Dr. Thomas Guthrie (1803-1873), Scottish doctor, social reformer and founder of the Free Church. Having spent ten years at the University of Edinburgh studying medicine, he became a minister at Arbiot, Scotland. Here, in 1827, he started a savings bank. In 1837 he moved back to Edinburgh, where shocked by the poverty and deprivation, he worked to set up schools and improve housing. In 1832 he used his medical knowledge to try and curb the city's cholera epidemic. 1843 saw him leave his church, along with most of his congregation, to set up the Free Church. This was in opposition to the state's attempt to dictate certain matters in return for subsidies.