Foundation of Chair of Chemistry, 1713

The Creation of the Chair of Chemistry at Edinburgh in 1713 was a vital step towards the Foundation of Faculty of Medicine, 1726 in 1726, and help lay the foundations of what would become the Faculty of Science in 1893.

On 9 December 1713, the Town Council of Edinburgh appointed James Crawford (1682-1731) to be Professor of Physic and Chemistry, noting that this would obviate the needs for Scots to travel abroad to study these subjects. Crawford was allotted two apartments in the college for teaching purposes but was awarded no salary. He appears to have given courses on an irregular basis rather than annually.

Sources

• Alexander Bower, The History of the University of Edinburgh. 3 vols. Edinburgh, 1817-1830.
• Sir Alexander Grant, The Story of the University of Edinburgh during its First Three Hundred Years, 2 vols (London: Longmans, Green, and Co., 1884)