Norman Charles Simpson was born in 1898 according to the 1939 national register, possibly in Scotland, since he trained there, qualifying from Aberdeen in 1921, where the Medical Register records him until 1924. However, his first Medical Directory entry in 1922 records a Sheffield address. This could have been his home (i.e. parents) address, but he might have been in practice there. Perhaps initially he worked in Aberdeen, then moved to Sheffield, not notifying the Medical Register of his move? Either way, from 1924 he was in east London. He worked there for several years before moving to Newmarket in 1931, where he continued the Heath Cottage practice after his predecessor Dr Maund moved on from there, possibly with a brief overlap (see the references below for more details, and also the pages on John Hansby Maund, The Orchard House practice chain and Heath Cottage). It’s of note that whilst in London Norman Simpson gained an MD qualification, granted by his old University in Aberdeen.
After a few years practising from Heath Cottage, in 1936 Dr Simpson moved the practice to Lincoln Lodge, where many Orchard House patients of today will remember the practice up until 1974 (at the time of writing, the recently retired Dr Bailey, a later successor of Dr Simpson, still lived there – see the page on Lincoln Lodge for more details). At the time of conducting this research there was still at least one elderly patient of Orchard House Surgery who remembered Dr Simpson’s time in the practice, from when she was a young girl (if there are any more please make contact using the details via the footer below). He lived and worked from Lincoln Lodge until 1945/6, when his successor Dr MacKenzie moved in. Interestingly however, at that time Norman Simpson didn’t leave the area but relocated to Westley Waterless, still within the practice area. Moreover, there’s evidence of him still working in the area during late 1946. So it appears likely that Drs Simpson and MacKenzie worked together in partnership for a couple of years, before the former moved on. However, some notes made in 1979 state that Dr MacKenzie bought the practice from Dr Simpson, perhaps implying that there was not a handover partnership so much as a direct switch, but nevertheless, there might have been an overlap of some form to facilitate the transition? (again, if anyone know please make contact).
After moving on from Westley Waterless in his late 40s, Norman Simpson is recorded briefly in Lancashire then Cambridge, before he settled near Edinburgh during the early 1950s for the rest of his career, and in fact life. For many years he was Senior Medical Officer for the Ministry of Pensions and National Insurance there. He’s marked as retired in the Medical Directories from 1965 onwards, and appears to have died at Edinburgh in 1967 in his late 60s.
During his time in Newmarket, aside from taking over the Heath Cottage practice and moving it to Lincoln Lodge, Norman Simpson occupied several of the posts held by his predecessor John Maund. These included acting as medical officer for District 1 of the successor organisation to the Newmarket Union, as well as being the local medical officer of health to the Newmarket Institution. He’s remembered attending the infirmary after Dr Maund – see the pages on the Newmarket Union (and workhouse) and Newmarket Hospital as well. Both Drs Simpson and Maund were some form of factory surgeon too. In addition, Dr Simpson was Medical Officer to the Jockey Club for over a decade in the 1930s and 40s, a role to which Norman Gray from another practice appears to have succeeded.
Regarding contemporaries, what was to become The Rookery Medical Centre had recently moved into Alton House Surgery when Norman Simpson arrived in town, where it was to remain throughout his time and well beyond (see also The Rookery practice chain). He would have witnessed the arrival of Jimmy McNeill shortly after his own arrival, and seen that practice grow further. The only other practice in Newmarket during Norman Simpson’s time was that of Joe Davis (which evolved into today’s Oakfield Surgery). Joe Davis had arrived in town a couple of years before Norman Simpson, and moved that practice from Kingston House to Rous Villa about the same time that Norman Simpson moved his from Heath Cottage to Lincoln Lodge. So by the time he left, things were set in a pattern that will be remembered by many in Newmarket today: the predecessors of Orchard House Surgery at Lincoln Lodge, The Rookery at Alton House, and Oakfield at Rous Villa, a pattern which lasted for several decades in the mid 20th century.
1922: ‘SIMPSON, Norman Chas., 24, Holme Lane, Hills-borough, Sheffield – M.B., Ch.B. Aberd. 1921; (Aberd.)’. Reference: The Medical Directory. London: Churchill; 1922. [Note: this was his first entry in the Medical Directory. It remained the same until 1925 – see below.], [Note also, his first Medical Register entry, also in 1922, records an Aberdeen address, changing in 1924 to the address the Directory doesn’t record until 1925 – also as below.]
1925: ‘SIMPSON, Norman Chas.,Raymond House, Plashet Rd., Upton Pk., E. 13 (Mercier & Simpson ; Tel. East Ham 506) – M.B., Ch.B. Aberd. 1921; (Aberd.)’. Reference: The Medical Directory. London: Churchill; 1925. [Note: ‘Chas. Jerome Alex. Nicolai’ Mercier mentioned ‘Mercier & Simpson’ in his entry too.], [Note also, his entry remained essentially unchanged until 1930, when Charles Mercier was replaced by ‘Alex. Edwin’ Reid as ‘Simpson & Reid’ who also mentioned their pairing for the first time that year, with Charles Mercier stopping mentioning one. However, it’s of note that Alex Reid had the same address as Norman Simpson from 1929 (before that he was in Scotland).], [Note also, the 1931 entries of both Simpson and Reid mention each other again, then from 1932 Charles Simpson is recorded in Newmarket, having arrived later in 1931 – see below.], [Note also, the Medical Register records Norman Simpson in London from 1924, as mentioned in the notes of the 1922 reference above.]
1931, 24th August: Dr J. H. Maund (Medical Officer) present at a meeting of the Newmarket Urban District Council. Reference: The Bury Free Press. Saturday Aug 29 1931: 4. [Note: this is the last mention found so far of Dr Maund still in practice at Newmarket, although there is a report regarding an inquest held at Newmarket Police station on September 18th at which he was present, regarding a case from 1st August; likely he was still working in Newmarket then, but might have come back for the inquest. Reference: The Bury Free Press. Saturday Sept 19 1931: 12, but note also the May 1832 reference below.]
1931, 17th October: A report from the West Suffolk Insurance Committee quarterly meeting, regarding the quarterly report of the Medical Benefit Sub-Committee, stated that Dr N. C. Simpson of Newmarket had been added to the panel list and Dr J. H. Maund removed. Reference: The Bury Free Press. Saturday Oct 17 1931: 11. [Note: this would imply that Dr Simpson replaced Dr Maund at Heath Cottage during this quarter of 1931, which fits with the report at the time of his death in 1944 below that the latter left in 1931, but see 1932 below also.]
1931, 6th December: The earliest mention found so far of ‘Dr. Simpson, practising at Newmarket’ after the October note above. He was mentioned as a witness in a drink-driving case. Reference: The Bury Free Press. Saturday Dec 12 1931: 4. [Note: the report also mentions a ‘Dr. W. F. Davis’ of Newmarket giving an opposing opinion, which appears to be a reporting error for Joe Davis.]
1932: ‘MAUND, John Hansby, Heath Cottage, Newmarket, Cambs (Tel.14) – M.R.C.S., L.R.C.P. Lond. 1890; D.P.H. Cantab. 1909; (St. Bart.); Surg. Rous Memor. Hosp.; M.O.H. Newmarket U. Dist.; Med. Off. & Pub. Vacc. No.1 Dist. Newmarket; Med. Off. Newmarket Infirm.; Certif. Fact. Surg.; Mem. Camb. Med. Soc.; late Sen. Ho. Surg. St. Bart. Hosp. Author, “Two Cases of Submaxillary Cellulitis,” Lancet, 1891.’ Reference: The Medical Directory. London: Churchill; 1932. [Note: this seems to lag behind the time that he left (see 1931 above, but perhaps not – see May 1832 below? But see 1944 below also, which says the left in 1931 too.]
1932: ‘SIMPSON, Norman Chas., Heath Cottage, New-market, Suffolk (Tel. 14) – M.D. Aberd. (Hnrs.) 1927, M.B., Ch.B. 1921; (Aberd.)’. Reference: The Medical Directory. London: Churchill; 1932. [Note: his Medical Directory entries record him in London before this – see above, but note the October and December 1931 references above also.], [Note also, the Medical Register records him in London until Heath Cottage in 1932 as well.]
1932, 28th May: A report on some West Suffolk County Council meetings noted that ‘Dr. J. H. Maund, of Heath Cottage, Newmarket tendered his resignation through ill-health as District Medical Officer for the 1st New-market District and as Medical Officer for the Newmarket Institution, and Dr. Nor-man Charles Simpson, of Heath Cottage Newmarket, applied for the posts’, which he obtained. Reference: The Bury Free Press. Saturday May 28 1932: 12. [Note: it’s odd that ‘ill health’ was given as the reason, given that he left to become a ship’s surgeon according to the 1944 reference below, unless that was a lighter semi retirement role ‘travelling’ – see 1933 below?], [Note also, this seems to show him working in Newmarket a little later than some of the other references suggest, perhaps suggesting an overlap with Dr Simpson for a few months, as is seen with many other similar examples elsewhere on this website.]
1933: ‘MAUND, John Hansby, (Travelling) – M.R.C.S., L.R.C.P. Lond. 1890; D.P.H. Cantab. 1909; (St. Bart.); Mem. Camb. Med. Soc.; late Surg. Rous. Memor. Hosp.; M.O.H. Newmarket U. Dist.; Sen. Ho. Surg. St. Bart. Hosp. Author, “Two Cases of Submaxillary Cellulitis,” Lancet, 1891.’ Reference: The Medical Directory. London: Churchill; 1933. [Note: his entry continued to mention travelling until 1944, when it changed to ‘retired’ – see the page on John Hansby Maund.], [Note also, in the Medical Register his entry changed to ‘c/o Lloyds Bank, Newmarket’ rather than giving an address, which remained the case until his last entry in 1944.]
1936: In the section divided up by streets, ‘Heath Cottage, Simpson, Dr. Norman C., M.D., (Tel. New-market 14.)’ in the Bury Road section, and in the alphabetical list of names, ‘Simpson, Dr. Norman C., M.D., Heath cottage, Bury road’. Reference: Newmarket & District Annual & Directory. Newmarket: Eastern Counties Supplies Ltd.; 1936-37 edition, pages 87 & 163. [Note: on page 36, under ‘West Suffolk Public Assistance Committee’, ‘Dr. N. C. Simpson’ is listed as the medical officer for ‘Burwell, Mouton, Newmarket All Saints, Newmarket St. Mary’.], [Note also, Lincoln Lodge (see 1937 below) is listed in Rayes Lane under Exeter Road, inhabited by Walter C. Earl.]
1936, 10th December: Conveyance of Lincoln Lodge from Mrs Edith Collin to ‘Norman Charles Simpson of Heath Cottage… Doctor of Medicine (hereinafter called the Purchaser)’, and later in the document Lincoln Lodge with offices etc., is described as ‘now in the occupation of the purchaser’ suggesting that he had already moved in, perhaps initially as a tenant. Reference: The Deeds of Lincoln Lodge, kindly lent to me in 2018 by the then owners, the Baileys. [Note: see the page on Lincoln Lodge for more details.]
1937: ‘Simpson Norman Chas. M.D.Aberd. surgn. & certifying factory surgn. & medical officer of health to the Newmarket Institution & medical officer & public vaccinator No. 1 district of Newmarket Guardians Committee of the West Suffolk County Council & medical officer to Jockey Club, Lincoln lodge, Rayes la. TN 14’ listed in the Newmarket commercial section of Kelly’s Directory. Reference: Kelly’s directory of Suffolk. London: Kelly’s Directories Ltd.; 1937, pg 367. [Note: it’s interesting that this suggests he continued the certifying factory surgeon role of his predecessor, as well as the role of medical officer for district 1 and ‘institution’ i.e. infirmary etc. of the successor organisation to the Newmarket Union, facts not revealed by the Medical Directory entries.], [Note also, page 363 records, ‘The Newmarket Institution, White lodge, Exning road, was built in 1836 and will hold 500 inmates; Rev. Ronald Leslie Gardner B.A. chaplain; Norman C. Simpson M.D. medical officer; Ernest S. Heasman, master’ under the ‘NEWMARKET GUARDIANS COMMITTEE OF THE WEST SUFFOLK COUNTY COUNCIL’ section, starting on page 362.]
1938: ‘SIMPSON, Norman Chas., Lincoln Lodge, New-market, Suffolk (Tel. 14) – M.D. Aberd. (Hnrs.) 1927, M.B., Ch.B. 1921; (Aberd.); Med. Off. Jockey Club.’ Reference: The Medical Directory. London: Churchill; 1938. [Note: this was the first year that he mentioned Lincoln Lodge, but note the 1937 Kelly’s directory entry above, and 1936 conveyance.], [Note also, he mentioned being Medical Officer to the Jockey Club from 1933 until 1945, and also Medical Officer of Health for the Newmarket Urban District Council (cf. Kelly’s 1837 description above), like his predecessor, from 1933 until 1937.], [Note also, he continued in Lincoln Lodge until 1945, when he moved to Westley – see 1946 below.]
1939, 29th September: In Lincoln Lodge, Newmarket, Norman C Simpson, born 29th December 1898, Medical Practitioner, presumably his wife Ida Simpson, born 1900, and a couple of servants. Reference: Online image of the 1939 England and Wales Register held at The National Archives, ancestry.co.uk (accessed 26th June 2018). [Note: next to this entry is written ‘MO To Newkt. First. Aid’.]
1944, 28th August: The death of John Hansby Maund, reported in The Newmarket Journal. The report mentions that he left Newmarket ‘in 1931 to become a ship’s surgeon’. Reference: The Newmarket Journal. Saturday Sept 9 1844: 5. [Note: see the page on John Hansby Maund for more details.]
1946: ‘SIMPSON, Norman Charles, Underwood Hall, Westley, Newmarket, Suffolk (Tel. Stetchworth 298) – M.D. Aberd. (Hnrs.) 1927, M.B., Ch.B. 1921; (Aberd.); Mem. Camb. Med. Soc.’ Reference: The Medical Directory. London: Churchill; 1946. [Note: this was the first year that he mentioned Wesley, having been in Lincoln Lodge until 1945 – the Medical Registers show the same, as do both in 1947. The Medical Register shows him still in Westley in 1948, but the Medical Directory shows that he had moved on to Lancashire by that stage. The Directory shows him still in Lancashire in 1949, then ‘Address unknown’ in 1950, Cambridge in 1951 and 1952, then in Scotland on the outskirts of Edinburgh until 1967, when it appears he died – see below. He is marked as retired from 1965 onwards (when he would have been about 67), so apparently he worked in all of these places after Newmarket until 1964, when just before his retirement he was recorded as the Senior Medical Officer for the Ministry of Pensions and National Insurance, a role he’d held for many years.]
1946, 16th November: It was reported in the Newmarket press that Dr Norman Simpson had been appointed to cover an STD role on a sessional basis for the local County Councils until the New Year, from which point a specialist would be taking on the role. Reference: The Newmarket Journal. Saturday Nov 16 1946: 13. [Note: this supports the impression that he continued working in practice at Newmarket until he finally left some time in 1947, Dr MacKenzie having moved into the practice building some time during 1945/6 (see 1947 below).]
1947: ‘MacKENZIE, Ian Kennedy, Lincoln Lodge, New-market, Suff. – M.B., Ch.B. Ed. 1934.’ Reference: The Medical Directory. London: Churchill; 1947. [Note: in 1946 the Directory records him in the forces section as a Flight Lieutenant in the RAF, and the Medical Register for that year gives his address as ‘c/o/ Lloyd’s Bank, 6, Pall Mall, London’. Like the Directory, the Register records him in Lincoln Lodge by 1947.]
1948, 27th May: Conveyance of Lincoln Lodge from Norman Charles Simpson, with a Lancashire address, to Ian Kennedy Mackenzie ‘of Lincoln Lodge’ (and his wife). Reference: The Deeds of Lincoln Lodge, kindly lent to me in 2018 by the then owners, the Baileys (who bought Lincoln Lodge from the MacKenzies in 1979, several years after the surgery had moved to Exning Road). [Note: by 1948 obviously Dr MacKenzie had already been in Lincoln Lodge for some time as their respective addresses show.]
1967, 15th December: A Norman Charles Simpson was cremated in Edinburgh, which was likely this Norman Charles Simpson, since he disappeared from the Medical Directory from 1968 onwards, and had been living on the outskirts of Edinburgh – see 1946 above. Reference: Cremation register summary, Deceased online. https://www.deceasedonline.com/servlet/GSDOSearch?DetsView=Summary&src=ext&fileid=2382569 (accessed 9th July 2018).
1979: A hand written document (with sketches), passed to Dr Bailey by Dr Mackenzie’s wife, includes the comment ‘when we bought the practice it was a private practice’. Reference: Note kept with the deeds of Lincoln Lodge, kindly lent to me and explained in 2018 by the then owners, the Baileys (who bought the house from the MacKenzies in 1979). [Note: this purchase of the practice was pre-NHS, which started in 1948 – see the page on Lincoln Lodge for more details.]
Heasman R (Dick). 160 years of service to the community. A history of Newmarket General Hospital. Mid Anglia Community Health NHS Trust; 1996. [Note: this book mentions Dr Norman Simpson on pg 36, simply noting his existence as a doctor who attended the infirmary: ‘Dr. Maund and, later, Dr. Norman Simpson were the later doctors.’ (strangely this book does not mention the medical officers prior to the Grays, despite its title – see the pages on The Newmarket Union (and workhouse) and Newmarket Hospital for details of the succession there from 1837 onwards.]
Personal correspondence with a doctor at Orchard House Surgery in 2014 whose patient aged 79 had living memory of Dr Simpson preceding Dr MacKenzie in the practice (she would have been about 12 when he left Newmarket).
Shops History Newmarket. http://www.newmarketshops.info/index.html. [Note: newmarketshops.info has been supplied with information regarding the medical history of Newmarket by the author of talkingdust.net since August 2013 (see footnotes on some of the pages). Both websites continue to be developed, and in this sense are mutually symbiotic.]
The Medical Directory. London: Churchill; 1921-1968. [Note: see above references for full 1922, 25, 32, 38 and 46 entries, 1932 & 33 for John Hansby Maund, and 1947 for Ian Kennedy MacKenzie], [Note also, this publication has been known by various titles over the years. Initially it just covered London, but from 1847 it had a wider remit, being variously known as the London and Provincial Medical Directory, The Medical Directories, The Medical Directory, etc., essentially the same work with minor variations and developments. It is usually referred to as The Medical Directory (as opposed to The Medical Register), so that is how it’s consistently referred to on talkingdust.net.]
The Medical Register. London: General Medical Council; 1921ff. [Note: these indicate that he was registered on 9th April 1921, the 1922 Register therefore being the first that he appears in, as with the Directory above.]
Note: For published material referenced on this website see the ‘Acknowledgements for resources of published material’ section on the ‘Usage &c.’ page. The sources used for original unpublished documents are noted after each individual reference. Any census records are referenced directly to The National Archives, since images of these are so ubiquitous on microfilm and as digital images that they almost function like published works. Census records are covered by the ‘Open Government Licence’ as should be other such public records (see the ‘Copyright and related issues’ section on the ‘Usage &c.’ page for which references constitute public records, and any other copyright issues more generally such as fair dealing/use etc.).