Tag Archives: history of medicine

Trial until 22 June: Pandemics, Society, and Public Health, 1517–1925

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We warmly invite Oxford researchers and students to trial Pandemics, Society, and Public Health, 1517–1925.

This resource documents the history and impact of pandemics from the 16th century to the early 20th century with a particular focus on the plague, cholera, smallpox and influenza.

It will be of interest to those researching history of medicine, history of public health, but also social and economic history, and those studying the impact of pandemics on British society and culture in the course of five centuries more generally.

Landing page of this database shows a single search box and the following quote: "Responses to pandemics over four centuries This example of what today we would call pandemic planning is just one of the remarkable documents contained in British Online Archives’ new collection, Pandemics, Society, and Public Health, 1517–1925. This focuses on diseases that have had a significant impact on British society." Tabs at the top of the search screen read: Overview, Volumes & Documents, Search, Key Data, Downloads, Contextual Essays, Editorial Board

Copyright: Microform Academic Publishers

Over 79,000 images come from the collections of The National Archives, British Library, University College London and London Metropolitan Archives.

Snippet of PC 1/4399: Correspondence and Quarantine Questionnaire Regarding the Crew Health of Various Ships.

PC 1/4399: Correspondence and Quarantine Questionnaire Regarding the Crew Health of Various Ships Copyright: Microform Academic Publishers

The collection opens with sources relating to the first state-mandated quarantine in England in 1517. It concludes with documentation regarding the devastating effects of the 1918 influenza pandemic (often referred to as the “Spanish Flu” pandemic).

The material is rich and diverse. Included are correspondence, certificates, minutes, records, registers, treatises, case notes, surveys, and observations. You will also come across prayers to help safeguard populations from plague, records of attempts to transmit smallpox via infected letters, prosecutions of those failing to comply with government-imposed quarantines, registers of patented designs featuring vaccination and sanitation equipment, and sheet music to boost morale during the influenza pandemic that followed the First World War.

This collection likewise contains sources drawn from the papers of some of the most influential figures in medical and social history, such as Edward Jenner, Edwin Chadwick, Florence Nightingale, and John Snow.

Email feedback to Isabel.holowaty@bodleian.ox.ac.uk.

While you are here, why not check out…

Trial until 12 October: Records of Bethlem Royal Hospital 1559-1932

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Oxford researchers are invited to trial Records of Bethlem Royal Hospital 1559-1932. This resource is useful for the study of mental health care throughout the ages. It is relevant for the study of:

  • History of mental health, madness, lunacy, etc.
  • History oif mental health services and treatment
  • Lunacy Reform & legislative history
  • Social & family history
  • Military history (esp. First World War)
  • History of crime
Colour print of the Bethlem Royal Hospital building. Superimposed text reads: Mental health care throughout the ages This record collection provides extraordinary levels of detail about patients of the Bethlem Royal Hospital dating as far back as the 17th century, providing real insight into what life was like in this infamous institution.

© Images reproduced by courtesy of the Trustees of the Bethlem Museum of the Mind; © Findmypast Ltd.

Bethlem Royal Hospital is a psychiatric facility in London. It was established as a priory of the Order of St Mary of Bethlehem in 1247, before beginning to care for mentally ill patients sometime in the 14th century. Often referred to colloquially as ‘Bedlam’—and generally accepted to be the origin of the very same noun—past incarnations of the institution were infamous for their questionable diagnosis of mental illness and poor treatment of patients.

This collection contains four centuries’ and 130,000 images’ worth of records from Bethlem. The records are diverse in both form and subject matter. They include:

  • Admission, Discharge, and Death Registers, 1683-1919
  • Female Patient Casebooks, 1778-1913
  • Male Patient Casebooks, 1793-1913
  • Voluntary and Curable Patient Casebooks, 1816-1913
  • Criminal and Incurable Patient Admission Registers and Casebooks, 1778-1864
  • Patient Casebooks from the First World War, 1914-1919
  • Management of Bethlem Royal Hospital, 1559-1932 (incl. staff salary books, minutes of the Court of Governors)

All handwritten items have been fully transcribed.

Screenshot from CB-004: Female Patient Casebooks, 1793-1816, p66: 'Anne Fletcher, admitted June 15 1805.'

© Images reproduced by courtesy of the Trustees of the Bethlem Museum of the Mind; © Findmypast Ltd.

Scholars and students alike will find that, together, the records provide a unique insight into the evolution of so-called lunacy laws – from an early reliance on control of the mentally ill through coercion and restraint to the later emergence of doctrines of self-discipline and moral management.

The trial ends on 12 October 2023. Please email feedback to isabel.holowaty@bodleian.ox.ac.uk.

The Royal College of Physicians – Part I (Wiley Digital Archives)

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Search screen of Wiley Digital Archive Royal College of Physician Part 1.Great news! Wiley is making the The Royal College of Physicians – Part I (Wiley Digital Archives) available to Jisc members in perpetuity as a gesture of thanks for participating in the Wiley transitional agreement in 2022. History of medicine researchers can now benefit from access to this resource.

The Royal College of Physicians – Part I (Wiley Digital Archives) will be of most interest to those studying history of Western medicine covering the 12th century to 1862. The archive is useful for researchers studying the history of anatomy, folk medicine, herbal medicine, healers and domestic medicine, medical law and policy, medical research (disease/treatment), medical and biological Illustration, and health education during the early modern and parts of the modern period.

The Royal College of Physicians (RCP) was founded so that physicians could be formally licensed to practise and those who were not qualified could be exposed and punished. There are many archive records defining the RCP’s changing role in setting standards in medical practice. RCP members have always collected manuscripts and papers on a wide range of medical and non-medical topics.

The Royal College of Physicians – Part I includes content from the 12th century to 1862, though some papers are dated later. Most of the collections are from British sources. A notable exception is the (Arthur Stanley) Tritton Oriental Manuscripts collection, which contains early Arabic medical manuscripts.

Important papers relate to William Harvey, Edward Jenner, John Latham, Thomas Lawrence, and other physicians. Papers will typically include notebooks containing medical extracts and observations, prescriptions, lecture notes, admissions tickets, diaries, correspondence, treatises, etc. Collections of 17th and 18th century polymaths may also include history of science material (e.g. John Dee on astronomy or mathematics).

The rest of Part I contains papers relating to the founding and running of the RCP itself and throw light on the history of the professionalisation of the medical profession. There are records relating to college officers & staff, education, examination, finance, events, legal status, estates records, trusts & bequests, membership, professional affairs, Regulation of Clinical Practice and Standards, and the college library.

Also of interest: