William John Virgin

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{{short description|Indian Medical Service Officer & Founding Principal, Dhaka Medical College}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name = William John Virgin
| office = [[Principal (academia)|Principal]]
| order = 1st
| title = [[Dhaka Medical College and Hospital|Dhaka Medical College]]
| termstart = 1 July 1946
| termend = 14 August 1947
| succeeded = [[Colonel]] E. G. Montgomery
| image = Maj. W. J. Virgin.jpg
| rank = [[Major]]
| branch = [[Indian Medical Service]]
| birth_date = 16 December 1905
| death_date = 18 October 1997
}}

'''William John Virgin''' (16 December 1905 – 18 October 1997)<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |title=(456) - Army lists > Half-yearly Army lists 1923 - Feb 1950 (From 1947, annual, despite the name) > 1939 > Second half - British Military lists - National Library of Scotland |url=https://digital.nls.uk/british-military-lists/archive/90179333?mode=transcription |access-date=2020-08-12 |website=digital.nls.uk}}</ref> was a serving [[Major]] in the former [[Indian Medical Service]] in [[British India]]. He was the first Principal of [[Dhaka Medical College and Hospital|Dhaka Medical College]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=History of Dhaka Medical College |url=http://www.dmc.gov.bd/site/page/1cb15259-e127-4705-bb31-116f5dd48052/- |access-date=2020-08-11 |website=Dhaka Medical College |language=en}}</ref> Virgin was born in Toronto, Canada on 16 December 1905. He served primarily in India and, after its formation, [[Bangladesh]].

==Career==
The [[University of Toronto]] in June 1933 conferred on Virgin the degree Doctor of Medicine.<ref>{{cite book |title=University of Toronto Calendar: Faculty of Medicine, 1934-1935 |url=https://archive.org/details/uoftcalendaracad1934/page/n451/mode/1up |publisher=The University of Toronto Press |year=1934 |pages=116–117}}</ref>

He was an [[Orthopedic surgery|orthopedic surgeon]] by profession. He joined the [[Indian Medical Service]], where he was promoted to Lieutenant on 1 August 1933 [on prob], and Captain on 1 August 1934 [on prob] (17/2/36).<ref name=":2" /><ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=o4VEAQAAIAAJ |title=The Monthly Army List |publisher=His Majesty's Stationery Office |date=July 1935 |location=London |pages=895–9}}</ref> He received a promotion to the post of [[Major]] on 1 August 1943.<ref>{{Cite web |title=(1021) - Army lists > Quarterly Army Lists (Second Series), July 1940-December 1950 > 1946 > Second quarter > Part 2 > Volume 1 - British Military lists - National Library of Scotland |url=https://digital.nls.uk/british-military-lists/archive/89953652 |access-date=2020-08-12 |website=digital.nls.uk}}</ref> He was posted in [[Dhaka]] from 1943 to 1947,<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Virgin |first=W. J. |editor-last=Neely |editor-first=Lois |title=The India I Knew: Experiences of a Canadian Orthopaedic Surgeon over 50 Years |publisher=W. J. Virgin |year=1988 |location=Toronto, ON, Canada}}</ref> where he was appointed as the Civil Surgeon of Dhaka.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Zaman |first=Habibuz |title=Seventy years in a shaky subcontinent |date=1999 |publisher=Janus |isbn=1-85756-405-7 |location=London |page=135 |chapter=Dhaka Medical College: The early years |oclc=43210443}}</ref>

Virgin was made the head of the committee to establish a medical college in Dhaka. [[Dhaka Medical College and Hospital|Dhaka Medical College]] was started on 10 July 1946, and Virgin was made its founding principal,<ref>{{Cite news |title=DMC envisions to be one of the best medical institutions in South Asia by 2021 -Prof. Khan Abul Kalam Azad |url=http://www.theguardianbd.com/dmc-envisions-to-be-one-of-the-best-medical-institutions-in-south-asia-by-2021-prof-khan-abul-kalam-azad/ |work=The Guardian |location=Dhaka |access-date=2020-08-11 |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite magazine |title=Sixty Three years of Dhaka Medical College |url=http://archive.thedailystar.net/campus/2009/07/03/camspotlight.htm |magazine=Star Campus |date=19 July 2009 |access-date=2020-08-11}}</ref><ref name=":1" /> as well as the first superintendent of the Dhaka Medical College Hospital.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=History |url=http://bsabd.com/history/ |website=Bangladesh Society of Anasthesiologists |access-date=2020-08-11 |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Local Health Bulletin- 2020 |url=http://app.dghs.gov.bd/localhealthBulletin2016/publish/publish.php?org=10000033&year=2016&lvl=5 |access-date=2020-08-11 |website=app.dghs.gov.bd}}</ref> He also served as the first ever Dean of Faculty of Medicine at the [[University of Dhaka]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=University of Dhaka |url=http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=University_of_Dhaka |access-date=2020-08-11 |website=Banglapedia}}</ref> On 21 December 1946, Virgin succeeded Major F. H. A. L. Davidson, [[Indian Medical Service|IMS]], as the medical officer of [[Dhaka Central Jail]].<ref>[https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5196342/pdf/indmedgaz72899-0068.pdf&ved=2ahUKEwiUpqK2q4TrAhWWWX0KHa8nCrgQFjABegQIAxAB&usg=AOvVaw2X2SPaLWgmQYT6ORpttIoa Service Notes.The Indian Medical Gazette. Feb, 1947. p112.(PDF)]</ref>

Virgin served as the principal of Dhaka Medical College and Hospital until 14 August 1947. Later, he joined the department of orthopedic surgery of the [[University of Liverpool]] as a senior research fellow.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Virgin |first=W. J. |date=1951-11-01 |title=Experimental investigations into the physical properties of the intervertebral disc |journal=The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery. British Volume |volume=33-B |issue=4 |pages=607–611 |doi=10.1302/0301-620X.33B4.607 |pmid=14880588 |issn=0301-620X}}</ref>

Later in life, he wrote a book on his experience in India titled ''The India I Knew: Experiences of a Canadian Orthopaedic Surgeon over 50 Years'', which was published in 1988.<ref name=":0" />

==Personal life==
In 1934, Virgin married Zelma Crone, with whom he had five children. He died in [[Toronto]] on 18 October 1997 at the age of 91.

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Virgin, William John}}
[[Category:Indian Medical Service officers]]
[[Category:Dhaka Medical College and Hospital faculty]]
[[Category:University of Dhaka faculty]]
[[Category:University of Toronto alumni]]
[[Category:Canadian orthopedic surgeons]]
[[Category:1905 births]]
[[Category:1997 deaths]]
[[Category:Canadian people in British India]]
[[Category:Canadian expatriates in England]]

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William John Virgin