Historical information

These three items give details of the medical qualifications of Dr William Dixon Saltau. Born in Warrnambool, Dr Saltau (1894-1970) was the son of Hon. Marcus Saltau. M.L.C. and Jean Saltau (nee Anton). The Saltau family had been prominent in Warrnambool affairs since Henry Saltau arrived in Warrnambool in the 1870s and founded the business of Saltau and Son – general carriers, coal, wood and produce merchants and forwarding agents. Marcus Saltau was active in Warrnambool community affairs as Mayor, Chairman of the Warrnambool Hospital Board and a long-serving State politician. William Dixon Saltau was educated at Warrnambool Academy and Scotch College and graduated from Melbourne University in 1918. He worked as a doctor in Melbourne and Adelaide hospitals and in England. He was the Medical Superintendent of the Women’s Hospital in Melbourne for 25 years and was elected to the Fellowship of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists in 1947.

Significance

These items are of considerable importance as they are original documents connected to the medical career of Dr William Saltau. He came from a prominent Warrnambool family and had a distinguished medical career.

Physical description

These are three items belonging to Dr William Dixon Saltau:-
Item One: Certificate of Dr William Saltau’s admission to the British Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists – a cream sheet of parchment paper with the stamp of the Royal College and black printed material and three signatures and two ornamental scrolls under the heading.
Item Two: Oval cardboard cylinder to hold the certificate. It has one enclosed end and a label on the outside with a British stamp and a typed address.
Item Three: A leather bound folder containing 37 pages, 34 of them with details of the medical courses completed at the University of Melbourne by Dr Saltau. The cover has a gold border.

Inscriptions & markings

Item Three Cover: ‘University of Melbourne Certificates of the Degrees of M.B. & B.S.’