Duke Medical Center Archives Blog Category: Collection Spotlight

The Medical Center Archives is happy to announce that the Eugenia and Samuel Lambeth Papers are processed and open for research. The collection documents the professional careers of wife and husband Eugenia and Samuel Lambeth, as well as also housing personal materials. Types of materials include correspondence, clippings, programs, certificates, diplomas, army records, reprints, travel souvenirs, x-rays, photographic materials, a scrapbook, artwork, memorabilia, and artifacts. Materials range in date from 1925 to 2000.

Eugenia Lambeth received a degree in nursing from Duke University in 1939 and went… MORE

Category: Collection Spotlight

The Medical Center Archives is happy to announce that the Highland Hospital Records are now open to researchers through a reprocessing project. Highland Hospital, a small, for profit, inpatient mental hospital located in Asheville, North Carolina, was owned and operated by Duke … MORE

Category: Collection Spotlight

Calling all researchers: the Duke University Medical Archives is pleased to announce that the Stuart M. Sessoms Records are processed and open to researchers. This collection is rich with the history of Duke Medical Center during the Civil Rights Era. It illustrates how a large institution in the South adapted to extreme, rapid social changes with grace and dignity. I don’t think you will be disappointed. There are juicy bits.

The materials date from 1952 to 1980 with the bulk of the records dating to Sessoms’ tenure, which also happened to be the socially turbulent period between 1968 and 1976. These materials provide evidence of how the institution adapted to national and state legislation and litigation,… MORE

Category: Collection Spotlight

This is the third blog post in a four part series about the Department of Neurosurgery Records and issues archivists confront when accessioning collections. See the following links for … MORE

Category: Collection Spotlight

This is the second blog post in a four part series about the Department of Neurosurgery Records and issues archivists confront when accessioning collections. Select the following links to see Part 1, Part 3, and … MORE

Category: Collection Spotlight

This is the first blog post in a four part series about Duke’s Department of Neurosurgery and issues archivists confront when accessioning collections. Select the following links to see Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4.

This summer, this Archives acquired materials from the Department of Neurosurgery, which was first formed as a division under the Department of Surgery in 1937. Prior to the creation of the Neurosurgery division, Dr. Deryl Hart and Dr. Clarence E. Gardner Jr. conducted neurosurgical procedures as part of general surgery. Division Chairs… MORE

Category: Collection Spotlight

The Medical Center Archives is happy to announce that the Justine Strand de Oliveira Papers are processed and available for research. Interested researchers should contact the Medical Center Archivist before use. The collection is organized into the following series: Correspondence, 1973-2010; Clippings, 1988-2014; Physician Assistant Profession, 1986-2006; Professional Papers, 1979-1981, 1996-2014. The papers contain an academic stole, certificates, correspondence, newsletters, programs, notes, clippings, a calendar, agendas, business cards, faxes, legal statutes, membership lists,… MORE

Category: Collection Spotlight

The Medical Center Archives is happy to announce that the Ralph Snyderman (Personal) Papers are processed and open for research. The materials in this collection document Snyderman’s professional career at both Duke and Genentech and include manuscript materials, research notes and articles, committee and working group files, presentations and related correspondence, and items from Snyderman’s professional organizations just to name a few. Materials range in date from 1899 to 2006.

Researchers will find the materials organized into the following series: Writings and… MORE

Category: Collection Spotlight

In honor of Women’s History Month, we are featuring Women in Duke Medicine: An oral history exhibit, our online exhibit containing of oral history interviews with many pioneering women at Duke Medicine. The digital exhibit includes brief biographies, sound clips, photos, and interview transcripts of women from multiple fields at Duke Medicine. 

Many of these women were pioneers or in some way “firsts” in their respective disciplines, so each has a unique historical perspective. The exhibit chronicles both the stories of individual women in addition to providing a deeper look into the context in which those stories took place. Oral history, the primary method of… MORE

Category: Collection Spotlight, News

In honor of Women’s History Month, we are featuring Women in Duke Medicine: An oral history exhibit, our online exhibit containing of oral history interviews with many pioneering women at Duke Medicine. The digital exhibit includes brief biographies, sound clips, photos, and interview transcripts of women from multiple fields at Duke Medicine. 

Many of these women were pioneers or in some way “firsts” in their respective disciplines, so each has a unique historical perspective. The exhibit chronicles both the stories of individual women in addition to providing a deeper look into the context in which those stories took place. Oral history, the primary method of… MORE

Category: Collection Spotlight, News

The Archives is happy to announce that the Elbert L. Persons Papers, 1923-1970, are processed and open to researchers. The collection is organized into the following series: Personal Papers, 1951-1969; Correspondence, 1946-1970; Duke Medicine, 1931-1970; Professional Papers, 1923-1970; United States Armed Forces, 1934-1970; American College of Physicians (ACP), 1943-1970; Diets, circa 1940-1949; and Audiovisual, 1964, undated. The papers contain professional and personal correspondence, grant materials, records pertaining to Persons’ time with the 65th General Hospital, Duke Medicine, and the ACP, as well as, administrative records, guides, brochures, programs, schedules, information on Duke Medicine’s Annual… MORE

Category: Collection Spotlight

This summer, during a seemingly innocuous project to add more description to our finding aids, an intern pulled a box from the Arthur A. Morris Papers, a Duke alumni who helped found the Neurosurgical Society of America, and was confronted with one of the worst four letter words in archives: mold. This fungus grows on the surface of its host and feeds on living organisms and dead organic matter. Once these fungal spores are present, along with sufficient moisture and nutrients, they will germinate. Elevated temperatures, poor air circulation, dim or no light, and accumulated dirt all accelerate the growth of mold. Without the presence of moisture, mold spores will lie dormant. After inspecting the Morris Papers… MORE

Category: Collection Spotlight

This summer, the Archives received an addition to the Department of Arts & Health at Duke Records collection that individuals familiar with the Morris Clinic Building at Duke South will recognize: the Gathering in the Stories installation. It was curated by Linda Belans and the Health Arts Network at Duke (HAND) with photographs by Jim Lee and Leah Sobsey. This exhibit, installed from 2006 to 2016, displayed 12 large portraits of … MORE

Category: Collection Spotlight

This is the third blog post in a three part series about Dr. Jay M. Arena. (To see the previous posts click here for Part 1here for Part 2

As an archivist, you never know what is inside the next box until you take the top off and take a peek inside. Sometimes you see exactly what you expect, but there are times you discover something completely unexpected, which is what happened when we processed the Jay M. Arena Papers and one box revealed copious correspondence between Esther (Eppie) Lederer, more commonly known by her pen name… MORE

Category: Collection Spotlight

This is the second blog post in a three part series about Dr. Jay M. Arena. (To see the previous post, click here.)

In 1974, Duke Professor of Pediatrics, Jay M. Arena, traveled to the People’s Republic of China as part of the American Medical Association (AMA) delegation. As a pediatrician, Arena’s interest lay in the health and nutritional status of children in China.

During the trip, Arena met with local Chinese medical delegations and toured hospitals, medical schools, and clinics, paying special attention to children’s wards and pediatric care. The photograph above shows Arena (second row,
second from right) with AMA delegates and hospital staff at the Capital Hospital in Peking. Arena took numerous… MORE

Category: Collection Spotlight