The York Medical School.

FEW British cities have a history which is equal, either in interest or importance, to that of York. Through the centuries it has been of consequence in many spheres, and its place in medical history is not without significance. St. Leonard's Hospital, founded in the City in 936, was at one time the largest hospital in England. During the medieval years many small hospitals were in existence in York, caring for the sick and the old. The County Hospital was founded in 1740, and was 'for some time the only institution of its kind north of the Trent'.' In I777 the 'Asylum for the Insane' opened, and it is now the oldest psychiatric hospital in the country still used for its original purpose. A public dispensary was established in I788.2 In I 792 the Retreat Mental Hospital was founded, and since then it has influenced the treatment of mentally-ill patients throughout the world.3 The York Medical Society was formed in I8324 and two years later a medical school was opened in the City. The purpose ofthis article is to outline the history ofthis York Medical School. There are three reasons which justify this account. Firstly, the York Medical School is typical of other schools founded during the same period. Its history mirrors some of the influences which were affecting medical education and therefore this study has more than local interest. Secondly, the School is ofinterest in its own right. During its existence it was responsible for a major portion of the medical education of such men as Sir Jonathan Hutchinson and John Hughlings Jackson. Thirdly, no concise history ofthe School seems to have been written hitherto. Mr. Rendall, a former Keeper ofthe Department ofPrinted Books at the British Museum, reported that he could find no reference to the School in the very comprehensive catalogue of the Surgeon-General's Library, Washington D.C., and he could only conclude 'an account of this school has yet to be written'.5 The writer is well aware that this account is superficial and fragmentary, and that it leaves many relevant matters unexplained and some unexplored. It is offered in the hope that it may interest those who read it, and that the gap which it does not adequately fill will soon be further investigated.