Friday 14 December 2012

Day 349: Peter Pan at Mearnskirk Hospital

 
 
In Memory of Dr John A Wilson OBE.
 
Dr. Wilson was the first superintendent of Mearnskirk Hospital. 
After serving in World War 1 & having done research work in bacteriology,
he joined the tuberculosis service of Glasgow Corporation in the 1920s
and took up his post at Mearnskirk in 1929 when it was still being built.
He was highly respected and while he worked at Mearnskirk
was also senior lecturer in clinical tuberculosis at Glasgow University.
He held both posts until his death in 1946.
 
Dr. Wilson had arranged for several small cement statues of children's figures
 to be erected in the hospital grounds for the amusement of the young patients.
He had always hoped to erect a bronze statue of Peter Pan,
but died before this dream could come to fruition.
In his memory, his friend and hospital benefactor Alfred Ellsworth
launched a fund for this purpose, and on Sunday 5 July 1949
 the finished statue by sculptor Alex Proudfoot RSA,
Principal of Glasgow School of Art, was unveiled.
 
 

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