Gallery
Martin, Lawrence Joseph (1826 - 1879)
M.D.(Melb), L.R.C.S. (Edin.), L.A.H.
- Born
- 1826
Dundalk, Ireland - Died
- 19 January 1879
Cannes, France - Occupation
- Medical practitioner, Gynaecologist and Obstetrician
Details
Transcription of item written by Dr Colin Macdonald and published in "The Book of Remembrance", The Royal Women's Hospital, Melbourne, 1956.
LAWRENCE JOSEPH MARTIN
(1867 - 1878)
Lawrence Joseph Martin was an Honorary Physician to the Lying-In Hospital for eleven years, and was one of the most respected and popular doctors of the day.
Born at Dundalk, Ireland, in 1826, he began the study of medicine by being apprenticed as an apothecary in Drogheda. From 1848 he attended lectures and gained hospital experience in Dublin. This qualified him for examination at the Dublin Apothecaries’ Hall, whose licence he obtained in 1851 and two years later that of the Edinburgh College of Surgeons. He attended the lectures and completed the hospital practice in what spare time he could find while earning his living.
The young Irishman, like many of his colleagues, found little chance of practising his profession in the British Isles, so he came to Australia as Surgeon in an immigrant ship, making the round trip. On return to England, he married and, with his bride, made a second voyage as ship’s surgeon in 1854.
He nailed his shingle to the door of a small cottage in Russell Street, near Bourke Street, and there, after a long struggle, eventually built a steady practice. Success came to him in middle life. Few begrudged him this, for he was a big man in every sense of the word, above personal jealousies and petty disagreements.
Martin obtained the M.D. degree of the University of Melbourne in 1862, and in the next year became honorary physician to the Melbourne Benevolent Society, his first public appointment. He was elected President of the Medical Society of Victoria in 1865, in which year he became one of the Honorary Physicians to the Melbourne Hospital.
Election as one of the Honorary Physicians to the Lying-In Hospital in 1867 gave Dr. Martin valuable experience in obstetrics for which he had discovered a particular aptitude and interest. In the years that followed both at the hospital and in private practice, his skill in this field brought him reputation and success. In 1870 he visited Europe and in twelve months’ tour inspected every institution that could widen his special knowledge. In England he read a paper on behalf of Dr. Tracy to the Obstetrical Society in London.
When Tracy died in 1874, Martin bought his Collins Street house and practice. Thereafter he was looked upon as Melbourne’s leading obstetrician, worthily so in the estimation of the profession. He had a pleasant manner with his patients; was always cheerful, loved the social life, and was a popular figure in the life of the town. He was a fluent speaker at medical gatherings and a competent contributor to medical journals. Brain disease clouded his last years. Hoping to find a cure, he left Melbourne for England in 1878. He died at Cannes in the French Riviera on 19th January 1879, in his fifty-third year.
His place on the Lying-In Hospital was taken by Dr. Stephen Burke.
Archival/Heritage Resources
Royal Women's Hospital Archives
- Book of Remembrance, 1956 - 1975; Royal Women's Hospital Archives [ Details... ].
Prepared by: Robyn Waymouth
Created: 31 July 2006, Last modified: 27 November 2006