Lydia Ida Huber Torrance Allen was born on 26 April 1894 in Tiberias, Israel where her father, a physician, had established a missionary hospital. She was educated in Scotland and Beirut, and began studying Medicine at the University of Glasgow, Scotland in 1913 . At University she studied Zoology, Chemistry, Anatomy, Physiology, Materia Medica, Pathology, Medicine, Surgery, Midwifery, and Sick Children. She graduated MB ChB in 1918 and gained her MD in 1923 , both degrees were awarded with commendation. Her doctoral thesis was entitled The normal electrical excitability of the peripheral nerves in infancy and early childhood . Dr Allen worked in paediatrics and obstetrics in Glasgow; Manchester, England; Nottingham, England; and Birmingham, England from 1918-1923 . She then worked abroad, firstly at her father's hospital in Tiberias, for a short time in Colombo, Sri Lanka, and then in India as an obstetrician in the Women's Medical Division from 1928-1941 . After resigning from government service she continued to practice in Calcutta until 1950 when she returned to England. She worked as a consultant to the Woolwich group of hospitals for a further 10 years before retiring. Her husband Major Arthur J L Allen, Royal Indian Army Service Corps (RIASC) died in 1941 . Dr Allen was awarded the Kaisir I Hind Gold Medal (KIH) by King George VI, was a Fellow of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (FRCOG) and a longstanding member of the Medical Woman's Federation. She spoke German, Italian, French, Yiddish, Arabic and Hindustani. Dr Allen died on 06 May 1986 .
Source: Obituaries from the Medical Women's Federation Bulletin, and the British Medical Journal 1986.
From the guide to the Papers of Lydia Ida Huber Torrance Allen, 1894-1986, physician and medical graduate, University of Glasgow, Scotland, 1911-1986, (Glasgow University Archives Service)
