William Arthur Elliston (Bill) was born in Ipswich on 4 October 1904. His father, William Rowley Elliston OBE, was a barrister who became Recorder of Great Yarmouth and Mayor of Ipswich and his mother was Ethel Mary, nee Walton. Many of his family had been associated with the medical profession and his great-grandfather, also William Elliston, was an MRCS. He was educated at Queen Elizabeth's School, Ipswich, Bradfield College, Christ's College, Cambridge (Natural Science honours), and St Bartholomew's Hospital qualifying in 1928 MRCS, LRCP and MB BCh. With training at Barts, Ancoats Hospital, Manchester, and the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital he passed the final FRCS in 1934. On the advice of Sir Harry Platt he emigrated to the USA, being instructor in orthopaedics at Harvard Medical School from 1937 to 1965 and was certified by the US Board of Orthopedics in 1953. During the second world war he served as Lieutenant-Colonel at the 7th General Hospital US Army at St Alban's, England and was chief of the orthopaedic section there from 1943 to 1945. After the war he resumed his work at the Children's Hospital, Boston, the Robert B Brigham Hospital, Boston, and at Harvard. He also took up a new appointment at the Veterans' Administration Hospital in Boston staying there from 1946 to 1970. Other interests included his chairmanship of the town of Weston planning board and membership of the Metropolitan Area Planning Council of Boston. As President of Massachusetts Federation of Planning Boards from 1965 to 1967 he was involved in the maintenance of a "livable environment on space ship earth" as he put it. Natural history was another enthusiasm and he was chairman of the scientific staff committee of the Massachusetts Audubon Society. Another great interest was yachting, often cruising with fellow Ipswich yachtsman, Maurice Griffiths, editor of *Yachting monthly*, novelist and boat designer. On 2 November 1935 in Cambridge, Mass, he married Harriet Hammond, an anthropologist and graduate of Radcliffe College, Harvard and Oxford University England. They had two children, Elizabeth, who graduated MSc from Johns Hopkins and became a wildlife rehabilitator, and Eric who became a science teacher. He died on 26 November 1984 survived by his wife and children and a grandson and granddaughter.