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Leslie Cowlishaw (1877–1943): the “bibliophile from the bush”

Milton G Roxanas
Med J Aust 2016; 204 (10): . || doi: 10.5694/mja15.00979
Published online: 6 June 2016

From Sydney to London via Gallipoli, and back: the productive career of a pioneer Australian medical historian

The birth of Leslie Cowlishaw on 4 January 1877 was a felicitous event for the history of medicine in Australia. Cowlishaw’s parents Mahlon Clark Cowlishaw and Jane (née Gratton) lived in Elizabeth Bay, Sydney, where his father was a shipping merchant and honorary consul for the Netherlands. Leslie was the eldest of three children and attended Sydney Grammar School (1888–1896): he was an average student but highly regarded, and a noted cricketer, captaining the first XI to the 1895 premiership. His father’s work allowed the family to travel abroad, and Cowlishaw visited England as a child, and he also toured North America and Europe after finishing his secondary schooling.


  • University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW


Correspondence: mroxanas@bigpond.net.au

Acknowledgements: 

I dedicate this article to my late wife, Alma, whose editorial assistance over the years was always appreciated. Thanks are also extended to David Russel, Virginia West, Andrew West, Elizabeth Milford, Chitra Karunanayake, Linda Heslop, Frances Miechels, Mary Roxanas, Elizabeth Williams, and Kerrie Harding.

Competing interests:

No relevant disclosures.

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