Sir William James Wanless FACS (May 1, 1865 – March 3, 1933) was a Canadian-born surgeon, humanitarian and Presbyterian missionary who founded a medical mission in Miraj, India in 1894 and led it for nearly 40 years.

[7] He is considered by many to be India's most famous surgeon of the 19th century, and was known throughout Asia, personally treating princes, rajahs and Mahatma Gandhi.

The Mission was started as a one-room dispensary in a very small rented place at a busy bazaar, and he was assisted by his wife, Mary, a trained nurse.

[22][23] With the establishment of a hospital, the need for higher quality medical care was increasingly felt, and towards that end a School of Nursing was founded in 1897 under the superintendence of Miss Elizabeth Foster.

Now called the Mary Wanless Hospital / Miraj Medical Centre, it still attracts hundreds of poor and needy patients from across India and abroad.

[7] In 1928, after almost forty years of medical missionary service in India, Wanless retired to live in the United States.

He died at his home, 1016 Matillja Street, Glendale, California, on March 3, 1933, and was buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in the same city.

Wanlesswadi has its own Postal Index Number, 416414, and the Indian Railways also has a station named 'Wanlesswadi' on its Miraj–Sangli Route, which opened on April 1, 1907, for the use by ill or needy patients from across India and from abroad.

[29] As a secondary and tertiary care centre, Wanless Hospital serves a large part of western Maharashtra and North Karnataka.

[12] Dr. Wanless received official honors from Great Britain on three occasions: The Sultan Mahommed Shah, Aga Khan III presented him a silver casket with a farewell address on his retirement.