St John Dudley Buxton was born on 26 December 1891 in London, the son of Dr Dudley Wilmot Buxton MD, MRCP, who was anaesthetist to University College Hospital, the National Hospital, Queen's Square, and the Royal Dental Hospital. His mother was Louisa Frances Agnes Clarke, daughter of the Rev T G Clarke. He was educated at Cothill Preparatory School, near Oxford, and St Peter's College, Radley. He entered University College Hospital and Medical School where he qualified with the Conjoint Diploma in 1913. War service followed and he obtained the MB BS in 1919 and gained the FRCS in 1921. Within a year of qualification St John Buxton was serving with the British Expeditionary Forces, on the outbreak of the first world war, in France and later in Macedonia, where he remained until the end of hostilities and was awarded the Croix de Guerre with palms, the Order of the Phoenix, and he was mentioned in dispatches in the first and second world wars. In the second world war he was consulting orthopaedic surgeon to the Middle East Force with the rank of Brigadier having previously served with the British Expeditionary Force. In 1918 he joined the staff of the Military Hospital at Shepherd's Bush where he came under the influence of Robert Jones from whom he learnt his orthopaedic surgery. He was appointed to the staff of King's College Hospital in 1922 as junior to Mr H A T Fairbank (later Sir Thomas Fairbank) and together they started the orthopaedic unit which was among the first to have a daily fracture clinic under the control of the orthopaedic department. He was lecturer in orthopaedics to King's College Hospital Medical School in addition to being orthopaedic surgeon to the Royal Masonic Hospital and Queen Mary's Hospital, Roehampton. He also found the time and energy to set up the orthopaedic departments at the Royal Surrey Hospital, Guildford and at Hemel Hempstead Hospital, he was orthopaedic surgeon to both these hospitals. St John Buxton was a Hunterian Professor, Robert Jones Lecturer and examiner for the Diploma in Physical Medicine at the Royal College of Surgeons. He was President of the British Orthopaedic Association, gracing this office with the greatest possible distinction, President of the Orthopaedic Section of the Royal Society of Medicine; President of the Medical Defence Union and orthopaedic advisor to the British Council and the Greek Government. With such heavy responsibilities he never spared himself and to his students and trainees he was a kind but firm task-master, expecting his juniors to work with him at all times. In committee he could be stubborn, but he was essentially a kind man as seen when he cared for his patients and especially children, who immediately became his friends and confidants. He never failed to give his juniors of his wisdom, kindness and was always accessible to them. As a teacher he was crisp and precise and a most popular lecturer, not only in the medical school, but also to nurses and physiotherapists and he joined wholeheartedly in medical school activities. He published a book on arthroplasty and wrote his memoirs, the notes and photographs for which he deposited in the College Library. St John Buxton, in spite of all his heavy professional responsibilities, was interested in travel, country life, football and cricket. He greatly enjoyed his garden and his workshop. He retired from King's College Hospital in 1952 to another life in industry as director of a well known firm based in the Isle of Wight, which allowed him to continue working as a visitor to Camp Hill Prison and as Vice-Chairman of the hospital management committee. He married in 1922 Miss A G S Sharpe and secondly in 1931, Winifred Warlow. He had one son (Roger St John Buxton PhD, MB BS, DCH - a physiologist) and one daughter, Gabrielle. He died on 6 February, 1981 aged 89 years.