Cardinal Events in the History of Anesthesia … This Month … That Year

Sir James Young Simpson was a Scottish obstetrician widely credited with the first demonstration of the anesthetic properties of chloroform and use in humans. He was born on June 7, 1811, in Scotland. Simpson and his friends used to try out several new chemicals in a recreational manner to see if they had any anesthetic effect. On inhaling chloroform at such a session, they found that a general mood of cheer and bonhomie 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 anesthetic. This is the official story in the biography written by his niece Eve. However, deeper research by Henry Connor, an honorary research fellow at the University of Birmingham in the U.K., revealed that Dr. Simpson had been the examiner for the...