Charles Melville (cricketer)

Charles Melville (9 April 1896 — 25 March 1954) was a Scottish first-class cricketer and physician.

Melville was born at Falkirk in April 1896. He studied medicine at the University of Glasgow, graduating in 1920; his studies had been interrupted in 1914 by the start of the First World War, with him serving in the British Army during the war.[1] He entered into general practice at Grangemouth in 1922, during which time he continued his studies to gain his Doctor of Public Health in 1925.[1] A club cricketer for Stirling County Cricket Club, Melville made his debut for Scotland in first-class cricket against Ireland at Edinburgh in 1928. He made two further first-class appearances for Scotland in 1929, against Ireland at Dublin and the touring Australians at Perth.[2] Playing as a bowler in the Scottish side, Melville took 3 wickets at an average of exactly 50 in first-class cricket, with best figures of 2 for 72.[3] As a batsman, he scored 50 runs with a highest score of 24.[4]

As a medical practitioner, he maintained his general practice at Grangemouth for 26 years,[5] in addition to becoming an assistant in the ear, nose, and throat department at Falkirk Royal Infirmary; upon the retirement of the head of department, Dr. George Brand, Melville assumed his position.[1] With the creation of the National Health Service, Melville resigned from his practice to concentrate on his private consultancy. In 1951, a vascular lesion forced him to give up his medical practice. He died at Dumfries in March 1954, following a long illness.[1]