Born in Quebec in 1825, Warden Lavell attended the Toronto School of Medicine and the Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia. In 1858 he moved to Kingston and in 1860 became Professor of Midwifery and the Diseases of Women and Children in the medical department at Queen's. Recognized as the leading Obstetrician, Gynaecologist and Paediatrician in Kingston, Lavell became Surgeon of the Kingston General Hospital and Surgeon with the Frontenac Militia. In 1866, he was one of the founders of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons in Kingston.
In 1872, Lavell was appointed Surgeon of Kingston Penitentiary. Believing in the medical education of women, who at the time couldn't attend medical classes with men, Dr. Lavell helped to found the "Women's Medical College" in Kingston. He served as the President, Dean and Professor of Obstetrics there from 1883 to 1885. Continued...