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John Boyd

1891 – 1981

Scottish bacteriologist

Bacteriologist
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About John Boyd

Lived 1891 – 1981 (aged 89). John Boyd was a bacteriologist.

Brigadier Sir John Smith Knox Boyd (18 September 1891 – 10 June 1981) was a Scottish bacteriologist and a senior officer in the Royal Army Medical Corps (RAMC). to John Knox Boyd, a bank agent, and his wife Margaret Wilson Smith, the younger Boyd attended Largs Academy before studying medicine at Glasgow University under Sir Robert Muir and Carl Browning. He came top in his year, securing the Brunton Medal, when he graduated MB ChB in 1913 (he subsequently secured the Diploma in Public Health (DPH) from Cambridge in 1924 and the Doctor of Medicine (MD) degree from Glasgow in 1948) and joined the RAMC the following year, serving in France, Belgium and Salonika in the First World War. He remained with the RAMC until 1946, also seeing action in the Second World War in the Middle East and North West Europe; for the year 1945–46, he was Director of Pathology at the War Office.

The bacteria Shigella boydii is named after him.

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Important facts

Birth century
Occupation
Bacteriologist
Education
University of Glasgow
Awards
Manson Medal; Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians of London; Knighthood; Fellow of the Royal Society; Knight Bachelor; Typhus Commission Medal
Also known as
John Smith Knox Boyd, Sir John Smith Knox Boyd

People in John Boyd's life

Named in this biography and alive at the same time

Contemporaries

People whose lives overlapped John Boyd's

Frequently asked questions

Who was John Boyd?

Scottish bacteriologist

When was John Boyd born?

John Boyd was born on 18 September 1891 in Largs.

When did John Boyd die?

John Boyd died on 16 June 1981 in Hillingdon.

What was John Boyd's occupation?

John Boyd was a bacteriologist.

Sources & further reading

· Wikipedia: John Boyd

· Wikidata: Q18936126

· DBpedia: John Boyd (bacteriologist)

Cite this page

APA: Biography.guide. (2026). John Boyd. https://biography.guide/john-boyd-bacteriologist/

MLA: "John Boyd." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/john-boyd-bacteriologist/.

Chicago: "John Boyd." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/john-boyd-bacteriologist/.

Data last updated: 2026-09-20 · Spot an error? Report a correction.

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