James Young Simpson Explained

Sir James Young Simpson
Birth Date:	7 June 1811
Death Place:	Edinburgh, Scotland
Alma Mater:	University of Edinburgh
Known For:	Use of chloroform as anaesthetic in childbirth, design of obstetric forceps
Footnotes:	James Young Simpson (great nephew)
Children:	1. Margaret Grindlay Simpson2. Sir Walter Grindlay Simpson, 2nd BaronetAnd 7 others

Sir James Young Simpson, 1st Baronet (7 June 1811 – 6 May 1870) was a Scottish obstetrician and a significant figure in the history of medicine. He was the first physician to demonstrate the anaesthetic properties of chloroform in humans and helped to popularize its use in medicine.^{[1] [2]}

Simpson's intellectual interests ranged from archaeology to an almost taboo subject at the time: hermaphroditism. He was an early advocate of the use of midwives in the hospital environment. Many prominent women also consulted him for their gynaecological problems. Simpson wrote Homœopathy, its Tenets and Tendencies, refuting the ideas put forward by Hahnemann.^[3]

His services as an early founder of gynaecology and proponent of hospital reform were rewarded with a knighthood, and by 1847 he had been appointed as physician to the Queen in Scotland.^[4] Queen Victoria also used anaesthesia for her childbirth, resulting in a significant increase of popularity in anaesthesia.

Simpson was a close friend of Sir David Brewster, and was present at his deathbed. His contribution to the understanding of the anaesthetic properties of chloroform had a major impact on surgery.

Education and early career

James Simpson was born in Bathgate, a younger son of Mary Jervais and David Simpson, a baker. He attended the local school, and in 1825, at the age of 14, entered the University of Edinburgh to study for an arts degree.^[5] Two years later he began his medical studies at the university,^[5] graduating with an MBChB. He became a licentiate of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh in 1830^[5] and received his MD in 1832.^[6] While at University he took additional classes including those delivered by the surgeon Robert Liston. As a result of the quality of his MD thesis on inflammation, Professor of Pathology John Thomson took him on as his assistant.^[7]

As a student he became a member and then Senior President of the Royal Medical Society, initiating a lifelong interest in the Society's advancement.^[8] His first role was as a general practitioner in the Stockbridge district based at 2 Deanhaugh Street,^[9] and at the age of 28, he succeeded James Hamilton as Professor of Medicine and Midwifery at the University of Edinburgh.^{[10] [11]}

Simpson's most significant contribution to medicine was the introduction of anaesthesia to childbirth, however he also improved the design of obstetric forceps that to this day are known in obstetric circles as "Simpson's Forceps", as well as designing the Air Tractor in 1838. The Air Tractor was the earliest known vacuum extractor to assist childbirth, however the method did not become popular until the invention of the ventouse over a century later.^[12]

With regards to religion Simpson was a devout adherent of the Free Church of Scotland, but he refused to sign the Westminster Confession of Faith, because of what he believed to be its literal interpretation of the book of Genesis.

Simpson's principal residence was Strathavon Lodge,^[13] but he also kept a town house at 52 Queen Street, Edinburgh, and a country house near Bathgate.^[14] The family seat was Strathavon, Linlithgow.

Obstetric anaesthesia

Sir Humphry Davy used the first anaesthetic in 1799: nitrous oxide (laughing gas). William T. G. Morton's demonstration of ether as an anaesthetic in 1846 was initially dismissed because it irritated the lungs of the patients. Chloroform had been invented in 1831, but its uses had not been greatly investigated. Dr Robert Mortimer Glover had first described the anaesthetic properties of chloroform upon animals in 1842 in a thesis which won the Harveian Society's Gold Medal that year, but had not thought to use it on humans (fearing its safety).^{[15] [16]}

In 1847, Simpson first demonstrated the properties of chloroform upon humans, during an experiment with friends in which he confirmed that it could be used to put one to sleep. Dr Simpson and two of his assistants, Dr George Skene Keith (1819–1910) and James Matthews Duncan (1826–1890), used to sit every evening in Dr Simpson's dining room to try new chemicals to see if they had any anaesthetic effect. Following a visit to Linlithgow, where Simpson was recommended to trial a sample of chloroform from a local pharmacist, David Waldie, Simpson then returned to Edinburgh.^{[17] [18] [19]} On 4 November 1847, Simpson and his friends decided to try chloroform themselves, which Simpson had obtained from local pharmacist William Flockhart of Duncan and Flockhart of North Bridge, Edinburgh.^[20] On inhaling the chemical they found that a general mood of cheer and humour had set in, but suddenly all of them collapsed only to regain consciousness the next morning. Simpson knew, as soon as he woke up, that he had found something that could be used as an anaesthetic. They soon had Miss Petrie, Simpson's niece, try it. She fell asleep soon after inhaling it while singing the words, "I am an angel!".^[21] There is a prevalent myth that the mother of the first child delivered under chloroform christened her child "Anaesthesia"; the story is retailed in Simpson's biography as written by his daughter Eve. However, the son of the first baby delivered by chloroform explained that Simpson's parturient had been one Jane Carstairs, and her child was baptised Wilhelmina. "Anaesthesia" was a nickname Simpson had given the baby.^[22]

It was much by chance that Simpson survived the chloroform dosage he administered to himself. If he had inhaled too much and died, chloroform would have been seen as a dangerous substance, which in fact it is.^[23] Conversely, if Simpson had inhaled slightly less it would not have put him to sleep. It was his willingness to explore the possibilities of the substance that set him on the road to a career as a pioneer in the field of medicine. Subsequently, organising supplies to Florence Nightingale and Queen Victoria,^[24] led to its use in obstetrics and for the military, and according to the British Medical Journal changed the face of medicine for a century.

An account of some of Simpson's early uses of ether in childbirth are related by Manchester-based doctor Edmund Lund who visited him in 1847 and can be found in a manuscript held by special collections at the University of Manchester with the reference MMM/12/2.^[25]

Antiquarian research

Simpson joined the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland in 1849, and became its vice-president in 1860.^[26] He made contributions to both the history of medicine and to archaeology.^{[27] [28]} He published several papers on leprosy and syphilis. In both cases he was concerned with the symptoms of the diseases and the relation between historical reports and contemporary cases, and also with the institutions that were set up to care for and segregate the patients.^{[29] [30]} Another area he worked on was medicine in Roman Britain.^{[31] [32]}

Simpson published an early and important work on prehistoric rock art Archaic Sculpturings of Cups, Circles, &c. Upon Stones and Rocks in Scotland, England, & Other Countries.^[33] Simpson listed and categorized examples of sculpturings from many parts of the British Isles, often from personal examination, and also included examples from other countries for comparison. Many illustrations are provided. After Simpson's death, a collection of his antiquarian essays was published in two volumes.^[34]

Marriage and Grindlay family

The Simpson and Grindlay families of Edinburgh were closely interrelated, forming a single extended family.

In 1839, Simpson married Janet Grindlay (later Lady Janet Grindlay Simpson), daughter of the Edinburgh and Liverpool shipping grandee Walter Grindlay, a member of the Scottish branch of the landed gentry Grindlay family. Simpson and Walter were cousins, sharing grandparents in Alexander Simpson and his wife Isabella Grindlay, and Walter's daughter Janet or 'Jessie', was Simpson's first cousin once removed. Simpson's son, Walter Grindlay Simpson, 2nd Baronet was Walter Grindlay's nephew and godson.^[35]

Simpson relied on Walter Grindlay and his estate for financial support a number of times during his career.

Death and memorials

In 1840 Simpson was elected a member of the Harveian Society of Edinburgh and served as president in 1848.^[36] He was elected President of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh in 1850^[37] and an international member of the American Philosophical Society in 1863.^[38] In 1850 he was also elected a member of the Aesculapian Club.^[39] He was created a Baronet of Strathavon in the County of Linlithgow, and of the City of Edinburgh, in 1866. He died at his home in Edinburgh in May 1870 at the age of 58. A burial spot in Westminster Abbey was offered to his family, but they declined and instead buried him closer to home in Warriston Cemetery, Edinburgh.^[40] However, a memorial bust of Simpson can be found in a niche at Westminster Abbey in London.^[41] On the day of Simpson's funeral, a Scottish holiday was declared, including the banks and stock markets, with over 100,000 citizens lining the funeral cortege on its way to the cemetery,^[42] while over 1,700 colleagues and business leaders took part in the procession itself. A year later, chloroform supplier, William Flockhart was buried nearby.

Dr Alexander Russell Simpson, his nephew, inherited his town house at 52 Queen Street^[43] and lived there until his death in 1916, when it was then bequeathed to the Church of Scotland. Since then the building has been through many uses including being requisitioned by the army during the Second World War and being used as a centre for training Sunday School teachers in the 1950s. Today, the town house is the premises of a charity called Simpson House, which provides a counselling service for adults and children affected by alcohol and drug use.^[44] There is a plaque on the wall outside to mark the house as having been the home of James Young Simpson from 1845 to 1870.

In 1879 the Edinburgh Royal Maternity and Simpson Memorial Hospital and in 1939 the Simpson Memorial Maternity Pavilion were named in his honour, as is the current Simpson Centre for Reproductive Health at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh. The Quartermile development, which consists of the Old Royal Infirmary in Edinburgh, named its main residential street Simpson Loan in his honour.

Coat of arms

The coat of arms of the Simpson Baronets, award to James Young Simpson on 3 February 1866, are influenced by his work in medicine and anaesthesia.

In popular culture

Ambrose Parry's historical novels of the Raven, Fisher, and Simpson series (2018-) feature Simpson as a key protagonist.

See also

• Charles Thomas Jackson, claimed to have pioneered the use of diethyl ether
• Crawford Williamson Long, discovered the anaesthetic effect of diethyl ether
• William Thomas Green Morton, pioneered the use of diethyl ether in surgery

• Humphry Davy, first suggested the use of nitrous oxide in 1799
• Horace Wells, in 1844 pioneered the use of nitrous oxide in the US

Further reading

• Baillie, T. W. . Hans Christian Andersen's visit to James Young Simpson . Scottish Medical Journal . 49 . 3 . 112–3 . August 2004 . 15462230. 10.1177/003693300404900314 . 29911532 .
• Ball, C. . James Young Simpson, 1811–1870 . Anaesthesia and Intensive Care . 24 . 6 . 639 . December 1996 . 8971309. 10.1177/0310057X9602400601 . free .
• Chalmers, J. A. . James Young SIMPSON and the "suction-tractor" . The Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology of the British Empire . 70 . 94–100 . February 1963 . 14019913 . 10.1111/j.1471-0528.1963.tb04184.x. 40092210 .
• Cohen, J. . Doctor James Young Simpson, Rabbi Abraham De Sola, and Genesis Chapter 3, verse 16 . Obstetrics and Gynecology . 88 . 5 . 895–8 . November 1996 . 8885936 . 10.1016/0029-7844(96)00234-7. 72317373 .
• Dunn, P. M. . Sir James Young Simpson (1811–1870) and obstetric anaesthesia . Archives of Disease in Childhood: Fetal and Neonatal Edition . 86 . 3 . F207–9 . May 2002 . 11978757 . 1721404 . 10.1136/fn.86.3.F207.
• Eustace, D. L. . James Young Simpson: the controversy surrounding the presentation of his Air Tractor (1848–1849) . Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine . 86 . 11 . 660–3 . November 1993 . 10.1177/014107689308601116 . 8258804 . 1294227.
• Gaskell, E. . Three letters by Sir James Young Simpson . British Medical Journal . 2 . 5706 . 414–6 . May 1970 . 4911888 . 1700310 . 10.1136/bmj.2.5706.414.
• Book: Gordon, B. Laing . Sir James Young Simpson & Chloroform 1811–1870 . T. Fischer Unwin . London . 1897 . 11397269.
• Gunn, A. L. . James Young Simpson—the complete gynaecologist . The Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology of the British Commonwealth . 75 . 3 . 249–63 . March 1968 . 4868187 . 10.1111/j.1471-0528.1968.tb02074.x. 28501852 .
• Hill, B. . Towards the conquest of pain: Sir James Y. Simpson, Bt, M.D. (1811–1870) . The Practitioner . 204 . 223 . 724–9 . May 1970 . 4914462.
• Kellar, R. J. . Sir James Young Simpson: victo dolore . Journal of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh . 12 . 1 . 1–13 . October 1966 . 5341756.
• Kennedy, C. . Sir James Young Simpson--"the splendid ultimate triumph" . Journal of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh . 12 . 1 . 14–23 . October 1966 . 5341755.
• Kennedy, C. . Sir James Young Simpson--"the splendid ultimate triumph" . The Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology of the British Commonwealth . 73 . 3 . 364–71 . June 1966 . 5329917 . 10.1111/j.1471-0528.1966.tb05176.x. 35579820 .
• Gordon, H. L. (2019). Sir James Young Simpson and Chloroform (1811–1870): Masters of Medicine. Czechia: Good Press.
• Kyle RA, Shampo MA . James Young Simpson and the introduction of chloroform anesthesia in obstetric practice . Mayo Clinic Proceedings . 72 . 4 . 372 . April 1997 . 9121187 . 10.4065/72.4.372.
• Matsuki, A. . Recent findings in the history of anesthesiology (15)--James Young Simpson . ja . Masui . 30 . 10 . 1142–6 . October 1981 . 7035712 . Recent findings in the history of anesthesiology (15)--James Young Simpson.
• McGowan, S. W. . Sir James Young Simpson Bart. 150 years on . Scottish Medical Journal . 42 . 6 . 185–7 . December 1997 . 9507600. 10.1177/003693309704200609 .
• Miller, D. . Sir James Young SIMPSON . The Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology of the British Empire . 69 . 142–50 . February 1962 . 14035991 . 10.1111/j.1471-0528.1962.tb00025.x. 70704053 .
• 10.1056/NEJM196109072651009 . Peck P. . Doctors afield: Sir James Y. SIMPSON . The New England Journal of Medicine . 265 . 10. 486–7 . September 1961 . 13733828. 59614600 .
• Pinkerton, J. H. . Sir James Young Simpson: Irish influences . Irish Medical Journal . 75 . 6 . 183–7 . June 1982 . 7050008.
• Simpson, Eve Blantyre, (1896), Sir James Y. Simpson, Edinburgh: Oliphant, Anderson and Ferrier, ("Famous Scots Series").
• Book: Simpson, Myrtle . Simpson, the obstetrician: a biography . Gollancz . London . 1972 . 978-0-575-01368-1 . 489148.
• Book: Speert, Harold . Obstetric and Gynecologic Milestones . Macmillan . New York . 1958 . 222038266.
• Conacher, I. D. . Why the Y? . British Journal of Anaesthesia . 80 . 2 . 271–2 . February 1998 . 9602606 . 10.1093/bja/80.2.271-a. free .
• Secher, O. . Hans Andersen and James Young Simpson . British Journal of Anaesthesia . 44 . 11 . 1212–6 . November 1972 . 4567093 . 10.1093/bja/44.11.1212. free .
• Speert, H. . Obstetrical-gynecological eponyms: James Young Simpson and his obstetric forceps . The Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology of the British Empire . 64 . 5 . 744–9 . October 1957 . 13476274 . 10.1111/j.1471-0528.1957.tb08472.x. 20945871 .
• Taylor, C. W. . Lawson Tait – A Grateful Pupil of James Young Simpson . The Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology of the British Commonwealth . 72 . 2. 165–71 . April 1965 . 14273091 . 10.1111/j.1471-0528.1965.tb01411.x. 27571571 .
• Waserman, M. . Sir James Y Simpson and London's "conservative and so curiously prejudiced" Dr Ramsbotham . British Medical Journal . 280 . 6208 . 158–61 . January 1980 . 6986947 . 1600358 . 10.1136/bmj.280.6208.158.
• Classic articles in colonic and rectal surgery. James Young Simpson 1811–1870 . Diseases of the Colon and Rectum . 25 . 6 . 611–22 . September 1982 . 6749456 . 10.1007/bf02564182. 5576393 .
• James Young Simpson and the conquest of pain . The Medical Journal of Australia . 1 . 19 . 925–6 . May 1970 . 4912314. 10.5694/j.1326-5377.1970.tb116701.x . 38107233 .

External links

• Overview of Sir James Young Simpson
• Papers of Sir James Young Simpson (1811–1870)
• Significant Scots entry
• Who Named It? Entry (well laid out)
• Papers of Sir James Young Simpson The Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh
• Britannica online entry for Sir James
• Entry featuring his gynecological contributions
• West Lothian council memorial to Sir James
  • • British Medical Journal video about the legacy of James Young Simpson (via History Scotland)

Notes and References

1. Encyclopedia: Sir James Young Simpson. Encyclopædia Britannica. 23 August 2013. 27 July 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20130727130133/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/545447/Sir-James-Young-Simpson-1st-Baronet. live.
2. Book: Foster, Joseph. The baronetage and knightage. 1881. 566. 19 March 2023. 7 July 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20240707044346/https://books.google.com/books?id=uFE4AQAAMAAJ. live.
3. The Leisure Hour: An Illustrated Magazine for Home Reading. William Haig Miller . James Macaulay . William Stevens . W. Stevens, printer. 1867. 9. Sir James Young Simpson, Bart. XVI.
4. Web site: Sir James Young Simpson (1811–1870). National Records of Scotland. 31 May 2013. 24 March 2021. 5 November 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20221105114739/https://www.nrscotland.gov.uk/research/learning/hall-of-fame/hall-of-fame-a-z/simpson-james-young. live.
5. Simpson, Sir James Young . 25 . 135.
6. Book: Biographical Index of Former Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh 1783–2002. July 2006. The Royal Society of Edinburgh. 0-902-198-84-X. 27 June 2018. 4 March 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160304074135/https://www.royalsoced.org.uk/cms/files/fellows/biographical_index/fells_indexp2.pdf. dead.
7. Simpson, Sir James Young, first baronet (1811–1870), physician and obstetrician Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. 2004. en. 10.1093/ref:odnb/25584. 22 July 2018.
8. Web site: Notable Members – Royal Medical Society. 18 February 2017. 18 February 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170218175351/http://www.royalmedical.co.uk/notable-members/. dead.
9. Edinburgh Post Office Directory 1838
10. Doyle . D . James Hamilton, the younger (1767–1839) . Journal of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh . 42 . 2 . 2012 . 10.4997/JRCPE.2012.222 . 188–188 . 1 September 2016 . 30 April 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190430132637/https://www.rcpe.ac.uk/sites/default/files/notablefellows_1.pdf . live .
11. Book: McCrae, Morrice. Simpson: The Turbulent Life of a Medical Pioneer. John Donald, Edinburgh. 2010. 9780857900623. 19 March 2023. 6 April 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230406014536/https://books.google.com/books?id=T9S8BQAAQBAJ&q=Simpson:+The+Turbulent+Life+of+a+Medical+Pioneer. live.
12. Web site: Venema. Vibeke. 3 December 2013. Odon childbirth device: Car mechanic uncorks a revolution. 4 December 2013. BBC World Service. 3 December 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20131203080447/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-25137800. live.
13. Web site: Testament of Sir James Young Simpson. National Records of Scotland. 958–1013.
14. Web site: The Historic Environment Portal. Historic Environment Scotland. 3 March 2021. 24 March 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220324220645/http://portal.historicenvironment.scot/designation/LB30131. live.
15. Defalque. R. J.. Wright. A. J.. 2004. The short, tragic life of Robert M. Glover. Anaesthesia. 59. 4. 394–400. 10.1111/j.1365-2044.2004.03671.x. 15023112 . free.
16. Blessed Days of Anaesthesia by Stephanie Snow 2009
17. Book: Hendrie, William . 1986 . Discovering West Lothian . Edinburgh . John Donald Publishers . 49 . 978-0859761628.
18. Web site: Papers of David Waldie, 1813–1889 . Jisc . 12 July 2021 . 7 July 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/20240707044404/https://archiveshub.jisc.ac.uk/search/archives/b560221a-569f-34aa-a50a-56da0d005714 . live .
19. Web site: Credit due over chloroform find. 18 January 2002. The Scotsman. 12 July 2021. 12 July 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210712205025/https://www.scotsman.com/news/credit-due-over-chloroform-find-2466081. live.
20. Worling. P. M.. 1988. Duncan and Flockhart: the Story of Two Men and a Pharmacy. Pharmaceutical Historian. 28 . 2. 28–33. 11620310 .
21. Book: Gordon, H. Laing. Sir James Young Simpson and Chloroform (1811–1870). 11 November 2011. 2002. The Minerva Group, Inc.. 978-1-4102-0291-8. 108. 7 July 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20240707044349/https://books.google.com/books?id=pYer05UwKBYC. live.
22. Defalque. Ray J.. Wright. Amos J. J.. The Myth of Baby "Anaesthesia . Anesthesiology. September 2009 . 111 . 3 . 682. 10.1097/ALN.0b013e3181b2800f . 19704255. free.
23. Book: T. K. Agasti. Textbook of Anaesthesia for Postgraduates. 15 September 2013. 2010. JP Medical Ltd. 978-93-80704-94-4. 397–.
24. Web site: Duncan, Flockhart and Co – Graces Guide. 2021-06-16. www.gracesguide.co.uk. 15 October 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20211015224836/https://www.gracesguide.co.uk/Duncan,_Flockhart_and_Co. live.
25. Web site: Search – Archives Hub. archiveshub.jisc.ac.uk. 6 June 2021. 3 March 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160303235048/http://archives.li.man.ac.uk/ead/html/gb133bdd-p1.shtml. live.
26. Joseph. Anderson. Sir James Young Simpson's Work in Archaeology. Edinburgh Medical Journal. 6. 6. 516–522. 1911. 5253907.
27. Phoebe. Peck. Doctors afield. Sir James Y. Simpson. New England Journal of Medicine. 265. 10. 486–487. 1961. 10.1056/NEJM196109072651009. 13733828. 59614600. 30 November 2019. 7 July 2024. https://web.archive.org/web/20240707044350/https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/Sir-James-Y.-Simpson/39e0513f0d4f774db19e2acca58963350df989a9. live.
28. J. L.. Turk. Sir James Simpson: leprosy and syphilis. Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine. 87. 9. 549–551. 7932466. 1294776. 1994. 10.1177/014107689408700921.
29. J. Y.. Simpson. Antiquarian Notices of Leprosy and Leper Hospitals in Scotland and England. Edinburgh Medical and Surgical Journal. 1841. Part 1; Part 2; Part 3
30. Book: Simpson, James Young. Antiquarian notices of syphilis in Scotland in the 15th & 16th centuries. 1862. Edinburgh. Edmonston & Douglas.
31. Book: Simpson, James Y.. Archaeological Essays by the late Sir James Y. Simpson, Volume 2. John. Stuart. Was the Roman Army provided with medical officers?. 1872 . 196–227. Edinburgh. Edmonston and Douglas. https://archive.org/details/archaeologicales02simpuoft/page/n211.
32. Book: Simpson, James Y.. Archaeological Essays by the late Sir James Y. Simpson, Volume 2. John. Stuart. Notices of ancient roman medicine-stamps, etc., found in Great Britain. 1872 . 228–299. Edinburgh. Edmonston and Douglas. https://archive.org/details/archaeologicales02simpuoft/page/n245.
33. Book: Simpson, James Young. Archaic Sculpturings of Cups, Circles, &c. Upon Stones and Rocks in Scotland, England, & Other Countries. 1867. Edinburgh. Edmonston and Douglas.
34. Book: Simpson, James Y.. Archaeological Essays by the late Sir James Y. Simpson, Volume 2. John. Stuart. Edinburgh. Edmonston and Douglas. Volume 1; Volume 2
35. Web site: The History of Anaesthesia Society Proceedings: Volume 44.
36. Book: Watson Wemyss, Herbert Lindesay. A Record of the Edinburgh Harveian Society. T&A Constable, Edinburgh. 1933. en. 22 October 2023. 14 October 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20231014083624/https://wellcomecollection.org/works/ww4e59xv. live.
37. Book: Pharand, Michel. Benjamin Disraeli Letters: 1868, Vol. X. 97.
38. Web site: James Y. Simpson . American Philosophical Society Member History Database . 16 February 2021 . 24 March 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220324220645/https://search.amphilsoc.org/memhist/search?creator=simpson%2C+james+y&title=&subject=&subdiv=&mem=&year=&year-max=&dead=&keyword=&smode=advanced . live .
39. Book: Minute Books of the Aesculapian Club. Library of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh. 24 January 2023. 10 February 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230210104943/http://archives.rcpe.ac.uk/calmView/Record.aspx?src=CalmView.Catalog&id=DEP%2fAEC%2f1&pos=2. live.
40. For a photograph of his gravesite, see Edinburgh connections in a painful world . Baskett, T. F. . The Surgeon . 2005 . 3 . 2 . 99–107 . 10.1016/s1479-666x(05)80070-8 . 15861945 . 29 September 2008 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20080620022300/http://www.rcsed.ac.uk/journal/svol3_2/3020008.html . 20 June 2008 .
41. 'The Abbey Scientists' Hall, A. R., p. 17: London; Roger & Robert Nicholson; 1966.
42. Web site: 2021-05-06. Sir James Young Simpson died - On this day in history. 2021-06-06. History Scotland. 6 June 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210606212905/https://www.historyscotland.com/history/sir-james-young-simpson-died-on-this-day-in-history/. live.
43. Edinburgh Post Office Directories
44. Web site: Our history - Simpson House CrossReach. www.simpson-house.org. 11 December 2022. 6 June 2021. 6 June 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210606212124/https://www.simpson-house.org/ourhistory.htm. live.