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Robert Abbe papers
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Held at: Historical Medical Library of The College of Physicians of Philadelphia [Contact Us] 19 S. 22nd Street, Philadelphia, PA 19103
This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held at the Historical Medical Library of The College of Physicians of Philadelphia. Unless otherwise noted, the materials described below are physically available in their reading room, and not digitally available through the web.
Overview and metadata sections
Robert Waldo Abbe, New York surgeon, was born on 13 April, 1851. He married Catherine Amory Palmer in 1891. Abbe died of anemia, probably related to his work with radium, on 7 March 1928.
Abbe received an A.B. from the College of the City of New York in 1870 and an M.D. from the College of Physicians and surgeons in New York in 1874. He then served an internship at St. Luke's Hospital, New York.
From 1877 to 1884, Abbe was Attending Surgeon in the outpatient Department of New York Hospital. He was also surgeon at St. Luke's Hospital and the Cancer Hospital and Attending Surgeon at New York Babies' Hospital. Abbe held positions as Professor of Didactic Surgery at the woman's medical College of New York, 1878-1880, and Professor of Surgery at the New York Post Graduate Medical School, 18881897. In 1898, he became Lecturer in Surgery at the College of Physicians and Surgeons.
Robert Abbe was known for his pioneering work in intestinal anastomosis, spinal surgery, and the use of radium to treat cancer. He was a member of the American surgical association, the International Surgical Society, and the New York Surgical Society. In 1911, he became an associate fellow of the College of Physicians of Philadelphia.
This collection was assembled by Robert Abbe and contains scrapbooks and other memoranda relating to Louis Pasteur, Marie Curie, Joseph Lister, Edward Jenner, and Benjamin Rush. Included in the scrapbooks are correspondence, portraits, and newslippings. For a more detailed description of the materials included, please the "Scope and Content" note for each item.
The Robert Abbe Collection was accrued over the period of nearly 75 years. The majority of materials found in the collection were donated by Robert Abbe between 1911 and 1921 to the Mütter Museum and transferred to the Historical Medical Library in 1983. For a more detailed provenance, please see the "Custodial History" note for each item.
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Collection Inventory
This small collection was assembled and preserved by Robert Abbe to document the life and work of Louis Pasteur (1822-1893). The contents of the collection are: an autograph letter to Monsieur Emile Roux, Pasteur's associate, 1883;postcards, a photograph of Pasteur's tomb, and pictorial material, circa 1923 and undated; and an invitation and program, newsclipping, and commemorative postage stamps and tags from Pasteur Day, held in Paris on 22 May 1923.
Physical Description1 folder
Physical LocationSmall collections
Page 1 1. Abbe, Robert, 1851-1928.
Biographical notes of Dr. Benjamin Rush,
[n.d.] (1 item)
12 2. Savage, E[dward], 1761-1817.
Portrait of Benjamin Rush [copy],
[n.d.] (1 item)
15 3. Characteristic phrases from the writings
of Dr. Rush : selected by Dr. Weir
Mitchell,
[n.d.] (1 item)
17 4. Portrait of Benjamin Rush
[copy of portrait in Independence Hall],
[n.d.] (1 item)
19 5. Reprint of biographical piece on
Benjamin Rush,
[n.d.] (1 item)
21 6. Engraving of Benjamin Rush
from the Thomas Sully portrait,
[n.d.] (1 item)
25 7. St. Memin.
Engraving of Benjamin Rush,
[n.d.] (1 item)
27 8. Portrait of Benjamin Rush
[copy of portrait in Independence Hall],
[n.d.] (1 item)
29 9. Pealed, Charles Wilson, 1741-1827.
Portrait of Benjamin Rush [copy],
[n.d.] (1 item)
31 10. Sully, Thomas, 1783-1872.
Portrait of Benjamin Rush [copy],
[n.d.] (1 item)
33 11. Dodson, R. W.
Engraving of Benjamin Rush
from the Thomas Sully portrait,
[n.d.] (1 item)
35 12. Jones, W. R.
Engraving of Benjamin Rush
from the drawing by W. Haines,
[n.d.] (1 item)
37 13. Photograph of Benjamin Rush
portrait medal,
[ca. 1910] (1 item)
39 14. Photograph of the Benjamin Rush Portrait
from the Council Room of Princeton University,
[n.d.] (1 item)
41 15. Edwin, [David?], 1776-1841.
Engraving of Benjamin Rush
from the Thomas Sully portrait,
1813 (1 item)
43 16. Pealed, Charles Wilson, 1741-1827.
Portrait of Benjamin Rush [copy],
[n.d.] (1 item)
44 17. Pealed, Charles Wilson, 1741-1827.
Portrait of Julia Stockton [copy],
[n.d.] (1 item)
45 18. Engraving of Benjamin Rush [copy],
from the American Universal Magazine,
[n.d.] (1 item)
48 19. Poulson, C. A.
Engraving of "Shippen Mansion" [copy],
[n.d.] (1 item)
49 20. Photograph of "Sydenham",
[n.d.] (1 item)
51 21. Rush, Benj[ami]n, 1746-1813.
Autograph letter signed : [n.p.], to
Capt[ai]n Jer[e]miah Fisher, [n.p.],
1781 Mar. 10
With Fisher, Jere[miah].
Autograph letter signed : [n.p.], to
W[illia]m Henry Esq., Philadelphia [Pa.],
[n.d.] (1 item)
52 22. Rush, Benj[ami]n, 1746-1813.
Bill : [n.p.], to Mrs. Ann Potts, [n.p.],
1804 (1 item)
53 23. Rush, Benj[ami]n, 1746-1813.
Death certificate for Joseph Clark's child,
1807 Sept. 4 (1 item)
55 24. Rush, Benj[ami]n, 1746-1813.
Autograph letter signed : Philadelphia [Pa.], to
[Nicholas] Belleville, [n.p.],
1793 Sept. 3 (1 item)
57 25. Wallace, John W[illia]m, 1815-1884.
Autograph letter signed : [Philadelphia, Pa.], to
John K. Mitchell, [Philadelphia, Pa.],
1855 Nov. 13 (1 item)
59 26. Mitchell, [S.] Weir, 1829-1914.
Autograph letter signed : Philadelphia [Pa.], to
[Robert] Abbe, [n.p.],
1910 Dec. 16 (1 item)
60 27. Reprint of Richard Rush biography,
[n.d.] (1 item)
61 28. Pease, J[oseph] I[ves], 1809-1883.
Engraving of Richard Rush [copy],
from U. S. Magazine and Democratic Review,
[n.d.] (1 item)
63 29. Rosenthal, Max, 1833-1918.
Engraving of Richard Rush,
1899 (1 item)
67 30. Photograph of Mary Theresa
de Beelen Rush Howell,
[n.d.] (1 item)
69 31. Photograph of Rev. Richard
L. Howell,
[n.d.] (1 item)
71 32. Photograph of Gwendolen
Whistler Howell,
[n.d.] (1 item)
73 33. Howell, Gwendolen Whistler.
Autograph letter signed : Newport [R.I.], to
[Robert] Abbe, [n.p.],
1910 Sept. (1 item)
75 34. Photograph of Robert Abbe,
[n.d.] (1 item)
76 35. "Description of the Watch",
[n.d.] (1 item)
77 36. Five photographs of the watch,
[n.d.] (5 items)
81 37. Abbe, Robert, 1851-1928.
Autograph letter signed : New York [N.Y.], to
[George] De Schweinitz, [n.p.],
1910 Sept. (1 item)
82 38. "Conditions of the Custodianship of
the Watch of Dr. Benjamin Rush",
[n.d.] (1 item)
85 39. Abbe, Robert, 1851-1928.
Autograph letter signed : Bar Harbour [Me.], to
[S. Weir] Mitchell, [n.p.],
1910 Sept. 18 (1 item)
87 40. Mitchell, S. Weir, 1829-1914.
Autograph letter signed : [n.p.], to
Robert Abbe, [n.p.],
1910 Sept. 23 (1 item)
89 41. Photograph of S. Weir Mitchell,
[n.d.] (1 item)
91 42. Mitchell, S. Weir, 1829-1914.
Autograph letter signed : Philadelphia [Pa.], to
Unnamed correspondent, [n.p.],
1913 May 22 (1 item)
92 43. Flexner, Simon, 1863-1946.
Typescript letter signed : New York [N.Y.], to
Thomas R. Neilson, Philadelphia, Pa.,
1914 May 7 (1 item)
93 44. Photograph of Simon Flexner,
[n.d.] (1 item)
95 45. Flexner, Simon, 1863-1946.
Typescript letter signed : New York [N.Y.], to
President and Fellows of the College of
Physicians, Philadelphia, Pa.,
1920 Jan. 12 (1 item)
97 46. Photograph of William H. Welch,
[n.d.] (1 item)
97 47. Welch, William H., 1850-1934.
Typescript letter signed : Baltimore, Md., to
[William J.] Taylor, [n.p.],
1921 Feb. 24 (1 item)
99 48. Photograph of Abbe Cabinet,
[n.d.] (1 item)
101 49. Abbe, Robert, 1851-1928.
Typescript letter : New York [N.Y.], to
[William J.] Taylor, [n.p.],
1921 May 18 (1 item)
103 50. Welch, William H., 1850-1934.
Autograph letter signed : Baltimore, Md., to
Thomas R. Neilson, [n.p.],
1924 June 4 (1 item)
109 51. Keen, W[illiam] W., 1837-1932.
Autograph letter signed : Philadelphia [Pa.], to
[William H.] Welch, [n.p.],
1924 June 4 (1 item)
111 52. Photograph of William W. Keen,
1927 Jan. 19 (1 item)
112 53. Abbe, Robert, 1851-1928.
Autograph letter signed : [New York, N.Y.], to
[William W. Keen, n.p.],
1927 Apr. 14 (1 item)
54. Engraving of Alexander
James Dallas [copy],
[n.d.] (1 item)
This scrapbook contains Benjamin Rush memorabilia collected by Robert Abbe. It includes biographical information, copies of portraits, engravings, photo prints, and correspondence. Also included are photo prints and correspondence documenting the establishment and the evolution of the Abbe Custodianship at the College of physicians of Philadelphia.
The scrapbook contains numerous pictures of Rush, including reproductions of portraits painted by Thomas Sully and Charles Wilson Pealed, as well as original engravings by St. Memin, R. W. Dodson, W. R. Jones, and David Edwin. Also present are pictures of Rush's residences in Philadelphia, "Shippen Mansion" and "Sydenham". In addition, the scrapbook contains several items signed by Rush, including an 1781 autograph letter excusing an ill soldier from militia duty.
Perhaps the most important item in the collection is a letter written by Rush in 1793 to Nicholas Belleville (1753-1831). In the letter, Rush describes a new treatment he has been using to combat Yellow fever. According to Rush, the ingredient calomel (mercurous chloride), "saved 9 out of 10 when applied in [the] early stage [of the illness]". Rush also explains that many Philadelphia physicians did not approve of this treatment. In addition to Rush memorabilia, the collection includes photographs and correspondence documenting the establishment of the "Custodianship of the Watch of Dr. Rush", later referred to as the Abbe Custodianship. Included are photographs of Rush's great granddaughter, Mary Theresa deBeelen Rush and her husband, the Rev. Richard L. Howell. Also present is a photograph and a letter from Gwendolen Whistler Howell, Rev. Howell's second wife, who presented Rush's watch to Abbe in return for his services in attending to her ailing husband. Abbe then donated the watch to the college of Physicians and set up a custodianship for it. The collection includes photo prints and correspondence from. Weir Mitchell, Simon Flexner, William H. Welch, and William W. Keen, all of whom served as Abbe Custodians between 1910 and 1927.
Physical Description1 volume
This scrapbook contains mementos of Edward Jenner collected by Robert Abbe. Included are numerous engravings dating from 1803 to 1817 and one letter written by Jenner in 1803.
The collection includes numerous portraits of Jenner by German, English, and Italian engravers, including Johann Heinrich Lips, James Hopwood, Edward Scriven, John Henry Robinson, Robert Mitchell Meadows, and John Raphael Smith.
The letter in the collection was sent by Jenner to Reverend Thomas Frognall Dibdin (1776-1847) on 10 October 1803. Dibdin, a bibliographer, essayist, and poet, was writing a poem for Jenner; the poem, called "Vaccinia", was about the evils of the smallpox virus. In the letter, Jenner expresses his wish to examine Dibdin's "papers" and discusses matters concerning the publication of the poem. Jenner also mentions caring for Lord Berkeley's sick infant. The letter also addresses political issues; the United Irishman and political activist Robert Emmet (1778-1803) is mentioned. Jenner also writes, "Will Bonoparte [sic] be so rash as to shew himself upon our shores?"
Page
1 1. Lips, [Johann] H[einrich], 1758-1817.
Engraving of Edward Jenner,
[n.d.] (1 item)
3 2. Biographical information on
Edward Jenner,
[n.d.] (1 item)
13 3. Bohme, C.
Engraving of Edward Jenner,
[n.d.] (1 item)
15 4. Smith, I. R.
Hopwood, J[ames], 1752-1819.
Engraving of Edward Jenner,
1803 (1 item)
17 5. Ridley, [William?], 1764-1838.
Engraving of Edward Jenner
from the portrait by James Northcote,
1804 (1 item)
19 6. Portrait of Edward Jenner [copy],
[n.d.] (1 item)
21 7. Woodcut of Edward Jenner
from an Italian newspaper,
[n.d.] (1 item)
23 8. Scriven, E[dward], 1775-1841.
Engraving of Edward Jenner
from the engraving by J[ohn] R[aphael] Smith,
[n.d.] (1 item)
25 9. Robinson, J[ohn Henry], 1796-1871.
Meadows, R[obert] M[itchell], d. 1812.
Engraving of Edward Jenner,
1817 (1 item)
27 10. Engraving of Edward Jenner,
[n.d.] (1 item)
29 11. Smith, J[ohn] R[aphael], 1758-1812.
Scriven, E[dward], 1775-1841.
Engraving of Edward Jenner,
[n.d.] (1 item)
31 12. Fontaine, T. M.
Engraving of Edward Jenner,
[n.d.] (1 item)
35 13. Jenner, E[dward], 1749-1823.
Autograph letter signed : Cheltenham [England], to
[Thomas Frognall] Dibdin, [n.p.],
1803 Oct. 10 (1 item)
37 14. Transcript of
Jenner, E[dward], 1749-1823.
Autograph letter signed : Cheltenham [England], to
[Thomas Frognall] Dibdin, [n.p.],
1803 Oct. 10 (1 item)
Physical Description1 volume
This small collection consists of six items pertaining to the celebration of the centenary of the birth of Louis Pasteur held in Philadelphia on 27 December 1922. These items were collected by Robert Abbe, who delivered an address at the event. Included in the collection is an admission ticket; the seating list for the dinner; an announcement of the event; a program and menu; a typescript of Abbe's biography of Pasteur with an holograph outline and a clipping of Abbe's article, "Pasteur, Man and scientist".
Abbe's typescript biography of Pasteur contains the same text as his article, "Pasteur, Man and Scientist". The article appears to have been removed from a publication of the St. Luke's Hospital Alumnae Association. A postscript reveals that the piece originally appeared in the New York Times on 22 January 1923. This article was written in association with the Pasteur Centenary Celebration, but it does not appear to be a transcript of the speech Abbe presented at the event.
1. Admission ticket, 1922 Dec. 27. (1 item) 1922
2. Seating list, 1922 Dec. 27. (1 item) 1922
3. Invitation, 1922 Dec. 27. (1 item) 1922
4. Program/menu, 1922 Dec. 27. (1 item) 1922
5. Abbe, Robert, 1851-1928.
Pasteur the man : typescript, [1922 Dec. 27].
5 p.
Includes holograph outline.
(1 item) [1922]
6. Clipping, "Pasteur, man and scientist", [ca. 1923].
(1 item) [ca. 1923]
Physical Description1 folder
Physical LocationSmall collections
3 1. [Abbe, Robert, 1851-1928.]
"Pasteur" [biographical sketch]
[n.d.] (1 item)
13 2. Reutlinger, Ch.
Photograph [copy] of Louis Pasteur
[n.d.] (1 item)
15 3. Drawing [copy] of Louis Pasteur
"At Thirty"
[n.d.] (1 item)
17 4. Photograph [copy] of Louis Pasteur
"At Forty five"
[n.d.] (1 item)
19 5. Photograph [copy] of Louis Pasteur
(Int. Med. Congress at Copenhagen, 1884.)
(Courtesy of Capt. J. C. Pryor, Naval Med.
School, Washington, D.C.)
[n.d.] (1 item)
21 6. Drawing [copy] of Louis Pasteur
(From an old lithograph)
(Courtesy of Capt. J. C. Pryor, Naval Med.
School, Washington, D.C.)
[n.d.] (1 item)
23 7. Edelfelt, A[lbert], 1854-1905.
"Portrait [copy] of Dr. Pasteur"
[n.d.] (1 item)
25 8. Noyes, [?]
Engraving [copy] of Louis Pasteur
(Courtesy of the Library of the Surgeon
General)
[n.d.] (1 item)
27 9. Manesse, [?]
Steel engraving [copy] of Louis Pasteur
(From Minerva, Vol. III, 1894)
[n.d.] (1 item)
29 10. Drawing [copy] of Louis Pasteur
[n.d.] (1 item)
31 11. Riviere, Theodore.
Photograph [copy] of his bronze
statue of Louis Pasteur
[n.d.] (1 item)
33 12. Woodcut [copy] of Louis Pasteur
(From Journal d'Agric. pratique, 1895)
[n.d.] (1 item)
35 13. Photograph [copy] of Louis Pasteur
(Courtesy of Dr. Winford H. Smith,
Superintendent, Johns Hopkins Hospital)
[n.d.] (1 item)
37 14. Photograph [copy] of Louis Pasteur
(From a common photo)
[n.d.] (1 item)
39 15. Etching [copy] of Louis Pasteur from
the Louvre portrait
With dedication to Robert Abbe
from Dr. Calmette of the Pasteur
Institute, 1920 Apr. 5 (1 item) 41 16. Photograph [copy] of Louis Pasteur
(Courtesy of Dr. Winford H. Smith,
Superintendent, Johns Hopkins Hospital)
[n.d.] (1 item)
43 17. Photograph of Louis Pasteur
"A popular portrait"
[n.d.] (1 item) 45 18. Photograph [copy] of Louis Pasteur with
facsimile of Pasteur's signature
[n.d.] (1 item)
47 19. Prud'homme, G.
Photograph [copy] of his bronze
plaque of Louis Pasteur
(Courtesy of Col. J. F. Siler, Office
of the Surgeon General, Washington, D. C.)
[n.d.] (1 item)
49 20. Drawing [copy] of bust of Louis Pasteur
[n.d.] (1 item)
51 21. Edelfelt, [Albert], 1854-1905.
Portrait [copy] of "Pasteur studying
rabies"
[n.d.] (1 item)
53 22. Photograph of Louis Pasteur
"A late portrait"
[n.d.] (1 item)
55 23. Pasteur, L[ouis], 1822-1895.
Autograph letter signed [in French] :
Arbois, Jura, [France], to "Monsieur", [Algeria?],
1886 Aug. 18 (1 item)
57 24. Pasteur, L[ouis], 1822-1895.
Robert Abbe's translation of Pasteur's
letter of 1886 Aug. 18
[n.d.] (1 item)
59 25. Photograph of a crystal model used
by Louis Pasteur
[n.d.] (1 item)
60 26. Key to individuals appearing in the
painting, "Funeral of Pasteur"
(see item 27)
1897 (1 item)
61 27. Painting [copy] of "Funeral of
Pasteur"
[1897] (1 item)
63 28. Edelfelt, [Albert], 1854-1905.
Portrait [copy] of Madame Pasteur
[n.d.] (1 item)
65 29. Prud'homme, G.
Photograph [copy] of his bronze plaque
depicting Mme. Rene Vallery Radot, nee Pasteur
[n.d.] (1 item)
67 30. Etching of Louis Pasteur
[n.d.] (1 item)
69 31. Photograph of items in the Louis
Pasteur exhibit at the New York
Academy of Medicine
[ca. 1922] (1 item)
71 32. Lebayle[?], Ch.
Photograph of his drawing of Louis
Pasteur at L'Ecole Normale
[n.d.] (1 item)
73 33. Program for Pasteur Centenary Meeting
1923 Jan. 28 (1 item)
75 34. Notes re engraving the names of the Abbe
custodians on the Pasteur volume
[n.d.] (1 item)
76 35. Vallery Radot, Rene, 1853-1933.
Autograph letter signed [in French] :
Versailles, [France], to Robert Abbe,
New York, N.Y., 1923 Mar. 6
With envelope (1 item)
This scrapbook, "Memoranda of Louis Pasteur", contains items collected by Robert Abbe. Present in the volume is a biographical sketch of Pasteur; copies of etchings,photographs, and portraits of Pasteur and his family; a program for the Pasteur Centenary Meeting in New York(1923); photographs of items appearing in the New York Academy of Medicine's Pasteur exhibit (1922); and two autograph letters, one from Pasteur, and one from his son in law, Rene Vallery Radot (1853-1933).
included in the scrapbook are copies of portraits of Pasteur and Madame Pasteur by Finnish painter Albert Edelfelt(1854-1905); a photograph of Theodore Riviere's bronze statue of Pasteur; photographs of G. Prud'homme's bronze casts of Pasteur and his daughter, Madame Rene Vallery Radot; and a copy of a painting depicting Pasteur's funeral.
The Pasteur letter in the scrapbook (in French, 8 Aug. 1886) is accompanied by Abbe's English translation. In the letter, Pasteur thanks the recipient, probably a French army officer in Algiers, for sending him mortality tables for cases of hydrophobia in the French army hospitals inAlgiers. Pasteur also requests statistics on cases of hydrophobia among the civilian population in Algeria. The second letter in the scrapbook (in French, 6 Mar. 1923) is from Pasteur's son in law, Rene Vallery Radot, and is addressed to Robert Abbe.
Physical Description1 volume
This scrapbook, "Memoranda of Mme. M. Curie", contains items collected by Robert Abbe. Included in the volume are photographs of Marie Curie (ca. 1903-1920), photographs of Marie and Pierre Curie using electrometers in their laboratory, photographs and captions illustrating the production of radium (1898), clippings, and several letters(1920-1922) from Marie Curie to Robert Abbe concerning Curie's donation of an electrometer to the College of physicians of Philadelphia.
In her letter of 16 July 1920, Curie sends Abbe a description of the "Quartz Piezoelectrique", or electrometer, that she and her husband used in their early experiments with radium. Curie writes Abbe again on 2 October 1920 and explains that she will donate an item to the College of Physicians of Philadelphia; she makes two suggestions and asks Abbe to choose which gift would be more appropriate. In her letter of 1 March 1921, Curie presents the electrometer to Abbe. Also included in the volume is a personal note from Curie to Abbe (23 June 1921).
Also of interest in the scrapbook is a letter from one of abbe's colleagues (John Finley?); this colleague, who writes from Warsaw, Poland, sends Abbe a Polish stamp honoring Marie Curie.
The "Memoranda of Mme. M. Curie" volume was donated to the college of Physicians of Philadelphia by Robert Abbe on 23 May 1921. The volume was transferred from the Mutter Museum to the Historical Collections of the Library on 4 January 1983.
The volume was catalogued in 1992.
5 1. Photograph of Marie Curie
[n.d.] (1 item)
7 2. [Abbe, Robert], 1851-1928.
"Marie Curie, and Radium"
[biographical sketch, n.d.] (1 item)
17 3. Photograph of Marie Curie
[n.d.] (1 item)
19 4. Photograph of Pierre Curie
[n.d.] (1 item)
21 5. Ellis, H. C.
Photograph [copy] of Pierre and Marie
Curie with their daughter, Irene, in the
garden of their home near Paris
[1903] (1 item)
23 6. Photograph of Marie Curie in
her laboratory
[1903] (1 item)
25 7. Petit, Pierre.
Photograph [copy] of Henri
Becquerel (1852-1908), Professor
of Physics at the University of Paris
(as a student, Marie Curie worked
in his laboratory)
[n.d.] (1 item)
27 8. Photograph of the street in Paris
where the Curie laboratory is located
[n.d.] (1 item)
29 9. Postcard with view of Joachimsthal,
the town in Bohemia, Austria, where
Marie Curie first found radium
[n.d.] (1 item)
Page
31 10. "Radium Making 1898"
Photographs and captions illustrating
how radium was made
[1898] (6 items)
43 11. Photograph of Pierre Curie using his
"appareil appele quartz piezo
electrique" (electrometer)
[n.d.] (1 item)
45 12. Photograph of [Jacques?] Danne, Professor
Curie's assistant, using an electrometer
[n.d.] (1 item)
47 13. Photograph of Marie Curie
in her laboratory
[1920] (1 item)
49 14. Photograph of Marie Curie
[1920] (1 item)
52 15. Curie, M[arie], 1867-1934.
Typed letter signed [in French] :
Paris, [France], to
[Robert] Abbe, New York, [N.Y.],
1920 Oct. 2
With envelope (1 item)
55 16. Translation of Marie Curie's letter of
2 October 1920
[n.d.] (1 item)
56 17. Photograph of the electrometer that
Marie Curie donated to the College
of Physicians of Philadelphia
[n.d.] (1 item) 57 18. [Curie, Marie], 1867-1934.
"Quartz Piezoelectrique"
Her description [in French] of the
electrometer
[n.d.] (1 item)
61 19. Curie, M[arie], 1867-1934.
Typed letter signed : Paris, [France], to
Robert Abbe, New York, [N.Y.],
1920 July 16
With envelope and with her description
[in French] of the electrometer (1 item)
63 20. Curie, M[arie], 1867-1934.
Typed letter signed [in French] : Paris,
[France], to
[Robert Abbe, n.p.],
1921 Mar. 10 (1 item)
65 21. Clipping (from the New York Times Book Review)
of a photograph of the Curie laboratory
1924 Jan. 6 (1 item)
66 22. Clipping (from the New York Times) of a
photograph of Marie Curie
1925 July 12 (1 item)
67 23. Clipping (from the New York Times) of a
photograph of Marie Curie with Charles
H. Mayo (1865-1939)
1925 July 12 (1 item)
69 24. Curie, M[arie], 1867-1934.
Autograph postcard signed [in French] : Paris,
[France], to
Robert Abbe, [n.p.],
1921 Mar. 1 (1 item)
69 25. Curie, M[arie], 1867-1934.
Autograph postcard signed : Paris, [France], to
Robert Abbe, [n.p.],
1921 Mar. 1 (1 item)
71 26. Curie, M[arie], 1867-1934.
Autograph postcard signed : New York, [N.Y.], to
Robert Abbe, New York, [N.Y.],
1921 June 23
With envelope (1 item)
73 27. Curie, M[arie], 1867-1934.
Typed letter signed : Paris, [France], to
[Robert Abbe, n.p.],
1922 Apr. 8 (1 item)
75 28. [John Finley?]
Autograph letter signed : Warsaw, Poland, to
Robert Abbe, [n.p.],
1926 May 20
With Marie Curie postage stamp (1 item)
77 29. Photograph of Marie Curie using an
electrometer in her laboratory
[n.d.] (1 item)
79 30. Clipping [in French] celebrating the 25th[?]
anniversary of the discovery of radium
[1923?] (1 item)
Physical Description1 volume
This scrapbook, "Memoranda of Joseph Lister", contains items collected by Robert Abbe. Included in the volume is a biography of Lister by Sir St. Clair Thomas (1859-1943);copies of photographs, engravings, and drawings of Listerand his family; pictures of the buildings where Lister lived, worked, and lectured; an autograph letter from Lister; and a letter to Abbe from Lister's biographer, Sir Rickman John Godlee (1849-1925).
The autograph letter from Lister (in French, 26 Feb. 1891)was written to one of his colleagues. In the letter,Lister briefly discusses his studies of germs and leukocytes in the blood. Also present in the scrapbook is a letter to abbe from Sir Rickman John Godlee (16 Apr. 1922);apparently, Abbe asked Godlee for information about certain glass tubes belonging to Lister. In his letter, Godlee explains that these tubes were used by Lister later in his career for bacteriological work and inoculation experiments. Godlee then provides a description of the glass tubes and how they might have been used.
Many of the printed items in the scrapbook, especially portraits of members of the Lister family, can be found in lord Lister, a biography by Sir Rickman John Godlee. In many cases, it appear as if Abbe cut the plates from this book to include in the scrapbook.
3 1. Barraud, [?].
Photograph [copy] of Joseph Lister
from the "Nature" Science Worthies Series
(Messrs. MacMillan Co., Ltd.)
[n.d.] (1 item)
5 2. Thomson, Sir St. Clair, 1859-1943.
"A house surgeon's memories of
Joseph Lister" from the Annals of
Medical History
[ca. 1919 June] (1 item)
21 3. Lister, Joseph Jackson, 1786-1869. Silhouette [copy] of "Lister
aged 13 years"
[n.d.] (1 item)
23 4. Daguerreotype [copy] of "Joseph Lister
aged about 28"
[n.d.] (1 item)
25 5. Photograph [copy] of Agnes Lister
[n.d.] (1 item)
27 6. Photograph [copy] of "Joseph Lister
aged about 40"
[n.d.] (1 item)
29 7. Photograph of Joseph Lister
[n.d.] (1 item)
31 8. Photograph [copy] of the model for
Sir Thomas Brock's Lister medallion
in Westminster Abbey
[n.d.] (1 item)
33 9. Lister, Mary.
Drawing [copy] of Upton House,
birthplace of Joseph Lister
[n.d.] (1 item)
35 10. Photograph [copy] of Upton House
[n.d.] (1 item)
37 11. Rixens, M.
Painting [copy] of Pasteur and Lister
at the celebration of the 70th anniversary
of Pasteur's birth (27 Dec. 1892)
[n.d.] (1 item)
39 12. Engraving [copy] of Glasgow Infirmary,
where Lister developed his antiseptic
principles, 1860-1869
[n.d.] (1 item)
41 13. Inglis, F. C.
Photograph [copy] of the Edinburgh
Infirmary, where Lister served as Professor
of Clinical Surgery, 1869-1877
[n.d.] (1 item)
43 14. Engraving of King's College, London, where
Lister lectured, 1877-1893
[n.d.] (1 item)
45 15. Shepherd, T. H. and H. Melville.
Engraving of "King's College. Distribution
of the Prizes in the Theatre, by the Archbishop
of Canterbury"
[n.d.] (1 item)
47 16. Photograph [copy] of the tympanum of the
Policlinico Umberto I in Rome which pictures
Lister conducting a surgical clinic
[n.d.] (1 item)
49 17. Photograph [copy] of Joseph Jackson Lister
(father of Joseph Lister)
[n.d.] (1 item)
51 18. Lister, Joseph Jackson, 1786-1869. Drawing [copy] of John Lister, Joseph
Lister's grandfather
[n.d.] (1 item)
53 19. Lister, Joseph Jackson, 1786-1869.
Drawing [copy] of Isabella Lister,
Joseph Lister's grandmother
[n.d.] (1 item)
55 20. Photograph [copy] of James Syme (1799-1870),
Professor of Clinical Surgery at the
University of Edinburgh, predecessor and
father in law of Joseph Lister
[n.d.] (1 item)
57 21. Lister, Sir Joseph, 1827-1912.
Autograph letter signed [in French] :
Portland Place [London, England], to
[?], [n.p.],
1891 Feb. 26 (1 item)
59 22. Class Certificate of Merit from the
Faculty of Medicine at the University
of Edinburgh to George Hoyle, signed by
Joseph Lister
[1872] (1 item)
61 23. Godlee, [Sir] R[ickman] J[ohn], 1849-1925.
Autograph letter signed : Whitchurch, Oxon.,
[England], to [Robert] Abbe, [n.p.],
1922 Apr. 16 (1 item)
63 24. Photograph [copy] of Joseph Lister
[n.d.] (1 item)
Donated by William W. Keen, 1925 Nov. 16
63 25. Autograph notes concerning names to
be engraved on the cover of the
Lister scrapbook
[n.d.] (2 items)
Physical Description1 volume