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Craig House Medical Records on Zelda Fitzgerald
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Held at: Princeton University Library: Manuscripts Division [Contact Us]
This is a finding aid. It is a description of archival material held at the Princeton University Library: Manuscripts Division. 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
Craig House was an American private psychiatric clinic located in Beacon, N.Y.
Zelda Fitzgerald, wife of the American novelist F. Scott Fitzgerald, was a patient at Craig House, under the care of Dr. C. Jonathan Slocum.
The collection consists of psychiatric evaluations, correspondence, and reports concerning Zelda Fitzgerald when she was a patient at Craig House, Beacon, N.Y., under the care of Dr. C. Jonathan Slocum. Included are letters, telegrams, and notes to and from Zelda Fitzgerald, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Mrs. A. D. Sayre (Zelda's mother), and various doctors. There are also copies of reports and evaluations from Johns Hopkins Hospital and Prangin, Switzerland, as well as a stenographic transcript of a conversation between Zelda and F. Scott Fitzgerald and Dr. Thomas Rennie in 1933. It should be noted that some of the medical histories and correspondence use harmful language when describing mental and behavioral health symptoms and diagnoses.
Gift of Jonathan Slocum (Princeton Class of 1936), Dr. Slocum's son (AM 1993-118).
For preservation reasons, original analog and digital media may not be read or played back in the reading room. Users may visually inspect physical media but may not remove it from its enclosure. All analog audiovisual media must be digitized to preservation-quality standards prior to use. Audiovisual digitization requests are processed by an approved third-party vendor. Please note, the transfer time required can be as little as several weeks to as long as several months and there may be financial costs associated with the process. Requests should be directed through the Ask Us Form.
In 2021, rehousing and metadata enhancement was completed to prepare materials for digitization. The finding aid was revised by Amy C. Vo in December 2021.
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Subject
- Publisher
- Manuscripts Division
- Finding Aid Date
- 2002
- Access Restrictions
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The collection is open for research.
- Use Restrictions
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Collection Inventory
The correspondence consists of letters, telegrams, and notes that were exchanged between Zelda Fitzgerald, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Mrs. A. D. Sayre (Minerva "Minnie" Sayre), and Zelda's various doctors (and an unnamed secretary). The corresponding doctors include Dr. C. M. Gilmore, Dr. Chilton Thorington, Dr. Eleanor Pavenstedt, Dr. C. J. (Clarence Jonathan) Slocum, Dr. Rex Blankenship, and Dr. Ross Chapman. The letters discuss Zelda's treatment at Craig House, her medical and mental health history, previous treatments, and her progress. Some of the notes list items that Zelda was requesting be bought and/or sent to her, one of which is attached to a clipping of a book review. The bulk of the correspondence is from 1934, and letters from this time period also document Zelda Fitzgerald's transfer to Sheppard & Enoch Pratt, where she was under the care of Dr. Ross Chapman.
Physical Description1 folder
The psychiatric reports consists of copies of evaluations that were forwarded to Dr. Slocum at Craig House from Johns Hopkins Hospital. The majority of the evaluations are from the records at the Henry Phipps Psychiatric Clinic at Johns Hopkins Hospital, and among the forwarded material were copies of reports (in French) from Dr. Bleuler and Dr. Forel in Prangins, Switzerland. There are typewritten duplicates of a couple of these forwarded medical histories, one of which is the report entitled, "Five Year Chronological Record." The summary of Dr. Bleuler and Dr. Forel's consultation is also duplicated in a typewritten document. In addition to these reports and histories is a stenographic transcript of a conversation between Zelda and F. Scott Fitzgerald and Dr. Thomas Rennie, a psychiatrist at Johns Hopkins Hospital. The conversation took place in the Fitzgeralds' Maryland home in 1933.
Physical Description2 folders
The clippings in this collection were collected decades after Zelda Fitzgerald was hospitalized at Craig House. The clippings include F. Scott Fitzgerald's obituary, and several articles about either Zelda Fitzgerald or F. Scott Fitzgerald from the 60s and 70s, a couple of which were from the publication, Princeton Alumni Weekly.
Physical Description1 folder