Editing Norman Bethune (section)

== Family history ==
Bethune came from a prominent [[Scottish Canadian]] family, whose origins can be traced back to the [[Beaton medical kindred|Bethune/Beaton medical kindred]] who practised medicine in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland from the Middle Ages to the Early Modern Era.<ref name = Munro/> His great-great-grandfather, the Reverend Doctor [[John Bethune (Canadian minister)|John Bethune]] (1751–1815), the family patriarch, established the first [[Presbyterian]] congregation in [[Montreal]], the first five Presbyterian churches in Ontario and was one of the founders of the Presbyterian Church of Canada.<ref name="Munro">Munro A, Macintyre IMC. The ancestors of Norman Bethune (1890–1939) traced back to the Bethunes of Skye, leading members of the MacBeth/Beaton medical dynasty. J R Coll Physicians. 2013;43:262–9. https://www.rcpe.ac.uk/sites/default/files/Munro.pdf</ref>

Bethune's great-grandfather, [[Angus Bethune (fur trader)|Angus Bethune]] (1783–1858), joined the [[North West Company]] (NWC) at an early age and travelled extensively throughout what was the North West of Canada at that time, exploring and trading for furs. Angus Bethune married Louise McKenzie (1793–1833), a Métis woman.<ref>Barkwell, Lawrence J. “BETHUNE, NORMAN, DR.” The Virtual Museum of Métis History and Culture, January 14, 2014, http://www.metismuseum.ca/resource.php/14559.</ref> Louise McKenzie was the daughter of the Hon. [[Roderick Mackenzie of Terrebonne|Roderick McKenzie]], a prominent NWC partner, and his country wife.<ref name=":0">Jones, Gwynneth C. D. The Historical Roots of Métis Communities North of Lake Superior. Prepared for the Métis Nation of Ontario, March 31, 2015, p. 186. Zotero, http://www.metisnation.org/media/586242/mno_report_on_historic_metis_north_of_lake_superior_(march2015).pdf {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200205205550/http://www.metisnation.org/media/586242/mno_report_on_historic_metis_north_of_lake_superior_(march2015).pdf |date=February 5, 2020 }}.</ref> Bethune and McKenzie were both stationed at the Fort William fur trade post at the head of [[Lake Superior]].<ref name=":0" /> He eventually reached the Pacific at [[Fort Astoria|Fort Astoria, Oregon]]. He became chief factor of the Lake Huron district for the [[Hudson's Bay Company]] after the merger of the rival companies. Upon retirement from the HBC in 1839, he successfully ran for a post as an alderman on Toronto City Council.<ref name = "RussellNB"/>
[[File:Norman Bethune's study in Gravenhurst.JPG|thumb|right|250px|The study of Reverend Malcolm Bethune (father of Norman) in Gravenhurst.]]
Bethune's grandfather, [[Norman Bethune, Sr.]] (1822–92), was educated as a doctor at King's College, [[University of Toronto]], and in London, England at [[Guy's Hospital]], graduating in 1848 as a member of the [[Royal College of Surgeons]]. He went on to become a Fellow of the [[Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh]] in 1860 and practised in Edinburgh until 1869.<ref name = Munro/> Upon his return to Canada, he became one of the founders of the Upper Canada School of Medicine,<ref>Heather MacDougall, “Bethune, Norman,” in ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography,'' vol. 12, University of Toronto/Université Laval, accessed May 24, 2020, http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/bethune_norman_12E.html.</ref> which was incorporated into [[University of Trinity College|Trinity College, Toronto]] and eventually the University of Toronto.<ref name = Munro/>

Bethune's father, the Rev. Malcolm Nicolson Bethune, led an uneventful life as a small-town pastor, initially at Gravenhurst, Ontario, from 1889 to 1892. His mother was Elizabeth Ann Goodwin, an English immigrant to Canada. Both his parents were very religious, though Bethune himself was an [[atheist]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Bethune |first=Norman |title=The Politics of Passion: Norman Bethune's Writing and Art |url={{google books|yZYQU46wxWYC|plainurl=yes}} |year=1998 |publisher=University of Toronto Press |isbn=978-0-8020-0907-4 |editor-first=Larry |editor-last=Hannant |access-date=April 21, 2012|quote=Bethune was a communist and an atheist with a healthy contempt for his evangelical father.}}</ref> Bethune grew up with a "fear of being mediocre", instilled into him by his emotionally strict father and domineering mother.<ref name="archives.cbc.ca">{{cite news |last=McEnaney |first=Marjorie |title=The early years of Norman Bethune |work=CBC Digital Archives |publisher=Canadian Broadcasting Corporation |url=http://www.cbc.ca/archives/entry/norman-bethune-the-early-years |date=September 13, 1964 |access-date=August 5, 2015}}</ref>

Bethune was a distant relative of actor [[Christopher Plummer]].