Abstract copyright UK Data Service and data collection copyright owner.
The aim of Deaddocs: a bibliographical index is to provide information and references for medical and other historians, as well as for researchers in local and family history of medical practitioners who died between 1750 and 1850. Deaddocs was originally planned to be one of the research publications of the Wellcome Unit for the History of Medicine at the University of Oxford. The aim of the Unit's research publications was "to make available in an inexpensive form, bibliographical, documentary and research aids in fields relating to the history of medicine". The resulting index was so large that paper publication became out of the question. Its aim was to provide brief biographical details in a standardized form. There is space for up to seven references which are coded to give some indication of their length and importance. The index is more fully described in the study's documentation. Because there was no compulsory Medical Register before 1858, and until 1845 only an occasional medical directory, the aim was to identify as many medical practitioners, and others in related medical occupations, as possible, using obituaries and posthumous accounts appearing in British medical journals and related sources between 1750 and 1850. The Gentleman's Magazine, rather than any medical journal, turned out to be the major source for the years 1750-1773. W.R. LeFanu's British Periodicals of Medicine 1640-1899 was the main source for the titles of the medical journals. He lists over two hundred medical journals between 1750 and 1850, though not quite all of them could be found, and a small number when found were incomplete.
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The index is more fully described in the study documentation. It consists of 10,341 numbered entries. Some individuals are cross-referenced - those who worked under two names, and those with the prefix De or Von for example. The individual records give surname and up to four forenames, as well as the title[s] by which the subject was known. The record has space for dates of birth and death, year of death, place of birth, up to five places of residence, place of death, father's name and occupation, subject's profession, army, navy and East India Company service, whether the subject was a woman (there are several nurses and midwives), professional work, cause of death, and degree[s]. Entries in the Dictionary of National Biography, Commissioned Officers in the Medical Service of the British Army 1660-1960, and the Roll of the Indian Medical Service are noted but not copied. There is space for up to seven journal references, coded for their importance. Under the heading "SEE ALSO", "MORE" means that there were more than seven references found, and cross references to other family members are also entered. There are two "NOTES" sections for additional information. The study documentation, as well as describing the database, includes a complete list of the journals searched, and the name of the person searching each journal. The works consulted and the abbreviations used are listed, together with acknowledgements and references.
Purposive selection/case studies
Transcription of existing materials
Compilation or synthesis of existing material
