From the Stacks - HSP's Collection and the Story of Pennsylvania's Health

The archives of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania offer an intriguing look at the development of health and medicine in Pennsylvania. Among the most important of those records are the papers of Samuel Gibson Dixon, a prominent scientist, president of the Philadelphia Academy of Natural Science, and the state’s first commissioner of health. His papers, alone, cover forty years of medical history in Pennsylvania.

The archives also offer source material concerning the development of hospitals and nursing in Philadelphia and the state. The treasures in the archives, great and small, formed a major part of the foundation for The Health of the Commonwealth, as well as the author’s other published works and lectures. The collections at HSP related to the history of medicine are a starting point for numerous future thesis, dissertations, and scholarly articles and monographs.

This program is part of HSP’s new virtual programming series: “From the Stacks,” which highlights topics or materials from HSP's collections. Our collections contain over 21 million items, encompassing centuries of American history. This series, held over the Zoom platform, will feature author talks, living history performances, conversations with staff, and more!