The hundredth plaque erected by the Ulster History Circle, to the memory of Sir William Whitla (1851-1933), was unveiled by the Lord Mayor of Belfast,Councillor Tom Hartley,on 25 February 2009 at The Queen's University of Befast in the presence of a gathering which included the President and Vice-Chancellor,Professor Peter Gregson and Sir Peter Froggatt,a former Vice-Chancellor and author of a number of articles on Whitla.

In addressing the gathering the Lord Mayor commented that Whitla enjoyed an international reputation based on a number of textbooks in the field of Materia Medica which had been translated into many languages including Chinese. As a result of his writings he had become a very wealthy man and went on to use his income for many philathropic purposes. He had provided funding for a student Hall of Residence,for the Hall named after him and a similar building at Methodist College. The Ulster Medical Society was also provided with a building for its affairs and the Royal Hospital with a stained glass window on the theme of 'The Good Samaritan'- an appropriate subject for all his good works.

The Lord Mayor went on to speak of the important role the University played in the life of Northern Ireland. As someone with a an active and keen interest in local history he complimented UHC on the work it was doing in commemmorating distinguished Ulster men and women. The Vice=Chancellor thanked the Lord Mayor for his kind remarks aand noted that he enjoyed Whitla's generosity on a daily basis as his residence 'Lennoxvale' had been left to the University for successive Vice-Chancellors.

Thereafter the gathering adjourned to the Naughton Gallery for refreshments