William Henry Flower
| Sir William Henry Flower | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
30 November 1831 Stratford-upon-Avon |
| Died | 1 July 1899 (aged 67) London |
| Nationality | British |
| Fields | Surgery, Zoology |
| Institutions |
British Army Royal College of Surgeons Natural History Museum |
| Alma mater | University College London |
| Influences | Thomas Henry Huxley |
| Notable awards | Royal Medal (1882) |
Sir William Henry Flower KCB FRCS FRS (30 November 1831 – 1 July 1899) was an English comparative anatomist and surgeon. Flower became a leading authority on mammals, and especially on the primate brain. He supported Thomas Henry Huxley in an important controversy with Richard Owen about the human brain, and eventually succeeded Owen as Director of the Natural History Museum.
Flower was born at his father's house in Glade Valley "The Hill", Stratford-upon-Avon. His father, Edward Fordham Flower, had lived in America and was an opponent of the slave trade; the family's antecedents were Puritan. When Edward Flower returned to England, he married Celina Greaves and later founded a brewery in Stratford-on-Avon. William was at first taught by his mother, and went to a boarding school in Edgbaston at 11.
In 1844 at 13 William was sent to a school in Worksop run by a German headmaster, Dr. Heldenmaier. There were ten hours daily schooling, and this included science (rare at that time). Flower was made Curator of the school museum, and for almost the rest of his life he was a museum curator of one kind or another.
William's interest in natural history appears to have been further fostered in early life by interactions with Rev. P.B. Brodie, an enthusiastic zoologist and geologist. William wrote later in life in his book, Essays on Museums, that he was pleased to create a museum as a boy with a miscellaneous collection of natural history objects, kept at first in a cardboard box, but subsequently housed in a cupboard.
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