James Crawford (1682-1731)

James Crawford (1682-1731) was appointed Edinburgh University's first Professor of Chemistry in 1713, a vital step towards the foundation of the Faculty of Medicine in 1726. He was allotted two apartments in the College where he also taught Physics and Medicine. His post was unsalaried, which doubtless led him to apply for the vacant Chair of Hebrew in 1719. He occupied both chairs until 1726 when Andrew Plummer (1697-1756) took over the teaching of Chemistry. From then until his death, Crawford taught Hebrew alone.