Identity area
Type of entity
Person
Authorized form of name
Austin, Dr. William
Parallel form(s) of name
- Dr. William Austin
Standardized form(s) of name according to other rules
Other form(s) of name
Identifiers for corporate bodies
Description area
Dates of existence
1754-1793
History
Born Gloucestershire 1754; died London 1793
William Austin was a polymath. He initially studied botany at Oxford, graduating in 1776, and then medicine gaining his MD in 1783. However he also studied, and sometimes lectured in Hebrew, Arabic, Mathematics and Chemistry being elected professor in1785. In 1786 he moved from Oxford to London, building a lucrative medical practice while continuing his chemical studies. He was elected a fellow of the Royal College of Physicians, published papers for the Royal Society on ‘Heavy inflammable air’ and theorised (incorrectly) on the origin of kidney stones and hardening of the arteries.
Source: DNB
D.W.