“Few men have done so much for
tropical pathology as Vandyke Carter. A keen
observer, a skilled histologist, a good draughtsman,
persevering and industrious in a high degree, and well
abreast of the pathological knowledge of the day, he
made full use of his opportunities during his long
service in India, and shed much light on many
interesting and obscure problems in medicine. He
was endowed with the true scientific spirit,
industrious in collecting facts, accurate in observing
and recording them, sagacious in interpretation, not
jumping to conclusions. ….
“When we reflect on the disadvantages of having to
work in a trying climate, often with imperfect
apparatus, without skilled assistance or appreciative
companionship, and without the stimulus of competition
or necessity, and far removed from libraries and many
of the resources of civilisation, we cannot fail to be
impressed by the high quality and the prodigious
amount of valuable and disinterested scientific work
which Vandyke Carter did for his profession.”
The 1891 Census shows Henry Vandyke Carter, retired surgeon from the Indian Army, at the age of 56 living at No 2 Belgrave Crescent with his wife Mary aged 34 and his sister-in-law Margaret Robison with a cook and a housemaid.
Next door at No 3 was Ravensworth Lodge Boarding School for Girls which was the home of five schoolmistresses, including French and Music teachers, 26 pupils and four domestic staff.
At No 1 Belgrave Crescent lived Edward Taylor, a retired deputy surgeon, with his wife, mother-in-law, daughter and four domestic staff.
In 1917 No 2 Belgrave Crescent was bought by Frederick William Plaxton, builder and founder of Plaxtons’ famous coaches.
John Alfred Bryden, bought the premises in 1963 to use as offices for his firm of Chartered Accountants, Bryden and Co, and the building continues to be used for this purpose. With changes in partners and mergers over the years Bryden and co became Coulson and co, Coulsons, and currently Ashby Berry Coulsons.
Anne and
Paul Bayliss 1997:
“Scarborough Artists of the Nineteenth Century:
A Biographical Dictionary”.
Anne and Paul Bayliss 2005:
“The Medical Profession in Scarborough 1700 to
1899: A Biographical Dictionary”.
Professor Gordon Bell, with Arthur Credland and Ruth
Richardson:
“H B Carter and Sons: Victorian Watercolour
Drawing and the Art of Illustration.” Blackthorn
Press 2006
Ruth
Richardson:
“The Making of Mr Gray’s Anatomy: Bodies, Books,
Fortune, Fame”. Oxford University Press 2008
Shirley
Roberts, Journal of Medical Biography 2000:
“Henry Gray and Henry Vandyke Carter: creators
of a famous textbook”.