The 1960s saw a severe downturn in membership and meeting attendance. After attempts to keep the club alive, the last executive team graduated and there was no one left to take their place. Murray Barr, Honorary President of 1954, wrote that the Osler Society was officially disbanded by 1975. However, the “University Accounts Office held a sum of money to the Society’s credit” that could not be given elsewhere, so the club still technically existed, even without further meetings being held. It is assumed that the money that sat with the club’s account was by the doing of Dr. Crane.
The Hannah Chair in the History of Medicine
In 1974, The University of Western Ontario officially established the department of the History of Medicine with the creation of the Jason A. Hannah Chair in the History of Medicine. Funded by the Associated Medical Services, Inc, the position was meant to create a link between the Faculty of Social Sciences (History) and the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry.
Dr. Paul Potter was the first person at the University of Western Ontario to be appointed into the new role of Hannah Chair. Upon taking over this new role and learning about the fate of the Osler Society when asked about its residual find, Potter decided to revive the society. In a role reminiscent of the mentorship of Dr. Crane, Dr. Potter continued to encourage the study of the history of medicine, hosting early meetings in his own home. Dr. Potter and his wife, Beate Gundert, also began to curate a new collection of books on the history of medicine for Osler Society students and other interested students. The current History of Medicine Library in the Health Sciences Addition (also where the Osler Society currently holds its meetings) is being renamed the Paul Potter and Beate Gundert History of Medicine Collection.
Dr. Potter remained the Hannah Chair until his retirement in 2011. When Dr. Shelley McKeller accepted the appointment of her predecessor, it was already well-established that the Hannah Chair would serve as the mentor for the students of the Osler Society.