The Real Life Sherlock Holmes: A Biography of Joseph Bell - The True Inspiration of Sherlock Holmes and the Pioneer of Forensic Science

By Wallace Edwards

How did Sir Arthur Conan Doyle create a character so real and life-like?

In a nutshell: he didn't! As is often the case, fiction stems from real life. In the case of Sherlock Holmes, Doyle's inspiration was Joseph Bell.

While Joseph Bell doesn't have near the fame of his fictitious counterpart, Bell was actually a pioneer of forensic science. Bell's unique skills at observation and deduction made him a celebrity and a famous lecturer in his homeland of Scotland.

This book traces the life and times of one of the most important, but largely overlooked, scientists who ever lived.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Absolute Crime
• Release date: Mar 5, 2020
• ISBN: 9781393020158

Book preview

About Us

Absolute Crime publishes only the best true crime literature. Our focus is on the crimes that you've probably never heard of, but you are fascinated to read more about. With each engaging and gripping story, we try to let readers relive moments in history that some people have tried to forget. 

Remember, our books are not meant for the faint at heart. We don't hold back—if a crime is bloody, we let the words splatter across the page so you can experience the crime in the most horrifying way!

If you enjoy this book, please visit our homepage to see other books we offer; if you have any feedback, we’d love to hear from you!

Introduction

When you think of Sherlock Holmes, you mainly think of a lanky aristocratic detective, smoking a pipe, draped in an Inverness cape and wearing a deerstalker cap, with his trusty magnifying glass in hand. While Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's beloved sleuth was known to use logic and forensic science in solving mysteries, there's much more to the story behind the inspiration of Sherlock Holmes. Doyle himself attributes his creation of Holmes to Doctor Joseph Bell, a celebrated forensic pathologist, physician and professor of medicine, revered for his unique skills at observation and deduction, whom Doyle once studied under when he toyed with the idea of becoming a doctor himself.

Chapter 1: Childhood and Education

Some would say Joseph Bell was destined to be a surgeon, as he certainly had science in his blood. He was the great-grandson of Benjamin Bell (1749-1806), considered one of the first major scientific surgeons. In fact, it was Benjamin Bell’s six volume textbook, A System of Surgery , published in 1778 that helped set the standard for modern-day surgery. The book was widely popular and considered a Bible of surgical knowledge at the University of Edinburgh and other medical schools throughout Europe; by today's standards, the book is still referred to in some medical schools.

Joseph's great-grandfather was also noted for categorizing syphilis and gonorrhea as two completely separate diseases—a classification that would take the medical community decades to accept. A contributor in promoting wound healing, especially in terms of amputation, Benjamin Bell’s Theory and Management of Ulcers (1778) is still considered one of the classic 18th century physiological texts.

This penchant for science and surgery would be handed down through many generations. Several of Bell's descendants, especially his son Joseph and his grandson Benjamin (Joseph's father) were also surgeons in Edinburgh. Like Joseph Bell himself, both of them eventually became president of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh.

Not much information exists about Joseph Bell's early life. He was born in Edinburgh on December 2, 1837 and raised in a deeply religious household. Much of Bell's religious faith would be inspired by his father's involvement with the Free Church, a Christian denomination with no government or state ties. Bell's father was adamant that young Joe be given a strict religious education and made a point of instructing him and his younger siblings on all things Biblical. A regular churchgoer, religion would clearly be an important