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Failed fellowship applications of the Office of the Secretary of The College of Physicians of Philadelphia

 Collection
Identifier: CPP 1/007-01

Scope and Contents

This collection of failed fellowship applications, spanning 1900 to 1937, is part of the records of the office of the Secretary of the College of Physicians of Philadelphia. Each fellowship application consists of an application form containing basic information about the applicant and three or more letters of recommendation from Fellows of the College. These applications are useful in that they reveal some of the reasons why candidates were rejected from the fellowship, provide the names of the ~ellows who proposed each candidate, and explain why the Fellows gave certain candidates their support.

In the election process, the completed application was submitted to ihe Secretary of the College of Physicians, who assigned a number to the application and read the name of the candidate and his proposers at the next College meeting. The Council then had to approve the candidate before the Fellows could vote. Numbers were assigned to the candidates to preserve their anonymity; they were referred to by their numbers instead of their names in College and Council minutes. The candidate's identity was revealed in the minutes only if he was successfully elected to the fellowship of the College.

The applications in this collection reveal some of the reasons why candidates did not become Fellows of the College of Physicians. In some cases, the candidate was too young to become a Fellow or was planning to leave the Philadelphia area. Other candidates were turned down because they were practicing dentists. Occasionally, an application was rejected because of an unfavorable letter from a Fellow as to the character or conduct of the applicant. Many of the rejected applicants re-applied in later years and were eventually accepted into the fellowship of the College of Physicians.

The applications are arranged by applicant number, which also places them in chronological order. The applicant number does not appear on many of the early applications; in some cases, the number could be determined from College and Council minutes. The applications for which numbers could not be determined are listed in chronological order.

Dates

  • 1900 - 1937

Creator

Biographical / Historical

The office of the Secretary of the College of Physicians of Philadelphia was created during the organization of the College in 1787. The Secretary is the appointed officer of record. His original duties were to record the minutes and transactions of the College and preserve its documents and correspondence. In 1834, the Secretary was also empowered to keep lists of the fellows and provide them with certificates of membership. In 1863, the responsibility for notifying officers and committee members of election or appointaent devolved upon the Secretary. An annual report on the fellowship became part of the Secretary's responsibilities in 1870. At this time, a related office, the Recorder, was created to keep the minutes of all scientific sessions. The office of Recorder was abolished in 1914, and a salaried position, the Clerk, was created under the Secretary; the Secretary devoted himself to matters of fellowship while the Clerk preserved the minutes and papers of the College. The position of Clerk was abolished in 1925, and his duties were returned to the Secretary. In 1990, the Secretary was empowered to perform "all the duties appropriate to his or her post as the elected recording officer of the College and assure the duties and powers of the President in the absence or temporary incapacity of both the President and President-Elect".

Extent

.4 Linear feet (1 document box)

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Custodial History

The source of this collection of failed fellowship applications from the office of the Secretary of the College of Physicians of Philadelphia is unknown. The collection was processed and catalogued in 1992.

Inventory

Small, William B. 1900 Sept. 17-0ct. 24 (1 folder)

Elmer, Walter G. 1902 Oct. 2-Nov. (#764) 22 (1 folder)

Maier, F, Hurst 1902 Nov. 4-Dec. 8 (1 folder)

Yarrow, Thomas J., Jr. 1903 Feb. 17-May 1 (#783) ( 1 folder)

Dye, Frank H. 1904 Nov. 10-1905 Jan. 12 ( 1 folder)

Brown, Samuel Horton 1904 Nov. 26-1907 Mar. 26 ( 1 folder)

Brick, Joseph Coles 1905 Nov. 10-Dec. 16 (1 folder)

Warmuth, Mitchell P. 1906 Jan. 25-Mar. 20 (1 folder)

O'Malley, Joseph M. 1906 Feb. 27-May 5 (1 folder)

Cryer, Matthew H, (#896) 1906 Oct. 25-1907 Jan. 16 ( 1 folder)

Orbison, Thomas J. (#900) 1906 Dec. 8-1907 Feb. 25 (1 folder)

Hammond, Levi Jay 1907 Feb. 21-Mar. 25 (1 folder)

Love, Louis Francis 1907 Feb. 21-Apr. 14 (1 folder)

Head, Joseph 1907 Dec. 10-17 (1 folder)

Ashton, William E, 1907 Dec. 10-1908 Jan, 27 (1 folder)

Gile, Ben Clark 1908 Jan. 30-Mar. 18 ( 1 folder)

Mann, James P. 1908 Jan. 30-Mar. 23 ( 1 folder)

Franklin, Melvin M. 1908 Jan. 31-Mar. 12 (1 folder)

Maier, F. Hurst 1908 Mar. 24-May 26 (1 folder)

Butte, Harley J. (#964) 1908 Nov. 3-1909 Feb. 23 (1 folder)

Pontius, Paul J, 1908 Nov. 3-Dec. 29 ( 1 folder)

Davis, J, Leslie 1908 Nov. 6-Dec. 11 (1 folder)

Schumann, Edward A, 1909 Jan. 25-0ct. 20 (1 folder)

McKenna, John A, 1909 Feb. 11-0ct. 18 (1 folder)

Franklin, Clarence P, 1910 Aug. 15-Jan. 20 (1 folder)

Heed, Charles R. 1910 Oct. 11-Dec. 20 (1 folder)

Horne, S. Hamill (#1014) 1910 Oct. 31-1911 May 12 (1 folder)

Yawger, N. S. (#1015) 1910 Oct. 31-1911 May 6 (1 folder)

Moylan, Peter F, (#1016) 1910 Nov. 2-1911 May 11 (1 folder)

Ginsburg, Nate (#1017) 1910 Oct. 21-1911 Feb. 26 (1 folder)

Richardson, William W. (#1028) 1911 June 19-Sept. 14 (1 folder)

MacCarroll, D, Randall (#1029) 1911 June 20-Sept. 16 (1 folder)

Farrar, Joseph D. (#1031) 1911 Nov. 18-24 (1 folder)

Andrews, T, Hollingsworth (#1051) 1910 Apr, 4-1912 Nov. 25 (1 folder)

Cohen, A, J. (#1090) 1914 Oct. 8-1915 May 1 (1 folder)

Ellis, Aller G. ( #1206) 1921 Nov. 1-1922 May 2 (1 folder)

Sturtevant, Charles N. (#1211) 1921 Nov. 22-1922 Feb. 15 (1 folder)

Schell J. Thompson (#1295) 1925 Feb. 7-May 12 (1 folder)

Spangler, Ralph H. (#1322) 1927 Jan. 24-May 10 (1 folder)

Schless, Robert A, (#1458) 1931 Nov. 3-1932 Feb. 1 (1 folder)

Schatz, Harry A, (#1498) 1932 May 19-1933 Jan. 28 (1 folder)

Sprenkel, Vaughan (#1707) 1936 Nov. 7-1937 Jan. 10 (1 folder)

Subjects

Record Groups

Related Names

Finding Aid & Administrative Information

Title
Failed fellowship applications of the Office of the Secretary of The College of Physicians of Philadelphia
Language of description
Undetermined
Script of description
Code for undetermined script

External Documents

Repository Details

Repository Details

Part of the Historical Medical Library of The College of Physicians of Philadelphia Repository

http://www.collegeofphysicians.org/library/
Contact:
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Philadelphia PA 19103 United States
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