William Watson Cheyne

     

William Watson Cheyne was born on 14 December 1852, at at sea.^2,3 He was the son of Andrew Cheyne and Elizabeth Margaret Bruce Watson.¹

William was Christened, 10 January 1853, Hobart, Tasmania, Australia. His mother's name was listed as Eliza. Margaret Wilson. He was also baptized in Fetlar Parish, Shetland Islands.^4,5

From the Sir William Watson Cheyne website: "William's mother was Eliza Watson, daughter of the Rev. Watson, Church of Scotland Minister in Fetlar. William was born on his father's ship anchored off Hobart, Tasmania in December 1852, and shortly after his parents' return to Shetland after two years away from home, his mother died of tuberculosis. The young William was brought up at the Manse by his grandfather, and, after the latter's death, by his mother's sisters, one of whom was married to the Rev. Webster, Watson's successor. Eliza's family blamed Andrew Cheyne and the long voyage for her early death, and the young William was brought up as William Watson, being told nothing of his father's name or identity until years later.
William Watson's aunts were determined to quell his ambitions of a career at sea, and took him to be educated at Aberdeen Grammar School in 1864 at the age of 12. In 1868 he entered Aberdeen University, and several years later Edinburgh University. Around this time his father died, and when he was finally made aware of his father's identity, he resumed his full name: William Watson Cheyne."⁶

William W. Cheyne was listed on the 1871 British Census at 4 Montage Steet, in Edinburgh, Saint Cuthberts Parish, Midlothian, Scotland. He was a lodger in the household of Elizabeth M. Pollock. He was 18 years of age and a student of medicine at Edinburgh University. His birth place was illegible.⁷

William Watson Cheyne married Emma Servante.

He became the house surgeon to Joseph Lister, the British founder of antiseptic medicine, in 1876. Bacteriology had been much researched in France and Germany in the 1870s and 80s, but little work was done in the field in Britain. Lister was one of the few pioneers of its study in Britain. In 1877, the two took positions at King's College Hospital, where Cheyne served as an assistant surgeon, and later as surgeon from 1880 to 1917 and also as a professor of surgery from 1891 to 1917.³

William Watson Cheyne was listed on the 1881 British Census at 59 Welbeck Street, in London, Marylebone Parish, Middlesex, England. He was a lodger in the household of Emily Wheeler. He was listed as Wm. Watson Cheyne, unmarried, age 28 and a Surgeon M.B.M.C., (Edin), M.R.C.S.F.R.C.S., London.⁸

William Watson Chayne married Mary Ann (?) after 3 April 1881.⁹

William Cheyne and his wife Mary Ann Cheyne were listed on the 1891 British Census, at 59 Welbeck Street, in London, Marylebone Parish, Middlesex, England. He was head of household and a surgeon. Also present were his children, Joseph Cheyne and William Cheyne. Also present in the household were three servants.⁹

William Watson Cheyne married Margaret Smith 12 December 1894.^10,11

A Professor Cheine was mentioned in a newspaper article. Professor Chiene probably was William Watson Cheyne. The article republished in Northern Notes and Queries reads "It is not generally known that the caps used at the graduation ceremonial in Edinburgh and St. Andrews Universities are curious relics of two illustrious Scotsmen. Professor Chiene, President of the Royal College of Surgeons, informed the British Medical Association that the one cap was made out of the seat of a pair of George Buchanan's trousers, while a similar part of John Knox's dress supplied the material for the other".¹²

He was known to the medical world as Sir William Watson Cheyne, First Baronet of Leagarth, Fetlar, K.C.M.G., C.B., M.A., M.B., C.M., F.R.C.S., F.R.S., L.L.D. (Edin.), D.Sc. (Oxon). He was a surgeon and bacteriologist who was a pioneer of antiseptic surgical methods in Britain.
He studied medicine at the University of Edinburgh, taking degrees in surgery and medicine there in 1875.
There is a WebSite in his honour at http://www.watson-cheyne.com.⁶

William Cheyne and his wife Margaret Cheyne were listed on the 1901 British Census, at 75 Harley Street, in London, Marylebone Parish, Middlesex, England. He was head of household and a surgeon, own account, at home. Also present in the household were four domestic servants.¹⁰



There is an interesting WebSite dedicated to Sir William Watson Cheyne. The attached photo is from that site. The address is: www.watson-cheyne.com/index.htm.¹⁴

William Watson Cheyne was found on a passenger list on 3 August 1911 at Quebec, Quebec, Canada. Also present was his son William H. W. Cheyne. They were Saloon Class passengers and tourists aboard the Empress of Britain, out of Liverpool. William Senior was 58, married, born in Tasmania and had previously been in Canada. William, the younger, was 22, single, born in England and this was his first visit.¹⁵

William Watson Cheyne was named the father and closest relative of William Hunter Watson Cheyne on a passenger list dated 4 December 1919. Sir Watson Cheyne, R.L.M.P.,resided at Beechgrove, Sydenham Hill, London.¹⁶

William Watson Cheyne was found on a passenger list, dated 31 March 1924, at Liverpool, Lancashire, England. Also present was his daughter Grace Ella Watson Cheyne. They were first class passengers aboard the Oropesa. They were entered as both embarking and landing at Liverpool. apparently a rourd trip voyage that visited Havana, Talcahuano, Valparaiso, Montevideo, Cristobal, Callao, Punta Arenas, Coruna, La Pallice and Mollendo. He was entered as Sir William Watson Cheyne, K.C.M.G., 71 and she as Grace Ella Watson, 27. Both living in Leagarth, Fetlar, Shetland.¹⁷

William Watson Cheyne died 19 April 1932 in Fetlar Parish, Shetland Islands, Scotland.^2,3

William was buried, at Fetlar Cemetery, in Fetlar Parish, Shetland Islands, Scotland. His monumental inscription reads "To The Memory Of / WILLIAM WATSON CHEYNE / Baronet Of Leagarth, Fetlar / Born 1852 Died 1932"..¹⁸