John Stephen Ramage, the son of William Ramage, a coal master's traveller, and of Isobel Leitch Ramage (née Forster), was born at Greenock, Scotland, on 22 September 1900. He was educated at Greenock High School and Glasgow University, and also spent one year at Edinburgh University, graduating in 1922. After resident appointments at Bury Infirmary 1922-1924, he was resident surgical officer at North Staffordshire Royal Infirmary and was appointed as assistant surgeon there in 1925 and consultant surgeon in 1935, an appointment which he held until his retirement in 1965. He also worked at Haywood and Burslem Hospitals. "JSR", or Johnny, as he was affectionately known, was an individualist and a very sound all round general surgeon, though developing a growing interest in urology later. He showed great determination as an operator but was a man of sound judgement who instinctively knew when not to operate. He had a wide knowledge of the surgical literature and a phenomenal memory for cases and faces which gave him the reputation of a walking *Index Medicus*. He was an enthusiastic teacher, thereby epitomising the great traditions in which he had been reared. Never an innovator, he was always ready to practise recently published advances. He was an active member of the BMA and was Chairman of the Stoke-on-Trent Branch at the inception of the NHS and Chairman of the North Staffordshire Division in 1963. A former President of both the Midland Surgical Society, the Midland Urological Club and the North Staffordshire Medical Society, he was a founder member of the North Staffordshire Medical Institute, it's first Chairman and later a Vice-President. He had onetime examined in surgery for Birmingham University. Very appropriately he was elected FRCS ad eundem in 1963 and also received the honorary MA of Keele University in 1965. Johnny lived a busy social life and was captain and president of Trentham Golf Club, and president of the local Caledonian Society. He was a senior alderman and past mayor of the Ancient Corporation of Hanley. He had a fantastic knowledge of sport and would commonly confound less well informed mortals on soccer, golf and the sport of kings. When he ceased operative work in 1965 there was greater time and opportunity for all these activities. He had married Dr Mary Muriel Moller, a consultant anaesthetist, in 1930, and they had one son and four daughters of whom three were respectively physiotherapist, nurse and radiographer. When he died on 7 March 1986 he was survived by his wife and five children, and was described by one of his retired surgical colleagues as "the doyen of surgery in North Staffordshire - the area owes more to him than any other surgeon who has ever worked here."