Hall, Vernon Frederick "Sam"

  • Hall, Vernon Frederick
Date:
c.1946-c.1990
Reference:
GC/203
  • Archives and manuscripts

About this work

Description

Writings including an account of the development of anaesthesia in the Far East campaigns, Second World War; autobiography; histories of anaesthesia and of King's College Hospital Medical School.

Publication/Creation

c.1946-c.1990

Physical description

1 box

Acquisition note

Dr. Hall gave these writings to the library at Wellcome Collection via Dr. Aileen Adams, CBE, who had encouraged him to produce items 1 and 2.

Biographical note

Vernon Frederick "Sam" Hall (1904-1998) trained at King's College, London, 1922-1927, and stayed at King's College Hospital as house surgeon to Sir Lenthal Cheatle and Junior House Anaesthetist under Alan Cogswell. In 1930 he became consultant anaesthetist at King's College Hospital and later at Southend General Hospital.

On the outbreak of the Second World War he joined the Emergency Medical Service for work at Horton Hospital, and was at King's College Hospital during the Blitz, after which he joined the RAMC and was posted to Ceylon. He was appointed Advisor in Anaesthetics to Eastern Command, and shortly afterwards to Burma and South East Asia Command, ending the war with the rank of brigadier, in full charge of anaesthetics in India as well as for the eastern sector.

From 1946 to 1951 he was Vice-Dean of King's College Hospital Medical School, and from 1951 Dean. He was a member of the University Faculty of Medicine and Chairman of the University Board of Advanced Medical Studies, a founder member of the Royal College of Surgeons Faculty of Anaesthetists (later the Royal College of Anaesthestists), and President of the Association of Anaesthetists of Great Britain and Ireland.

Related material

At Wellcome Collection:

Papers of Robert Stout, who is mentioned in GC/203/1 and whose statistical work is drawn upon, are held as GC/226.

In other repositories:

The original of the account of anaesthesia in India (GC/203/1), a typescript written in 1992 for the 60th anniversary of the Association of Anaesthetists of Great Britain, is held in the Imperial War Museum.

Copyright note

When the material was originally presented to Wellcome Collection it was intended that copyright should be assigned to Wellcome after Hall's death. When Hall died in 1998, however, this arrangement was not confirmed and to day copyright remains with Hall's heirs.

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Identifiers

Accession number

  • 640