he was a founding member of the National Society for the Employment of Epileptics in 1892 alongside Sir David Ferrier and John Hughlings Jackson. His clinical influence is commemorated by eponymous terms, including Gowers' sign, Gowers' tract, and Gowers' syndrome, as well as the weekly clinical teaching session known as Gowers' Round.
Methodology and Research
A meticulous observer, Gowers relied on his own comprehensive case records rather than secondary sources. To manage these records efficiently, he mastered Pitman's shorthand, a skill he utilized throughout his career to draft publications and document patient data. He even established the Society of Medical Phonographers and a dedicated shorthand journal to promote this practice. His work was supported by his facility for illustration; as a self-taught etcher, he produced images of high quality, even exhibiting work at the Royal Academy.
Final Years
Gowers received recognition for his contributions to medicine, including his appointment as a Fellow of the Royal Society and the receipt of the Moxon Medal. He was knighted in 1897. Health issues, exacerbated by decades of overwork, began to decline in the 1890s. Following the death of his wife, Mary Baines, from pneumonia in 1913, Gowers died in 1915 at the age of 70. He was buried at Lawnswood Cemetery.
Fast facts
- Born: 1845, London
- Died: 1915, London
- Educated at: University College London
- Knighted: 1897
- Major Work: Manual of Diseases of the Nervous System (1886, 1888)
- Professional Society: Royal Society
- Notable Awards: Goulstonian Lectures, Moxon Medal
- Burial Site: Lawnswood Cemetery
Questions readers ask
What was Gowers' connection to shorthand?
He used Pitman's shorthand as a primary tool for taking medical case notes and drafting his research, eventually founding the Society of Medical Phonographers.
What is Gowers' sign?
It is a medical sign denoting muscular weakness, specifically used in the context of diagnostic neurology.
Achievements
- Fellow of the Royal Society
- Knight Bachelor
- Moxon Medal
- Held posts at University of London
- Fields: neurology
