Isabel Thorne
Born on 22nd September 1834 in London, Isabel Thorne was educated at Queens College, London. After finishing her studies at school, and following the early death of her father, she went on to hold several positions as a governess, providing private lessons in arithmetic and English.
Isabel Thorne Matriculation Record
Shortly after becoming engaged, she married Joseph Thorne at St Pancreas parish church in 1849. They sailed to Shanghai that Autumn and spent much of their early married life in China where they had 3 children (they had a further two several years later). Eventually, in 1862, 13 years after first travelling to China, Thorne returned to London.
n 1864, Thorne started taking midwifery classes at the Ladies Medical College in Fitzroy Square at the recommendation of a friend, although she later described the teaching she received as “inadequate”. During this time, she won a prize for her midwifery essay, and also wrote short papers and children’s stories, several of which were published.
After learning that Miss Elizabeth Garrett Anderson had become a registered medical practitioner, Thorne became anxious to follow suit and enrol in medical school. Her friend encouraged her to apply for admission to The Society of Apothecaries in Arts, and although she was originally refused, her friend exerted his influence and she was allowed to join in 1868, where she then went on to pass all exams as the sole woman in the society. It was only a short while later that she heard that Sophia Jex Blake had applied to study medicine at the University of Edinburgh. She was very interested in this and wrote to Jex Blake via her brother. However, she heard nothing for some time, and was making arrangements to travel to Paris when Jex-Blake got back to her and told her of her plans. Thorne therefore also decided to apply to medical school and moved to Edinburgh with her family.
She passed all the necessary additional subjects to matriculate and joined the Edinburgh Seven living at Lauriston Place. During her time studying, she won first prize in an anatomy examination. Her account of the Surgeon’s Hall riot, where unruly male students pushed a sheep into their anatomy examination, describes how lecturer Dr Handyside quietly said “let it alone: it is more sensible than those who thrust it in” and continued the examination.
Although the women could obtain some clinical teaching from supportive doctors, it was to no avail, as they were unable to find a medical board that would examine them. Following this setback, Thorne moved the family back to London, but many of the seven regrouped at the London School of Medicine for Women (LSMW).
Following the 1876 act in Parliament that allowed women to be examined in medicine, she became the Honorary Secretary of the LSMW. Thorne never did end up qualifying to become a doctor; an ambition she arguably sacrificed in order to help with the smooth running of the school. She held this position for 31 years (1877-1908) before passing away on 7th October 1910.
Described as considerate, tactful, hardworking and industrious, Dr Lucy Sewall had once written that of all the students at Edinburgh, it was Isabel that she thought would likely make the best doctor.
Author- Gemma Woodheah
References:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isabel_Thorne
Diary of Isabel Jane Thorne. Edinburgh University Library Special Collections. http://lac-archives-live.is.ed.ac.uk:8081/repositories/2/resources/85136.
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