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Obituary - Henry W. Noble
Henry William Noble was bom in Glasgow and attended Dunoon Grammar as a wartime evacuee. He chose to study dentistry, attracted, like many another, by the combination of academic study and fine manual work. In 1942 aged 17 he began an association with dental education in Glasgow which only now has ended. He was a prize-winning student and qualified LDS RFPSG in 1947. He was one of a remarkable year who were the last group to qualify before the affiliation of the Glasgow School with the University in 1948, and whose annual reunions have continued ever since. While a house surgeon in Glasgow Dental Hospital he also undertook teaching duties as a demonstrator in pathology and dental bacteriology, and subsequently in dental histology -the field which was to become his life's work. Interrupted only by two years National Service in the RAF he served the University of Glasgow as Lecturer, and then Senior Lecturer, in Dental Anatomy and Histology for thirty-six years. He was awarded the HDD of the RFPSG in 1948 (the predecessor of the Fellowship) and then became an FDSRCPSG in 1967, and an FBACA (Fellow of the British Association of Clinical Anatomists) in 1978. He served the College for many years as examiner and organiser of the Primary Fellowship examinations at home and abroad. President of the Glasgow Odontological Society in 1972 he served as the society's editor for many years and was elected an honorary member in 2002. The Glasgow Dental Alumnus association also benefited from his input from its inception at the 1979 centenary celebrations. Henry's PhD, awarded in 1962, was on the innervation of dentine and utilised what were then novel observations using electron microscopy. He championed the importance of basic science in dental education through many changes in circumstances and curriculum evolutions and revolutions. He was an enthusiastic teacher, well known and well loved by generations of Glasgow dental students and post-graduates. His lecturing style was dramatic and memorable but he particularly enjoyed group and practical sessions and introduced many innovations now commonplace but groundbreaking in their time. From group microscopy through audio-visual techniques to computerised instruction, Henry was always eager to enliven his classes by the latest methods. He was for many years responsible for the organisation of the student electives and was very proud of their achievements in this period. Never a self-publicist nor a grant-grubber, Henry and his laboratory were the nursery for the research of generations of young colleagues whose early steps he guided and encouraged. Transfer from a full to a part time appointment in 1986 gave him the opportunity to respond to invitations to developing dental schools abroad, in Jordan and in Trinidad. In addition to undertaking a substantial teaching and exwnining responsibility there, he recapitulated his early Glasgow experiences in the foundation of oral biology laboratories and the initial training of new technical staff. In retirement Henry brought all his academic skills and his meticulous
scholarship to the study of the history of dentistry. He was the founder of the group
which became the History of Dentistry Research Group at the University of Glasgow, and
which has flourished under his energetic leadership. The group, now one of the
largest and most active in the field, meets regularly and has published a twice yearly
newsletter since its foundation in 1996. Its members have produced a steady stream of
historical articles and three doctoral theses, and all would acknowledge their debt to
Henry's support and encouragement. His contributions in this field, and also to the
Lindsay Society and the BDA Museum, were recognised in 2003 by the award of the Tomes
Medal. This was celebrated at a dinner in his honour given by the West of Scotland Branch,
and pleased him enormously. Particularly because, as he told us, "Old Tomes was
always a hero of mine." Just recently he was recommended to receive the Lillian
Lindsay Memorial Medal which, sadly, he did not live to accept personally, though he knew
about the award. DAMCG
His dynamic, energetic, exuberant, enthusiasm for all things dental will long be remembered by those of us who were privileged to know him. Mr Willie Neithercutt:- I have known Henry since we became dental students in 1942. We were firm friends and when we qualified in 1947 we were invited to become house surgeons at the Glasgow Dental Hospital. After our year in hospital we were both called to the forces. On leaving the forces Henry commenced his long and distinguished career in Academia: whilst I set up as general practitioner - but we remained in touch, and in 1950 I invited Henry to be my 'best man' at my wedding. Over the following years Henry undertook the organisation of many reunions of the year'47. Group photographs were organised by Henry on these happy occasions. Our last reunion was in 2003. Henry's death leaves a large gap in our year. Professor Sir David Mason:- For over sixty years, from becoming a dental student in Glasgow until he died a few weeks ago, Dr Henry Noble made an immense contribution to his profession nationally and internationally, and in particular to the life and work of the Glasgow Dental Hospital and School and dentistry in the West of Scotland. He wdl be fondly remembered by generations of undergraduate dental students in Glasgow and other countries for his skilled and demonstrative teaching of dental anatomy and histology, and also by so many colleagues whom he helped to prepare for postgraduate diploma examinations. His interest and guidance in the planning and conduct of research investigations by students involved in electives, and colleagues pursuing research projects, were exemplary and utterly selfless. His advice on the use of research techniques as well as his kindness and enthusiasm encouraged success by others, and this in return gave him great personal pleasure and satisfaction Dentistry in the West of Scotland has a goodly heritage and Henry contributed much to this. Since he retired he has been active in preserving our heritage through his sterling leadership of the History of Dentistry Group. How fitting it was that a year ago he received the coveted John Tomes Medal of the British Dental Association for his outstanding services to dentistry. We shall miss him greatly. Certainly the example of his life and work will live on in the hearts and minds of those of us who were privileged to know him as a friend and colleague. Professor Douglas Allan:- In the Library of Garyounis Dental School, in Benghazi, sat a figure at the open window tuned into a headset radio. He told me he lived near the Antonine Wall when he was not at Sauchiehall Street and I countered that I dwelt near Hadrian's Wall in 'Geordie Toon'. I mentioned that being retired I was looking for a different third world opportunity in teaching and he mentioned Yarmouk University in the North of Jordan. Being the ubiquitous Ken Stephen he had helped to draw up the curriculum for this new school and they were completing their second year of studies. As the janitor came over to arrest him I managed to confirm that he was not a spy and was only a Scots visiting examiner listening to the bagpipes on his head set. I was grateful for the hint and was appointed full Professor in Restorative Dentistry at the beginning of the academic year 1986-87. Henry Noble had taught the second year in the previous year so he knew Nabil El-Sheik Salem, the assistant professor who had started the ball off. The President of Garyounis University, Dr Adrian Badran, was his uncle. I was presented with the task of teaching the penultimate year, third year, before they started in the clinic. Furthermore we were moved 20 K near to Syria into a new -"Jordan University of Science and Technology." The phantom head room and other laboratories had yet to be set up and a whole dental hospital had to be designed and equipped, and with the students in situ, which was further punishment. Henry Noble's subjects were oral anatomy, oral histology, head and neck anatomy and general anatomy and were given in the second term. Henry, with Audrey his wife, arrived on Friday 23 rd January and I met them at Queen Alia Airport in Amman, I drove then up to Irbid and saw they were installed in the ground floor flat, which had been organised for them, in a local village with tenuous arrangements for transport. However they were not abandoned for either work or play. The new premises now had some furniture and we could manage to start teaching. Geoffrey Howe joined us full-time and he had a Mercedes as well. On Friday we played and went to Jerash, an almost complete Roman town. The entry arch honoured our old friend Hadrian, which made us feel quite at home. Henry was quick to identify the marks of chariot wheels, especially in gateways. In the Roman amphitheatre Henry loved to stand on the stage focal sound spot and declaim to the multitudes. His enthusiasm almost brought the large town back to life. To complete a perfect visit we went to the Yahala Lebanese Restaurant for an excellent meal. On other days we might visit the Dead Sea, below sea level, or go north to Um Queis the home of the Gaderene swine. Henry delighted in the view of the Sea of Galilee. Most days we worked hard as the required equipment arrived. There were fourteen students in the second leading year and sixteen in the first. Now the intake was accelerating I managed to get Dr Ajluni to agree that it would never exceed 30. Henry Noble found the lower numbers manageable but to cope with 30 he needed some limited help. I was glad to volunteer which meant that I knew some detail of his teaching methods. To confirm that instruction had been assimilated he would arrange around the laboratory some thirty separate stations, each with a display which demanded an answer. After two minutes the student would move on to the next station and write down his answer. Henry required help to invigilate this effort and eliminate cheating. These tests were given frequently which kept the student up to scratch - in addition to the conventional essay tests. The result was that the whole faculty could know how each student was faring, continuously. We found that the tests were well received and all the students were very capable in both theory and practice. Paying fees made for keenness. Later we were similarly pressed in Restorative Dentistry as for example when students were charting each other's mouths. A good camaraderie developed. Henry was dismayed to find that all the occupants of his dwelling premises were tapped into his electricity supply. Fortunately a new President was appointed to Yarmouk University, Dr Mohammad Haindan, and he graciously agreed that all the English staff could be accommodated in his campus.This led to improved sociability especially on the distaff side. The cars were usually well utilised. There was much to see in Jordan and on one trip home there was no seat for Henry. He sat on cushions in the boot space facing to the rear and with a map guided us safely home. The Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan was well managed by the King who had been trained at Sandhurst and he was well supported by his army, bagpipes and all. An electric generator had failed and when the representative came from the USA he prescribed that the three-unit machine needed renewal provided that the new cement works just set up-wind recently, be also removed. Henry liked to see everything "Ship-Shape". When we came home in 1988, Brenda and I could not move North from Hadrian's Wall, into Scotland without calling on the Nobles in Largs, if they were at home. In winter Henry would be preening and rendering his other joy, "Fifer Lass", a thirty foot fishing boat. In the summer they would cruise in the Western Isles. We were privileged to be taken out on a trip and it was breathtaking. In 1991 and 1992 we both got involved with another new dental school project, in Trinidad, at The University of the West Indies, near Port of Spain. Again it was a huge prestigious affair that would have responded to better management. The vast building was air-conditioned. It was designed with three air conditioning units. The idea was that one was functional, one was ready to take over and the third was stopped for maintenance and repair. What did they do but use one to rob the other two for spare parts. The inevitable calamity happened and the air was not cooled for two weeks and there were non-opening windows. This really made you realise what a very hot and humid climate it was. Henry could not condone this inefficiency and it always had to be "Bristol Fashion". The students were first-rate and a joy to teach. We had fun, too, running through miles of tropical forest to the Asa Wright Centre with humming birds galore, vulture-like corbeaux circling above some carcasses and pelicans feeding on the shore. Woe betide anyone who mistook a parasite for a sprophyte. Henry looked down on Port of Spain and on the way home we always stopped at the Martello Tower and re-enacted another battle. Farewell good and faithful servant. Anonymous Student - 1982 Glasgow Dental Student Final Year Book:- "The high priest himself. Wise and infinitely reasonable, with flaxen white hair and a quiet manner he ponders, he muses, he ruminates. All of the great mysteries of Oral Biology have been considered by him. And yet the sense of wonder has not left him." Emeritus Professor Stanley Gelbier:- As a past chairman Henry Noble made an enormous contribution to the Lindsay Society for the History of Dentistry. He became a member in 1990 and from 2000 until 2002 served as our chairman - and what a chairman he was! Not for Henry the laid-back, hands-off, style of chairmanship, leaving all the hard work for the secretary and others to do; which many of us would recognise in other chairmen. It would have been so easy for him just to sit back, let other people do the work and then come forward to receive the plaudits for the assured highly successful meeting that would be associated with him. But that was not Henry's style. Henry Noble was renowned for paying meticulous detail to everything associated with the society's affairs, especially when planning a conference or a lecture. Frequently, these plans were progressed from places afar, often from a caravan in some foreign clime. His friends in the Lindsay Society knew well Henry's habit of whisking his wife away to sunnier parts of Europe. But such an absence from Scotland never appeared to create any barriers to carrying out his duties. Distance was never a challenge. If we needed to make contact we only had to type the relevant code into our e-mail server and we were in touch with Henry - often instataneously. That Henry and Audrey were campers was sometimes a major advantage. For some meetings he conveniently chose a site reasonably near to our meeting place. Thus, Henry was able to use his caravan to deliver the Lindsay Society's stand to the national BDA Conference in Birmingham; a very good example of what is meant by a hands-on Chairman. That meeting reminded me that Henry was himself a part of history. The Lindsay Society presented a series of demonstrations on dentistry past. One session was on gold foil dentistry. A video showed younger members of the profession what it was all about. However, it was a real plus to have Henry present. Not only had be experience of pracatical gold foil dentistry but he was an expert in it. We learned that in 1947 Henry had been awarded the Glasgow Odontological Society's Prize for gold restorations as a result of a competition. We were staggered to learn that he had made a foil restoration for a class IV cavity. It is not surprising that when Henry's term of office came to an end the Lindsay Society's committee immediately co-opted him back as a member. No one wanted to lose his expertise and especially his enthusiasm. Henry never missed an opportunity to gently remind us at meetings of the great Scottish traditions in dental history, as well as everything else. Although obviously proud of his base in Glasgow he was not forgetful of another great centre. Henry ensured that the Lindsay Society had an excellent meeting in Edinburgh, including a most interesting visit to the Menzies Campbell Collection at the Royal College of Surgeons. As Chairman Henry produced an interesting programme and chaired the society and its committee meetings with a gentle humour. When he stood up to ask a question or add a comment we knew we were in for a treat. His breadth and depth of knowledge were amazing. On a personal level I cannot remember asking Henry's any question that he was unable to answer. It is thus no surprise that Henry's advice was always sought by the Museum of the British Dental Association when it was unable to respond to a query. Henry gave the Lillian Lindsay Lecture at the Annual Conference of the British Dental Association in 1987, so his efforts have been spread over a number of years. The Lindsay Society is closely associated with the BDA Museum, so it is appropriate to mention Henry's contribution to that museum. In 2001 it began a period of development, and as it was obvious that the museum staff could not do all the necessary work on their own they sought help from volunteers. As honorary curator of the museum I was sure any positive response would come only from people in and around London because of geographical convenience, but I was wrong. I had not reckoned on Henry's legendary enthusiasm, and he was one of the first people to volunteer his services. Since then he generously donated his enormous wealth of knowledge and experience, as well as time, to assist with the diverse enquiries which the museum receives every month. Especially appreciated was his detective work in answering many of the queries that other people could not answer. To acknowledge his enormous contribution to the history of dentistry he was chosen to receive the Lindsay Memorial Medal. Although the medal could not actually be presented to him were delighted that he knew about the award before he died. He will be missed. Geoff Garnett (Chairman, Lindsay Society for the History of Dentistry):- Henry qualified LDS at Glasgow in 1947. I qualified BDS at Manchester in 1963. He was a teacher and academic. I was a general dental practitioner. Our paths never really crossed until I was about to retire, and Henry had been retired for a good many years. But how pleased I am that our paths did cross, and what a privilege it has been to work with Henry these last few years in the field of dental history. Together we manned the Lindsay Society stand at the BDA Annual Conference at Birmingham in the special year 2000. Videos were shown demonstrating the development of low-seated dentistry and I was able to comment on that subject. Then there was a video of the technique involved in the placement of cohesive gold restorations. Henry was in his element! First he offered some knowledgeable criticisms of the operator and his technique. Then he produced a collection of gold plugging instruments borrowed from the Glasgow collection. He was then very eager to explain and demonstrate the use of the instruments to anyone showing the slightest curiosity or interest. Henry had won the prize for a cohesive gold filling in the class of 1947. Well done Henry! It was when he explained that the filling he had presented was a Class IV restoration that my respect turned to awe. Others may write about Henry's teaching career and his work for the History of Dentistry Research Group but I shall always think of Henry as the man for dental artefacts, materials, instruments and techniques. I know of no one with Henry's depth of knowledge about instruments. On of his last tasks undertaken for the Lindsay Society was to label and catalogue about 200 early hand instruments entrusted to the Lindsay Society by John M. Fairley of Dundee. It was a great treat to see them on display at the York meeting of the society in early October this year. The labelling was neat and exquisite, the research and cataloguing was detailed and extensive. What a great sorrow it was that Henry was unable to be with us. *** A dental teacher looks back on a lifetime of learning and scholarship Some reminiscences of the late Dr Henry Noble, formerly Senior Lecturer in Dental Anatomyt and Histology in the University of Glasgow Dental School. These memories were recorded in a conversation with David McGowan and Bob McKechnie in June 2004. They were to have been the basis of an article in our regular series of reminiscences, but sadly the illness and recent death of Dr Noble means that they were never checked by him nor were they amplified, as planned in a further conversation. Typically Henry's modesty, loyalty to colleagues and innate courtesy meant that no spark of controversy was ever ignited. They are offered now as part of his memorial. On the 6th June 1942 the 17 year old Henry Noble, then an evacuee Dunoon Grammar School pupil, living with his aunt in Hunters Quay, was sent a letter accepting him as a dental student at the Anderson College of Medicine, Dumbarton Road, Glasgow. So began an association with dental education, then as a student and later as a teacher, which lasted for 50 years up to his retirement in 1986 and beyond, and a dedication to scholarship which never diminished. The son of a joiner who worked in the fine tradition of the Glasgow shipyards, Henry, like many another was attracted to dentistry by the combination of academic study and the challenge of fine manual work. He was encouraged in his ambition by his Aunt Edith who had been one of the first women students in the Glasgow dental school. The circumstances of 1942 meant that admission was conditional on agreement to undertake fire-watching duties, but the letter could be used to prove exemption from military service. The wartime conditions and the independence of Anderson's College from the university limited the exposure of the dental students of that time to the broader aspects of a university education, a matter which they found frustrating. Henry's year were the last, in 1947, to qualify before the affiliation of Glasgow Dental Hospital and School with the University of Glasgow in the following year. He served as a house surgeon for two successive six month periods, and concurrently as a demonstrator in pathology and bacteriology with Ferguson McKenzie, and subsequently in dental histology with Carl Hebling, and coached the students preparing for their finals. At this time he began to explore the opportunities offered by the presence of a well-equipped, though unstaffed, histology laboratory in the hospital. In this he was greatly encouraged not only by Forbes Webster, then in the last year of his long service as dean, but also by James Aitcheson who was preparing to succeed him as the first Professor of Dental Surgery. Military service, however, could be postponed no longer and he entered the Royal Air Force in June 1948 to spend the required two years, first at RAF Halton and then in Germany. He took the examinations for the HDD FRPS (Higher Dental Diploma of the Royal Faculty of Physicians &Surgeons of Glasgow), the only post qualification diploma available at that time, and was awarded the diploma in November 1948. Tentative plans to pursue research in Cambridge or a DDS at Northwestern, were set aside when Prof Aitcheson recruited him to a Lectureship in Dental Anatomy commencing in November 1950. This was a time of great change and development in Glasgow, with the last of the LDS and the first of the BDS student's courses overlapping, There was growth in all directions as post-war recovery gathered pace. New fwl-time teachers were being appointed and Henry was very much involved in helping the younger ones with postgraduate studies in dental science for their higher qualifications.This was an exciting time in dental anatomical research as up-to- date techniques were being applied to the study of the dental tissues, for example the production of the first paraffin sections of decalcified teeth. The university was very supportive and provided plenty of equipment and the vital technical assistance. Many now senior names like Dorothy Lunt and David Lawson, and later Gordon MacDonald and Wallace MacFarlane, learned their microscopy in the lab, and when David Mason became Professor of Oral Medicine the newly expanded laboratories provided the essential support to an expanding range of basic and paraclinical research. His own PhD in 1962 was the culmination of some years of work on the innervation of pulp and dentine, using first light-microscopy and then pioneering the use of the electron microscope in this area. He was involved with Aitcheson and Malcolm Gibson in a proposed student textbook but the publication of Scott &Symons preempted the project. An enjoyable administrative role was that of secretary to the Board of Studies, which he took on at the request of Professor Tom White, and worked closely with Mary McDonald, the Dean's secretary. This involved liaison with the Faculty and Senate at a time of curriculum change and a substantial increase in student numbers. In the early 60's visits were made to Switzerland and Scandinavia to gather ideas for the new building for the expanded Dental Hospital and School which was to be opened in 1970. Henry's department was recognised as the essential link between basic science and clinical practice and was well supported, even to the extent of provision of a dedicated electron microscope in the new laboratory. An innovation in the 1970 revised curriculum which gave him great satisfaction was the introduction of "Electives" - a period of project work for each undergraduate student on a topic of their own choice, and he remained responsible for their organisation till his retirement. He always enjoyed teaching, lecturing and exposition, but even more tutoring classes in practicals and seminars, especially the highly motivated and smaller postgraduate groups. Students have changed over the years with an increasing emphasis on their right to receive what they needed or at least what they felt they wanted. There were even local echoes of the student unrest of the 60's and some challenges to authority. The teaching mission was always to impart the basics, to refine the definition of a core curriculum, but also to seek to stimulate an interest in the underlying science. Henry had a long association with the Glasgow Odontological Society as its Editor since 1965 & President in 1972. The connections to historical scholarship came about through his curatorship of the anatomical and comparative anatomical specimens held by the school, and the historical display which he mounted in co-operation with Mrs Margaret Menzies Campbell, on the occasion of the Centenary of Glasgow Dental Hospital and School in 1979. In 1982 early retirement became possible but he was able to continue on a half time basis till 1986. Retirement allowed him to respond to invitations from universities overseas - where his special expertise in teaching oral biology and experience of creating new basic science facilities was much valued. Through George Nixon and the Manchester connection with the University of Ghana, postgraduates came to his laboratory to learn dental anatomy and histology in preparation for the opening of a dental school there, which sadly is still awaited. He was appointed as external examiner in the University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, in succession to Barry Simons. An inter-university link took him to Jordan to assist with the creation ofthe new dental school, at Jordan University of Science and Technology and then, at the invitation of the then Dean, Eric Thomson, to another newly founded school at the University of the West Indies in Trinidad. In all of these cases it was a recapitulation of earlier experience in building up expertise and training local teachers and technicians to- utilise an empty lab. Circumstances have not permitted a fuller discussion of the post-retirement phase of Henry's work in Dental History but his outstanding contribution is well recognised in other contributions to this issue of the Newsletter. home | newsletter | news |
