William Hunter was born at Long Calderwood Farm, East Kilbride, near Glasgow, Scotland, in 1718 . He came as a student to the University of Glasgow in 1731 and later studied medicine at Edinburgh, before going to London in 1741 . Hunter quickly became well-known as a physician, especially as an obstetrician, and built up a distinguished clientle, including members of the British Royal Family. He soon assembled a collection of anatomical and pathological specimens, related to his medical work. In the 1750s he began collecting art and later diversified into coins, books, manuscripts and ethnography. In 1768 he opened a medical school at his house in Great Windmill Street, Glasgow. In 1783 Hunter bequeathed his entire collection to Glasgow University, along with funds to construct a suitable Museum building. Under the terms of his will, however, his collections of books, manuscripts, coins, medals, paintings, shells, minerals, and anatomical and natural history specimens were retained in London until 1807 for the use of his nephew Matthew Baillie (1761-1823). The Hunterian Museum was subsequently built on the grounds of the University of Glasgow, which lay then on Glasgow's High Street and opened to the public in 1807 . It is thus the oldest public museum in Scotland. In 1870 the Museum was transferred, along with the rest of the University, to its present home at Gilmorehill in the western suburbs of the city.
From the guide to the Records of the Hunterian Museum, University of Glasgow, Scotland, 1750-1962, (Glasgow University Library, Special Collections Department)
