Duke Medical Center Archive Blog
Remembering Mary Champagne
Posted On: January 8, 2026 by Rebecca Williams
The Duke community was saddened to learn of the recent passing of Mary T. Champagne, Dean Emerita of Duke University School of Nursing. She leaves behind an extraordinary legacy of leadership, advocacy, and commitment to care. During her tenure as Dean from 1991-2004, she oversaw an important period of grow and development in the School of Nursing.
Mary Thomson Champagne was born in 1946. She first attended Jose State College where she earned a BSN in 1968. She then served in the Peace Corps from 1968 to 1971. While in the Peace Corps, she worked at the Hospital of Nursing in Lashkar Gah, Afghanistan. In 1975, Champagne graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with an MSN and, in 1981, with a PhD.… MORE
Category: DUMC History
SHOWW Exhibit Materials added to the Department of Community and Family Medicine Records
Posted On: January 6, 2026 by Rebecca Williams
The Archives received an addition to the Department of Community and Family Medicine Records documenting the Safety and Health of Working Women (SHOWW) exhibit of 1999. This project was a collaboration of academic researchers (some from the Duke Department of Community and Family Medicine) and community representatives in rural northeastern North Carolina designed to explore occupation roots of health disparities. Materials were assembled by Dr. Hester J. Lipscomb. The addition includes 14 photographs and accompanying placards, as well as 4 additional descriptive placards. Exhibit materials date to 1999.
Over the years, this department has had several name changes. From 1979 to 2019 the department was named the… MORE
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A Year in Review: 2025 Additions to the Duke University Medical Center Archives
Posted On: December 16, 2025 by Rebecca Williams
The Duke University Medical Center Archives (DUMCA) actively collects the official records of the DUMC and DUHS departments and divisions, including a variety of materials that provide evidence of business, interests, and activities through the years. In doing so, the DUMCA serves as the institutional memory of the DUMC and DUHS by collecting, preserving, and making accessible materials that provide evidence of day to operations. Guided by our collection development policy, we strive to document the intellectual, administrative, social, cultural, and visual history of the DUMC and DUHS in order to provide evidence of past actions and contribute to an understanding of the structure and history of the DUMC and DUHS.
See below for a listing of materials added to the DUMCA. The types… MORE
Category: News
Faces of Duke Health Facilities Exhibit Now On Display!
Posted On: December 15, 2025 by Rebecca Williams
Faces of Duke Health: Facilities
Medical Center Library & Archives - Level 1
The Medical Center Library & Archives is excited to announce the second installment in our exhibit series Faces of Duke Health. This exhibit series celebrates the diverse roles that contribute to the Duke Health community. We are now highlighting the work of Engineering & Operations (E&0). The physical exhibit now offers a glimpse into the history of E&O at Duke as well as highlighting two wonderful facilities workers in our building!
Our first installment highlighted Environmental Services (EVS). If you missed this exhibit, you can check out our… MORE
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Departmental Histories at the Archives: The Importance of Transferring Photographic Materials
Posted On: December 1, 2025 by Rebecca Williams
The Archives recently received an addition to the Department of Pediatric Records, and while the collection contains a variety of administrative, financial, research, photographic, correspondence, planning, and architectural files, the bulk of the materials recently transferred are photographs, both candid and group.
Photographic materials, e.g., prints, negatives, contact sheets, lantern slides, 35mm slides, and more, serve as a visual memory, recording a moment in time that a written record cannot document. Transferring departmental photographs and other photographic materials to the Archives not only enhances the Archives’ holdings by strengthening our collections, but it also improves retrieval of these… MORE
Category: Collection Spotlight
November 17, 1975: Opening day at the Duke University Medical Center Library
Posted On: November 17, 2025 by Rebecca Williams
Fifty years ago today, the ribbon was cut in the doorway of the new Medical Center Library space in the Seeley G. Mudd Building. Prior to this date, the library was housed in the basement of the Duke Hospital. The interiors of the building have changed since 1975 as well as the area that surrounds the library. To celebrate the 50th birthday of our building, we are sharing some photos of our library from 1975 and from today in 2025!
Then and Now: Entrance to the Library
Then and Now: 1st floor
Then and Now: 1st Floor Reading Room
Then and Now: Lobby Area
Then and Now: Stairs to Second Floor
Then and Now:… MORE
Category: News
At Your Service Exhibit Now on Display!
Posted On: November 5, 2025 by Rebecca Williams
At Your Service: Duke's Civilian Public Service Camp #61
The Josiah Charles Trent History of Medicine Room
On Display October 21, 2025 – May 3, 2026
On October 16, 1940, the Civilian Public Service (CPS) was established as an alternative to military conscription for conscientious objectors. These men who declined military service due to religious beliefs were placed in CPS camps, or units, across the United States and given jobs on the home front to help support the war effort. They worked in soil conservation, forestry, firefighting, agriculture, social services, and mental health. In all, there were 152… MORE
Category: News
Remembering Dr. E. Harvey Estes
Posted On: November 3, 2025 by Rebecca Williams
The Duke Community was saddened to learn of the recent passing of Dr. E. Harvey Estes. He leaves behind an extraordinary legacy of leadership, advocacy, and commitment to care.
Dr. Edward Harvey Estes Jr., MD was born May 1, 1925 in Gay, Georgia. He graduated from Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia (1944, BA; 1947, MD). He began his medical internship at Grady Memorial Hospital in Atlanta and completed it at Duke University Hospital. Prior to joining Duke's staff in 1953, Estes served in the United States Navy from 1950 to 1952. He became chief of the cardiology service at Durham Veterans Affairs Hospital from 1953 to 1954 and chief of the medical service at the Durham Veterans Affairs Hospital from 1956 to 1962. In 1966, Estes was appointed Chair of the newly created… MORE
Category: News
It Came from the Archives! Halloween Highlights from the Duke Medical Center Archives
Posted On: October 20, 2025 by Rebecca Williams
Location: Medical Center Library & Archives, Room 212E
Date: Friday, October 31, 11am – 2pm
Please join us for the Duke University Medical Center Archives’ annual Halloween event! This casual open house event will feature a selection of odd, intriguing, and significant materials from our collections.
All are invited to drop in to view detailed medical illustrations, touch old medical instruments, explore forgotten stories from the history of Duke Health, and much more.
Come by for a fun break to learn some history and enjoy free Halloween candy!
Category: News
Duke’s Early Global Health Initiatives in Latin America
Posted On: October 14, 2025 by Rebecca Williams
Duke became more interested in global health issues following World War II. It saw an opportunity to learn more about cultural and medical practices in developing countries, to influence physicians through training, and to provide its expertise. In recognition of Hispanic Heritage Month, the Medical Center Archives wishes to highlight a few programs and projects that Duke physicians undertook in several Latin American countries.
Starting in 1941, Duke began offering post-doctoral training to physicians from outside of the United States. The Rockefeller Foundation, the Institute of Inter-American Affairs, the Pan American Sanitary Bureau, as well as the U.S. Department of State, were the primary… MORE
Category: Collection Highlights
Happy 60th Birthday to the Duke Physician Assistant Program!
Posted On: October 3, 2025 by Rebecca Williams
October 6-12 is PA Week! This week is a time to celebrate physician assistants (PA), the care provided by PAs, and the legacy of the profession. The birthplace of the profession was here at Duke. The first PA program was established in 1965 at Duke thanks to the efforts of Dr. Eugene Stead, then Chairman of Duke’s Department of Medicine. The program aimed to address the problem of the physician shortage, particularly in rural areas throughout North Carolina. While the initial recruitment was targeted at ex-military corpsmen who possessed some medical experience, Duke’s PA program soon attracted a wide range of applicants. Today there are nearly 190,000 PAs practicing in the US. The success of the profession during the second… MORE
Category: Collection Highlights
October is Archives Month
Posted On: October 2, 2025 by Rebecca Williams
Archives Month is an annual, month-long observance of the agencies and people responsible for maintaining and making available the archival and historical records of our nation, state, communities, and people. Archives serve as the memory of our nation, and by celebrating, we recognize and give legitimacy to the enduring value of American records and America’s archives.
We encourage you to check out our Instagram account where we'll be highlighting treasures from the Medical Center Archives collection all month long.
This year the Society of North Carolina Archivists' theme for Archives Month is “North Carolina's 250th”. As the nation approaches its 250th birthday, North Carolina archivists are celebrating the… MORE
Category: News
Preserving the Stead Family Albums
Posted On: August 7, 2025 by Rebecca Williams
This is the third post in a three-part series about Dr. Eugene A. Stead Jr. (1908-2005), professor and chair of the Department of Medicine at Duke University School of Medicine from 1947 to 1967. To spotlight the addition to and reprocessing of the Eugene A. Stead Jr. Papers, this post will discuss how the Archives preserved the scrapbooks and the steps we took to maintain context while separating materials for preservation.
The first post introduces Stead, highlighting his accomplishments and career.
Category: Collection Spotlight
The Stead Family Albums
Posted On: August 6, 2025 by Rebecca Williams
This is the second post in a three-part series about Dr. Eugene A. Stead Jr. (1908-2005), professor and chair of the Department of Medicine at Duke University School of Medicine from 1947 to 1967. To spotlight the addition to and reprocessing of the Eugene A. Stead Jr. Papers, this post will delve into Stead’s family life contained in the scrapbooks and family albums recently added to the collection, which document the history of the Stead family and illustrate the guiding influence Stead’s family life had on the work he did every day.
The first post introduces Stead,… MORE
Category: Collection Spotlight
An Introduction to Eugene A. Stead Jr.: Physician, Educator, and Pioneer of the Physician Assistant Training Program
Posted On: August 6, 2025 by Rebecca Williams
This is the first post in a three-part series about Dr. Eugene A. Stead, Jr. (1908-2005), professor and chair of the Department of Medicine at Duke University School of Medicine from 1947 to 1967. To spotlight the addition to and reprocessing of the Eugene A. Stead Jr. Papers, this post introduces Stead, highlighting his accomplishments and career, and honors his role in beginning the physician assistant program at Duke University, the first in the nation, which celebrates its 60th anniversary this year.
The second post delves into Stead’s family life. In 2020, the Archives received an addition from the Physician Assistant Historical Society of mostly… MORE
Category: Collection Spotlight