Background
Mitchell was born in Elgin, Moray, and gained a degree in medicine at the University of Aberdeen.
Mitchell was born in Elgin, Moray, and gained a degree in medicine at the University of Aberdeen.
1826 – 12 October 1909) was a Scottish doctor involved in the study and care of patients with mental illness. He served on several public commissions, and also wrote a number of works on historical subjects. Medicine
In 1857 Mitchell was appointed Deputy Commissioner of Lunacy with the newly established General Board of Lunacy for Scotland.
His appointment coincided with a report produced by the Scottish Royal Lunacy Commission that prompted a greater understanding and care of the insane.
In 1870 he was appointed to the commission, and also served on the Commission on Criminal Lunacy in England, and later chaired a commission which investigated lunacy care in Ireland. His work included a special study of individuals in private care, which were outlined in his work The Insane in Private Dwellings.
His contributions to the Edinburgh Medical Journal, reprinted in a condensed form in Memoirs of the Anthropological Society of London, contained material collected from extensive surveys. His work established a methodology for epidemiological studies in this field
Historian
His Rhind Lectures to the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland were published as The Past in the Present: What is Civilisation.
His conclusion was that the difference in the essential characteristics of modern and early peoples are imperceptible, that civilisation was due to accumulated knowledge rather than an inherent superiority of its individual members. He retired in 1895 and died on 12 October 1909. He was buried at Rosebank Cemetery, Edinburgh.
The grave lies on the north-facing retaining wall in the centre of the cemetery.
Their only child was the architect Sydney Mitchell (1856–1930).
He held positions with the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, the Scottish Meteorological Society, the Early Scottish Text Society, and council member of the Scottish History Society. He was a professor of ancient history and member of the Royal Scottish Academy.