If you want to learn more about Agnes Blackadder, visit here.

]]> Dr Fairlie eventually became Head of Clinical Gynaecology in Dundee and Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology in St Andrews, despite opposition from the University Board. Adverse in the ability to overcome obstacles as a woman in a male-dominated field, she became the first female professor in Scotland.

Later, Margaret Fairlie went on to drive ambulances for the Red Cross hospital in Royaumont, France, during WWI and became a pioneer of commercial flight when she travelled to Johannesburg via Comet in 1952.

If you want to learn more about Margaret Fairlie, visit here.

]]> St Andrews processed large quantities of Sphagnum moss. The moss grew on moors near Mount Melville, and the Boy Scouts collected and delivered the moss to households in the town to be dried. The semi-dried moss was them passed on to a body of nearly 100 volunteer “pickers”, who would remove any unwanted vegetation and prepare the moss to become a medical dressing. These “pickers” were mostly women, and they initially operated out of the War Hospital Supply Depot. The Depot was formed in 1915 by a Mrs Gilbert Wilson and was based in her home, however that soon became impractical. Eventually, the University lent Upper College Hall to the Depot to produce Sphagnum dressings, while the depot also had a branch at St Leonards School.

If you want to learn more about Sphagnum Moss, visit , here.

]]> If you want to learn more about the Old Course, visit here.

]]> FitzRoy was put in command of the Beagle’s second voyage, charting South America and the Galapagos islands. He was accompanied on this 5-year expedition by Charles Darwin, and during this time Darwin would begin to develop his theory of evolution.

After his retirement from the Navy and his election to the Royal Society, FitzRoy was appointed as head of what today we know as the Meteorological Office.

He compiled shipping forecasts by having live weather data telegraphed to him from ports and ships around the country. Key to this was the nationwide issuing of barometers, which are devices used to measure air pressure. An example of a FitzRoy barometer is in St Andrews.

If you want to learn more about Robert FitzRoy, visit here.

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