History of Medicine | |
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Collection SummaryA history of the National Library of Medicine had been a dream of library directors ever since Dr. Frank B. Rogers began to work on one in the late 1950's, but no book-length history of the library appeared until 1982. In that year Wyndham D. Miles's A History of the National Library of Medicine: The Nation's Treasury of Medical Knowledge appeared. Miles, a historian of chemistry, had been working as a historian for the National Institutes of Health since 1962. At the direction of Dr. Martin M. Cummings, the library's director, Miles began to work on the history of the library. The collection can be divided into three major groupings. The first consists of notes and photocopies gathered by Miles as part of his research on the history of the library. Particularly useful are the indexed notebooks used by Miles for notes on published material and manuscript material at the National Archives. As each chapter was written, Miles sent the chapter to reviewers with special expertise on the subject matter. The drafts with the reviewers' comments, and often Miles's response, are included in the second part of the collection. The drafts are supplemented by correspondence with many of the reviewers and with others. Taken together, the drafts and correspondence provide much insight into many of the poorly documented activities of the library. The third portion of the collection concerns the publication of the volume. Material on the preparation of the index is included, as well as sample drafts, galleys, and proof pages. Requests for review copies and letters from recipients of the history are also included. An epilogue written by Miles on the problems faced in preparing the history rounds out the collection. The collection serves as a valuable adjunct to Miles's published volume, and should be of interest to all who desire to know more about any particular development in the history. Return to the Table of Contents RestrictionsRestrictionsCollection is not restricted. Contact the Reference Staff for information regarding access. For online customer service, please visit custserv@nlm.nih.gov. CopyrightCopyright to the collection was transferred to the public domain. Contact the Reference Staff for details regarding rights. For online customer service, please visit custserv@nlm.nih.gov. Return to the Table of Contents
Return to the Table of Contents Administrative InformationPreferred CitationWyndham, Miles D. Wyndham D. Miles Papers on the History of the National Library of Medicine. 1864-1984. Located in: Modern Manuscripts Collection, History of Medicine Division, National Library of Medicine, Bethesda, MD.; MS C 431. ProvenanceDonated by Wyndham D. Miles in 1986 Return to the Table of Contents Series Descriptions
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Last reviewed: 02 November 2006
Last updated: 02 November 2006
First published: 24 June 2004
Metadata| Permanence level: Permanent: Dynamic Content