Letter of the day: February 15

Smithsonian Institution
Washington
February 15 '70 (1870)

Dr. George A. Otis
Army Medical Museum,

Dear Sir,

I have the honor on behalf of this establishment to acknowledge the receipt of the two teeth mention in yours of February 5th and which have been transferred by the Medical Department of the U.S. Army to the Smithsonian Institution in accordance with the terms of an agreement, entered into, some time since, by these two establishments relative to an exchange of certain kinds of specimens.

Of the two teeth which are of those of Fossil horse, - the larger will bear the number 9826, the smaller 9827.

Very truly,
Your obdt servant,

Joseph Henry

Scty, Smith. Inst.
by D.L. [illegible]

Letter of the Day: February 14

A subsequent letter from the AMA said they do not have the die but have no objection to having another medal struck. There is no reply (that I found) to a letter in the folder from Davis to Tiffany about the die. I couldn’t find any mention of this medal in Emu.


14 Feb. 1942
Secretary
American Medical Association
Chicago, Ill.

Dear Doctor:-

We have a very comprehensive collection of Medical Medals at this Museum and are endeavoring to add to it.

There was issued by your association sometime in 1914 a medal to Gen. William C. Gorgas. This medal is described and listed in Storer’s catalog of Medical Medals and was made by Tiffany Co., New York. As it was of gold it was the only one probably struck.

It is assumed that the dies are still in possession of the maker, Tiffany, or else were turned over to your office. In any event would it be possible to have a gilt bronze replica made for our collection?

So far as known this is the only medal of Gorgas and as he was our Surgeon General we feel that if possible this medal should be in our collection.

Any information concerning this will be greatly appreciated.

Sincerely,

Harry A. Davis

Maj. USA Ret.
Hist. Sect.

NYTimes: New Rule on Cargo Is Shaking Art World

What a nightmare, no matter how big (and funded) a gallery or museum you are. 

From The New York Times:

New Rule on Cargo Is Shaking Art World

By RANDY KENNEDY

Airport security screeners soon may be poking around Picassos in addition to sweaters and socks.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/13/arts/design/13transport.html

Letter of the Day: February 13

111 Bruce Ave
Yonkers N.Y. Feb. 13th 1904

Surgeon General R.M. O’Reilly, U.S. Army
War Department, Washington D.C.

Dear General:

During the last thirty years I have made a collection of anatomical and pathological material consisting mostly of wax models in colors illustrating deformities of the nose, mouth, throat and chest. These have been made from casts taken from the subjects before and after operation.

The above collection I am considering presenting to the Army Medical Museum in case the museum would be pleased to receive the same.

Some months ago I was contemplating a visit to the museum when I hoped to have the pleasure of meeting you. Owing to illness my condition will not allow of it I will enclose a note of introduction from my friend Dr. J.S. Billings.

I will appreciate it if you will kindly advise me regarding the reception of the collection and the facilities you have for exhibiting the same. I will be pleased to give you detail information of the collection should you desire it.

Awaiting your reply, I am
Very respectfully yours

D.H. Goodwillie M.D.

per R

Dictated by Dr. Goodwillie

[A five-page list of models was in the file with the letter.]

A Day in the Life

Finally got box labels made for the Registry of Noteworthy Research in Pathology collection - all 62 boxes.

Letter of the Day, February 12

I think we’d like to lay claim to anything Walter Reed (after all, where are we physically sited?) but his alma mater has a far more extensive and enviable collection.

 

 

February 12, 1900.

 

TO THE ADJUTANT GENERAL, U.S. Army

 

Sir:

 

In compliance with Circular dated War Department, Adjutant General’s Office, Washington, January 17, 1900, I have the honor to report that I am a graduate in medicine of the University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Va. and of Bellevue Hospital Medical College, New York City. I have no Academic Degree.

 

Very respectfully,

Walter Reed,

Major & Surgeon,

U.S. Army

 

Snow fears come true at Smithsonanian

The Associated Press is reporting that one of the collection storage units for the Air and Space Museum has had its roof collapse. We also have a flat-roofed storage unit in Maryland. I hope our colleagues are able to rescue everything - these buildings, if they're the ones I'm thinking of, are older hangers with airplanes in them.

Letter of the Day to resume when snow ends

The government is closed again today, and today we're expecting another 10-20" on top of the 24" we have already, so we'll resume the letter of the day when we can reach the office again.

Letter of the day: February 8

World War 1 has ended and a surgeon with the American Expeditionary Forces in France is more than ready to go home. This is from the Otken Collection.


Sat Feb 8th 1919

My dear Sister,

Your letter of Jan 11th & two bundles of papers came this week, the first mail I have had from you in two weeks.

We are still living here at Beau Desert in a ward doing nothing but hiking a little every day. However our gang plank list has gone in and we are on the sailing list, so expect to get away from here in the next few weeks.

There is not much sickness here – the flu seems to be over & just the wounded & usual run of cases come in. Thursday night a kerosene stove blew up in one of the wards over at 114 – about eleven thirty and the entire ward burned down in a very few minutes. It was full of patients all amputation cases but all were moved out safely. There was a hard wind blowing & the boys did good work in holding the fire to one ward[.] Two adjoining wards caught fire but were extinguished – only the tar paper roofing being burned.

Dr. Gardner[?] sailed this week for home, so guess he will be back in McComb before many weeks.

I wrote Charlie a couple of letters to Camp Leach that should have reached him by this time.

Several of our men have been detached from the unit this week & assigned to new jobs here in this section – I hope nothing like this will happen to me, I’m ready to go home now.

We are to take only twenty of our nurses home, the rest have to stay here on duty with these hospitals here.

Frances is being relieved from Evac. Hosp. #1 at Toul & will probably start for home in a few weeks – she will most likely go by way of Brest or St Nazaire. When she gets to New York will probably wire me at McComb & begin sending her letters there, so just hold them until you hear from me.

She has had very little work to do up there as the hospital is just about cleaned out. The com. officer there gave a party of the nurses a trip over to Verdun & and the battlefields in ambulances – they go to see all the battle front in that sector. That is about the only thing over here that I have missed that I would really like to see.

If the flu is raging over there it does look like they would get some of these Hospital units back and turn them loose lot of Drs. & nurses just killing time over here when they could be of so much use over there.

Am surprised to hear that Benton is back – doesn’t agree with what Henry Hesse told me – does it.

Hope the 1st of March will find us on the water. All take care of yourselves, expect to be with you soon. Much love to all.

Luther

Capt LB Otken
USBH 22,
APO 705 Am.E.F.

Letter of the Day #2: February 7

Even during World War I, traditional donations continued to come in and be accepted.

February 7, 1918

Dr. G.W. Remage,
Jennings, Louisiana

Dear Doctor Remage:

Permit me to thank you in behalf of the Surgeon General and of myself for the surgical case recently donated by you to this Museum which has just been received and placed on deposit here. We gratefully appreciate your thoughtful courtesy in this matter and the case has been carded as a gift from you.

Very sincerely,

W.O. Owen

Colonel, Medical Corps, U.S. Army
Curator, A.M.M.

Letter of the Day #1: February 7

E.D. Hudson cooperated with the Museum for many years, providing photographs of his patients including the Confederate soldier Columbus Rush whom he provided with two artificial legs.

Surgeon General’s Office
Washington, D.C.

February 7, 1866

Dear Sir,

I am instructed by the Surgeon General to acknowledge your communication of the 25th ultimo, and to thank you for the nine (9) interesting photographs which accompanied it.

The Surgeon General has authorized me to give you the names of officers and soldiers who have recovered after undergoing the operation of excision of the head of the humerus and I have directed a list of such to be prepared.

In any future official publication with which I may be entrusted, I will carefully consider the subject of artificial limbs and the relative value of different apparatus, and I shall endeavor to do entire justice to inventors. Your claims in regard to apparatus for patients mutilated by the operations of Syme & Pirogoff, and by knee-joint amputations will not be overlooked.

I am anxious to obtain photographs of double amputations of the thigh or leg and of other cases of unusual interest, and am willing to pay for such. I hereby authorize you have photographs taken of cases of especial interest. As near as may be they should be uniform in size with those taken at the Army Medical Museum, of some of which you have copies. The negatives should be sent, securely packed, by Harnden’s Express, directed to Major General J.K. Barnes, Surgeon General U.S. Army. (For Army Medical Museum.) The bills should be made out in triplicate on the enclosed forms.

I have directed a copy of Circular No: 6, of this office, containing reports on the materials available for a medical and surgical history of the rebellion to be sent to your address.

Very respectfully,
Your obedt. servant,
By order of the Surgeon General,

George A. Otis

Surgeon & Bvt. Lt. Colonel U.S. Vols.

Dr. E.D. Hudson,
Clinton Hall, Astor Place,
New York City

MUSEUM IS CLOSED TODAY SAT FEB 6

MUSEUM IS CLOSED TODAY SAT FEB 6

Due to the obvious.

Letter of the Day: February 6

Numbered Correspondence 5752. Around this time, the Museum started a dental registry, or a collection of dental interest.

February 6, 1902

Prof. B.E. Lischer, D.M.D.
2341a Russell Avenue,
St. Louis, Mo.

Dear Sir:

Your letter of the 3rd inst., in reference to a series of human teeth which Dr. A. H. Fuller, of your city, wishes to present to this Museum, has been referred to me for answer by the Surgeon General, U.S. Army

The Museum would prefer to receive these specimens properly tagged, but unmounted, so that they may be mounted and labeled here in uniformity with others, already in this collection.

Please have them carefully packed in a box marked Army Medical Museum, 7th and B Streets, S.W., Washington, D.C., and send them by express, freight charges to be paid here.

Thanking you for your considerate action in this matter, I am,


Very respectfully,

Calvin DeWitt

Col. & Asst. Surgeon General, U.S.A.

In charge of Museum & Library Division


Photographs of the series will be sent when the specimens have been mounted.

Museum closes today at 1:30

Due to inclement weather (ie a forecast of 24 inches of snow), the Museum will close at 1:30 p.m. on Friday, February 05, 2010. Updates to operating hours will be posted to the Museum’s information line at (202) 782-2200.

Letters of the Day

Outgoing correspondence, in the days before carbon paper and mimeograph and Xerox, was copied by hand into bound volumes of blank pages. It was the only way to keep track of what correspondence went out. A scribe of some of the letters was obviously an artist and a bit of a rebel because he added flourishes to many of the letters he copied. I wish I knew who it was. Here are two examples on one page of his artistry.

Right off I'm going to apologize for the softness of this photo. I'm not allowed to take my real camera into the building but I am allowed my cell phone, so I was reduced to using it for this picture. It's a great phone but a lousy camera. But as Mike would say, Notwithstanding That, I'm going to post this shot anyway.

Letter of the day: February 5

Surgeon General’s Office
February 5, 1873

Dr. H.A. Martin

My dear doctor: Yours of the 3rd has just reached me. The diptheritic cast reaches us safely, has been placed in the medical section, and is fully appreciated. Dr. Otis having written, I supposed had acknowledged this as well as the cast of the plastic operation. Let me assure you the omission did not arise from want of appreciation. Many thanks for the additional vaccine vesicle. Those you previously sent are undergoing the hardening process and will soon be ready to make sections. I am sanguine of interesting results, and will write you how we get along. A full set of the section will be reserved for you.

The catalogue of the Library, first edition, is out of print; only three hundred and fifty copies were printed. Dr. Billings is now at work on a second edition which will contain about twice as many titles as the first. Your name has been put down for a copy of the first part of the medical history of the war now in the hands of the binder.

I learned last evening that a little boy who was staying with the Shermans, when I vaccinated them last, and who left immediately after took nicely. I had intended to write you that Mrs. Sherman’s arm was quite sore after the last vaccination but presented nothing characteristic. On the whole I hardly think it worth while to re-vaccinate them again, regarding them as “protected,” especially as I used the method you described. If, however, you think it worthwhile, I will urge them to try once more.

Sincerely your friend,

J.J. Woodward

NPR interview on the history of obstetricsI

I caught part of this on the ride home today and it sounds pretty interesting - 'Get Me Out': Making Babies Through The Ages

Letter of the Day #2: February 4

February 4, 1889

General:

I have the honor to request authority to purchase for deposit in the Army Medical Museum the following specimens to be paid for from the Museum appropriation:

Skull of Troglodytes gorilla, adult, Cost, $30.00
Skull of Troglodytes niger, adult [Cost] $13.00


I am, General, Very respectfully, Your obedient servant,

(Signed) John S. Billings

Surgeon US Army
Curator Army Medical Museum



Surgeon General, US Army
Washington D.C.

Letter of the Day #1: February 4

A microtome is used to cut sections for microscopic slides.

 

February 4, 1905

 

To the Surgeon General,

U.S. Army.

 

Sir:

 

I have the honor to request authority to purchase for deposit in this Museum:

 

1 large or flat section cutting microtome, 1900 pattern, with double lever to prevent cutting thick and thin sections, est. cost… $45.00 to be paid for from the Museum appropriation. 

 

Very respectfully,

 

C.L. Heinzmann

Col. Asst. Surgeon General, U.S.A.

In charge of Museum & Library Division

 

[handwritten note]

 

See Cat. of W. Watson & Sons, 313 High Holborn, London W. C. p. 124 No. 840.

 

New York Times on Hela cell line book

THE IMMORTAL LIFE OF HENRIETTA LACKS by Rebecca Skloot is the book. The two articles are:

February 3, 2010
Books of The Times
A Woman’s Undying Gift to Science
By DWIGHT GARNER

Second Opinion
A Lasting Gift to Medicine That Wasn’t Really a Gift
By DENISE GRADY
February 1, 2010