Skip to main content

Govt building

Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Secure access Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock ( ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Navy Dept. Board of Medicine and Surgery Examination Papers Collection

 Collection
Identifier: MS C 463

Abstract

In 1824 the young American Navy began to conduct professional examinations for candidates for the medical corps. A permanent board was appointed in Philadelphia, with Edward Cutbush as senior member. After 1828, assistant naval surgeons who had been commissioned and had served for five years were also given the right to apply for examination for promotion. This collection consists of some of the examination papers from both applicants for appointment and for promotion.

Dates

  • Creation: 1831-1860

Extent

0.6 Linear Feet

Creator

Physical Location

Materials stored onsite. History of Medicine Division. National Library of Medicine

Language of Materials

Collection materials primarily in English

Restrictions

Collection is not restricted. Contact the Reference Staff for information regarding access.

Copyright and Re-use Information

NLM does not possess copyright to the collection. Archival collections often contain mixed copyrights; while NLM is the owner of the physical items, permission to examine collection materials is not an authorization to publish. These materials are made available for use in research, teaching, and private study. It is the user's responsibility to research and understand any applicable copyright and re-publication rights not allowed by fair use. NLM does not grant permissions to publish.

Privacy Information

Archives and manuscript collections may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations. Researchers are advised that the disclosure of certain information pertaining to identifiable living individuals represented in any collection without the consent of those individuals may have legal ramifications for which the National Library of Medicine assumes no responsibility.

Historical Note

In 1824 the young American Navy began to conduct professional examinations for candidates for the medical corps. A permanent board was appointed in Philadelphia, with Edward Cutbush as senior member. After 1828, assistant naval surgeons who had been commissioned and had served for five years were also given the right to apply for examination for promotion. This collection consists of some of the examination papers from both applicants for appointment and for promotion.

Collection Summary

The material as it was received came in two groups. The first group consisted of application materials and some examination essays for the period 1831 to 1847. Competence was demonstrated in part by the writing of an essay on a subject, the topic of which was selected by the President of the Examining Board. No recourse to books or other outside aids was allowed. Hence these themes demonstrate individual medical competency as well as the state of contemporary knowledge about smallpox, yellow fever, dropsy, colitis, tetanus, syphilis, and so on. Most of the folders for this period also contain biographical information, such as a letters from doctors describing their lives, education, training, and experience, and many contain letters attesting to their competence from other naval officers and physicians. A small group at the end consists solely of certifications of the date of birth of an applicant for whom there is no other information.

Section two of the collection was a continuation of the above series for the period 1859-1860. By this time applicants for promotion were, in addition to the autobiographical sketch and medical essay, also required to submit answers to twelve varied questions. These included "What is the condition of the lungs after drowning?", "What is Ship Fever?", "Describe the best mode for vaccination," "What is necrosis?", etc. The applicants answers to these questions are also found as part of the collection.

Biographical material can be found in each folder unless it carries the notation "essay only."

Additional Description

Abstract

In 1824 the young American Navy began to conduct professional examinations for candidates for the medical corps. A permanent board was appointed in Philadelphia, with Edward Cutbush as senior member. After 1828, assistant naval surgeons who had been commissioned and had served for five years were also given the right to apply for examination for promotion. This collection consists of some of the examination papers from both applicants for appointment and for promotion.

Physical Location

Materials stored onsite. History of Medicine Division. National Library of Medicine

Provenance

The collection of examination papers was purchased in 1988 from a book dealer who had found the material discarded in Philadelphia.

General

Processed by
Mildred Asbell
Date completed:
May 1991
Encoded by
Dan Jenkins

General

Index of Names

  1. Addison, Samuel Rideout (b. 1814)
  2. Alexander, John Locke (b. 1806)
  3. Banister, Robert B. (b. 1814)
  4. Batsford [?], Charles (b. 1815)
  5. Brown, Henry S. (b. 1809)
  6. Brownlee, James Jeffrey (b. 1810)
  7. Gueraro, Augustus (b. 1816)
  8. Hedges, Urban Delaeour (b. 1813)
  9. Holmes, Silas (b. 1815)
  10. Huntington, John (b. 1812)
  11. Jackson, D.L. (b. 1816)
  12. Jones, William Merwin (b. 1810)
  13. Lawyer, Augustus F. (b. 1807)
  14. McCreery, Stephen A. (b. 1814)
  15. Thompson, William Steele (b. 1815)
  16. Treat, William (b. 1814)
  17. Van Wyck, Edward H. (b. 1815)

Processing Information

The collection was organized and indexed by Ms. Mildred Asbell in May, 1991, at which time it was decided to group the material into one alphabetical listing.

Subjects

Related Names

Finding Aid & Administrative Information

Title
Finding Aid to the United States Navy Dept. Board of Medicine and Surgery: Examination Papers Collection1831-1860
Status
Unverified Partial Draft
Author
Mildred Asbell
Date
May 199
Language of description
English
Script of description
Code for undetermined script
Language of description note
Finding aid is written in English
Edition statement
Version 1.0

Collecting Area Details

Collecting Area Details

Part of the Archives and Modern Manuscripts Collections Collecting Area

Contact:
8600 Rockville Pike
Bldg 38/1E-21, MSC 3819
Bethesda MD 20894 US
1-888-FINDNLM (1-888-346-3656)