Mills, Arthur Edward
From Faculty of Medicine Online Museum and Archive
MB 1889 ChM 1889
It is, perhaps, Arthur Edward Mills who had the most successful postgraduate career of all those who graduated from the first three intakes into the Medical School.
Arthur, born on 13 February 1865 at Mudgee, was the son of a local official. During his childhood he was influenced by the local school master Robert Hinder, to become a school teacher and at the age of 16 he was duly licensed to teach in small schools. However, he was unhappy as a school teacher and consequently resigned from his position in 1883.
Having in the meantime demonstrated his academic talent and scholarly temperament by teaching himself Greek, Arthur came to Sydney and, inspired by the example of Hinder’s brother, matriculated to the University. He too completed the common first year in 1884, enrolling in Medicine II the following year and graduating in minimum time with honours in 1889. His undergraduate career was extremely good and he achieved honours in 10 subjects.
In 1889 he was one of the first four Sydney graduates to be appointed to the resident staff of Prince Alfred Hospital where he remained for about eighteen months. He had already been influenced strongly by the anatomist J T Wilson and when Wilson became Professor of Anatomy in 1890, Arthur accepted an appointment for 12 months as Demonstrator in Anatomy, and for a term as Demonstrator in Physiology, thus becoming the first Sydney graduate to be appointed to the staff of the Medical School.
He married in 1890 and, was obliged to seek a living in private practice. He worked first at Picton (1892–1893) and then for fourteen years (1894–1909) at Strathfield, before setting up as a consultant physician in Macquarie Street in 1910.
During this period, he resumed his connections with the University by acting as an Examiner in Anatomy (from 1894) and again serving as a Demonstrator in 1897 and 1898.
Arthur became an Honorary Assistant Physician at the Prince Alfred Hospital in 1899 and the University Lecturer in Diseases of Children in 1901. In 1910, he succeeded W Camac Wilkinson as University Lecturer in the Principles and Practice of Medicine to become Professor of the Principles and Practices of Medicine in 1920. This was the first clinical appointment at professorial level made by the University. The conditions of appointment permitted him to retain his hospital posts and consultancy practice but the salary made it possible for him to spend time in teaching.
Late that same year, when Wilson resigned as Dean to go to Cambridge, Arthur succeeded him. He remained Dean until 1925 and retired from the Chair in 1930.
As Dean he automatically became a Fellow of the Senate but in 1929 he returned to the Senate, this time as a Fellow elected by Convocation. Having served as Deputy Chancellor two years and having effective control of all Faculty appointments as well as Staff appointments at the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Arthur wielded considerable power. He died in 1940 but is commemorated in the Faculty by a prize for the student who obtains first place in the honours list at graduation.