James Clark McKerrow
British physician and philosopher
James Clark McKerrow (21 May 1887 – 1965) was a British physician and philosopher.
Biography
McKerrow was born on 21 May 1887 in Workington. He was educated at University of Edinburgh and obtained his M.B. in 1912. During World War I he served in the Territorial Force but after being wounded joined family medical practice in Workington. McKerrow dedicated much of his life to studying evolution, philosophy, psychology and religious experiences. He studied at the British Museum Reading Room and filled 500 notebooks with his ideas. He wrote numerous philosophical and psychology books.
McKerrow was an original thinker and held unorthodox opinions about different subjects. In his book Religion and History, he argued that there never was an Apostolic Age and that Christianity began between A.D. 70 and 135 from Gnosticism, a blend of pagan philosophy and Jewish Messianism. McKerrow denied the historicity of Jesus and maintained that Christ is "mythical" not a historical figure.
The public source identifies “James Clark McKerrow” as british physician and philosopher. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around James, Clark and McKerrow.
Why this record matters
A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “James Clark McKerrow”, the useful work is to connect “british physician and philosopher” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
Chronology provides the most reliable spine for this subject; interpretation should follow only after identities and dates are secure. The source revision retrieved here is dated Oct 14, 2025. The linked authority identifier is Q105459017. VIAF identifies the subject as 317201563. 2 of 2 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1887, 1965 and 1912.
Public reputation and documentary evidence do not always develop together; absence from a summary is not evidence of historical absence. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Read biographical claims against dates, named institutions and the cited references. Distinguish a subject’s later reputation from evidence produced during their lifetime.
- Establishing names and roles
- Building a first chronology
- Locating cited institutions
Personal papers, civil or court records, institutional files and the scholarship cited by the source.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “James Clark McKerrow”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow James Clark McKerrow primary sources, James Clark McKerrow archive and James research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “James Clark McKerrow”?
- Which primary records establish identity, chronology and institutional ties?
- Which claims depend on a single source or contested interpretation?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “James Clark McKerrow” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.