Can anyone help me find out about this medical man who was in Edinburgh at least between 1895 and 1909, please?
My great-grandfather Robert Paterson, b. 1866, married Florence Elmer in Edinburgh in 1907. They had one son, Eric, in 1908 and Robert died in 1909.
I obtained Robert's death certificate recently and saw that the cause of death was certified by G.W. Simla Paterson, M.B. CM. A quick search showed that the gentleman's full name was George William Simla Paterson.
Now I am pretty sure that Dr. Paterson is not a direct member of my Paterson family: my lot were servants, farm workers etc. and I am sure that none of them would have had the financial means to put a child through university and/or medical school. However I was pretty astonished because Eric's full name was Eric SIMLA Paterson
My family and I have often wondered where this middle name came from. Eric's mother Florence said that he was named after the town in India but now I am interested to know if in fact he was named after the doctor. Maybe he was a family friend or even Eric's godfather.
With such an unusual name he ought to be easy to trace, but no such luck. All I can find out is that in 1896 Dr. Paterson was a Fellow of the Edinburgh Society of Obstetricians. I have found no record of his birth, marriage death or any census entry for him either in England, Scotland or (a long shot!) India. I would have thought that there might be an obituary for him somewhere, or a Will, but I can find absolutely nothing.
Does anybody have any ideas? It's only really curiosity on my part but I would love to resolve this mystery!
Thanks in advance
Bev