Identity area
Reference code
Title
Date(s)
- 1830-1947 (Creation)
Level of description
Extent and medium
45 vols
Context area
Name of creator
Biographical history
John Preston Maxwell was born on 5 Dec 1871 in Birmingham, where his father, Dr James Laidlaw Maxwell, practised medicine.
He attended University College School, Hampstead and University College London, before taking his clinical training at St Bartholomew's Hospital, from which he emerged with a gold medal in obstetrics and went on to work as a resident at St Bartholomew's.
Then, following his devout Presbyterian faith, Maxwell became a Medical missionary for the English Presbyterian Church and, in about 1898, went to Yungchun Hospital at Fujian in China, where he spent the majority of his professional life. He specialised in obstetrics and was a leading authority on foetal osteomalacia. He became a Director of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at the Peking Union Medical College (a teaching hospital funded by the Rockefeller Foundation), President of the Chinese Society of Obstetrics and Gynaecology and worked as secretary to the medical committee of the Lord Mayor's Fund for the Relief of Distress in China. He was awarded the Army and Navy Medal by the Chinese Republic and was made a Fellow of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists in 1929.
Maxwell returned to England at some point after 1935 (possibly as a result of the invasion of Beijing by the Japanese in 1937) and lived at Brinkley in Cambridgeshire. He was elected consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist at the nearby Newmarket General Hospital. He married and had one daughter; his wife, Lilly (who, as a proficient artist, illustrated some of her husband's research papers), predeceased him. John Preston Maxwell died suddenly near his home on 25 Jul 1961, at the age of 89.
Archival history
Donated to the College Library by Professor Maxwell in November 1954.
GB 1538 S64 1830-1947 Collection (fonds) 45 vols Maxwell , John Preston , 1871-1961 , medical missionary
John Preston Maxwell was born on 5 Dec 1871 in Birmingham, where his father, Dr James Laidlaw Maxwell, practised medicine.
He attended University College School, Hampstead and University College London, before taking his clinical training at St Bartholomew's Hospital, from which he emerged with a gold medal in obstetrics and went on to work as a resident at St Bartholomew's.
Then, following his devout Presbyterian faith, Maxwell became a Medical missionary for the English Presbyterian Church and, in about 1898, went to Yungchun Hospital at Fujian in China, where he spent the majority of his professional life. He specialised in obstetrics and was a leading authority on foetal osteomalacia. He became a Director of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at the Peking Union Medical College (a teaching hospital funded by the Rockefeller Foundation), President of the Chinese Society of Obstetrics and Gynaecology and worked as secretary to the medical committee of the Lord Mayor's Fund for the Relief of Distress in China. He was awarded the Army and Navy Medal by the Chinese Republic and was made a Fellow of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists in 1929.
Maxwell returned to England at some point after 1935 (possibly as a result of the invasion of Beijing by the Japanese in 1937) and lived at Brinkley in Cambridgeshire. He was elected consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist at the nearby Newmarket General Hospital. He married and had one daughter; his wife, Lilly (who, as a proficient artist, illustrated some of her husband's research papers), predeceased him. John Preston Maxwell died suddenly near his home on 25 Jul 1961, at the age of 89.
Donated to the College Library by Professor Maxwell in November 1954.
Passed to the College Archives between 1998 and 2006.
Photograph albums of John Preston Maxwell of cases of osteomalacia and rickets encountered in China and related articles, 1898-1947, and a collection of bound articles from medical journals, predominantly in German, 1826-1934.
Arranged in sections as outlined in the Scope and Content.
English and German
Detailed catalogue available in the RCOG archives.
Chinese painting on silk ("Third Day Bathing Ceremony") held in RCOG museum store.
Papers of Dr. James Laidlaw Maxwell and his son Dr. [James] Preston Maxwell, at the University of Birmingham Special Collections (Ref: DA26).
Compiled by Sarah Drewery.
Compiled in compliance with General International Standard Archival Description, ISAD(G), second edition, 2000; National Council on Archives Rules for the Construction of Personal, Place and Corporate Names, 1997.
Jul 2008 Medical missionary work Musculoskeletal diseases Bone diseases, metabolic Obstetrics Diseases Pathology Bone diseases Rickets Medical sciences Gynaecology Religious groups Missionaries Medical missionaries Missionary work Religious activities Maxwell , John Preston , 1871-1961 , medical missionary Beijing Beijing Shi China East Asia
Immediate source of acquisition or transfer
Passed to the College Archives between 1998 and 2006.
Content and structure area
Scope and content
Photograph albums of John Preston Maxwell of cases of osteomalacia and rickets encountered in China and related articles, 1898-1947, and a collection of bound articles from medical journals, predominantly in German, 1826-1934.
Appraisal, destruction and scheduling
Accruals
System of arrangement
Arranged in sections as outlined in the Scope and Content.
Conditions of access and use area
Conditions governing access
Conditions governing reproduction
Language of material
- English
Script of material
- Latin
Language and script notes
English and German
Physical characteristics and technical requirements
Chinese painting on silk ("Third Day Bathing Ceremony") held in RCOG museum store.
Finding aids
Detailed catalogue available in the RCOG archives.
Allied materials area
Existence and location of originals
Existence and location of copies
Related units of description
Papers of Dr. James Laidlaw Maxwell and his son Dr. [James] Preston Maxwell, at the University of Birmingham Special Collections (Ref: DA26).
Publication note
Notes area
Note
Alternative identifier(s)
Access points
Subject access points
Place access points
Name access points
Genre access points
Description control area
Description identifier
Institution identifier
Rules and/or conventions used
Compiled in compliance with General International Standard Archival Description, ISAD(G), second edition, 2000; National Council on Archives Rules for the Construction of Personal, Place and Corporate Names, 1997.
Status
Level of detail
Dates of creation revision deletion
Language(s)
- English