University of Pennsylvania Finding Aids

The Alexian Brothers are a Roman Catholic religious order devoted to the care of the sick. This collection consists of photocopies of historical information and records regarding the Alexian Brothers Hospital in Chicago, established 1866.

This collection consists of two parts: records of the alumnae association in the period of Mercy Hospital and records of the organization under its present name. It complements the Mercy-Douglass Hospital records (MC 78) in that the latter are exclusively hospital and school records organically created before the hospital closed in 1973. The alumnae association collection contains historical accounts of the hospital and the school as prepared by the alumni, minutes of alumni meetings, programs of various kinds of activities the association sponsored, newsletters, correspondence, clippings, and material the association collected of other organizations.

This collection contains materials documenting the development of nursing and nurse alumni groups at institutions founded by Jewish benevolent groups and organizations in Philadelphia from the 1890s through the 1990s. The historical material includes minutes, reports, administrative files, artifacts, and photographs depicting nursing and nurse education. These materials primarily concern three establishments which were merged to form the Albert Einstein Medical Center in 1952: the Jewish Hospital, established 1867; the Mt. Sinai Hospital, established in 1905; and the Northern Liberties Hospital established in 1920. (It should be noted that there are no significant records of the Northern Liberties Hospital in this collection.)

This collection consists of papers, administrative records, artifacts, and photographs that document many operational aspects of the Alumnae Association of the Philadelphia General Hospital. Of note are the personal papers of Alice Fisher.

This collection documents one of the largest and most active American Legion nurses' posts: the Helen Fairchild Nurses' Post No. 412 of Philadelphia. In its heyday, the Fairchild Post engaged in a multitude of community activities, and enjoyed a large membership base. These files provide a glimpse of the long and eventful history of the Post, beginning in 1919 and continuing to 1989.

This collection documents the Brandywine Home Health Agency, Inc. from its inception through its subsequent growth during social, environmental, and legislative changes. As a non-profit volunteer agency, BHHA was conscious of its responsibility to foster innovative and relevant programs. Thus as health needs and technology evolved, it progressed accordingly. Over time, it became a multi-service agency delivering three categories of service: therapeutic, supportive, and preventative. The material in this collection covers all facets of these services and includes records of administration, financial, program services, and public relations.

The Chestnut Hill Hospital School of Nursing Records consist of 20.45 linear feet of hospital records, school administration records, faculty and student files, yearbooks, photographs, and some artifacts. The records extend from the school's creation in 1908 until its closing in 1987. The collection comprehensively documents the growth of a suburban community hospital nurse training program.

Children's Hospital of Philadelphia was one of the earliest pediatric hospitals to open a training school for nurses. This collection consists of materials relating to the Hospital, the School of Nursing, and the School of Nursing Alumnae Assocation. It includes administrative records, student files, and photographs.

This collection contains records of the Germantown Hospital and Community Health Services School of Nursing, in Germantown, Philadelphia, PA. Materials include student records, Nursing Alumni Association records, yearbooks, and minutes.

This unprocessed collection contains the records of the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, School of Nursing. It primarily consists of administrative files such as reports, minutes, memos, correspondence, and handbooks and manuals, among other materials.

During the post war years of World War 2, the International Council of Nurses provided a means of establishing and verifying credentials for over 3,000 displaced nurses throughout the world. This collection contains the ICN's nurse refugee files.

This collection contains late 19th and early 20th century administrative records of Lock Haven Hospital, including board minutes, annual reports, and brochures.

This is an artificial collection of miscellaneous items that came to the Bates Center unsolicited and/or for which provenance is unclear. These individual items are not related to each other by subject, material type, or provenance. Materials may include organizational records, correspondence, personal notebooks, and ephemera.

This collection contains the 20th-century records of two New Jersey Visiting Nurse Associations: the Moorestown Visiting Nurse Association (MVNA) and the Visiting Nurse Society of Riverton, Cinnaminson and Palmyra (VNSRCP). These two organizations merged in 1967.

This collection contains the records of the National Organization for Public Health Nursing. It consists chiefly of minutes from the meetings of the board of directors, committees, and the annual conventions. Correspondence files are also included within the minutes.

The Neighborhood Visting Nurse Association grew from the merger of several eastern Pennsylvania community and home health service agencies. These records document services provided to communities in Chester and Delaware counties during the 20th century. Materials include board minutes and reports, correspondence, photographs, financial information, and other administrative records.

The Bates Center's Small Collections are various, unrelated accessions that have been individually assigned collection numbers. Many of the Small Collections consist of a single folder.

This collection documents the Pennsylvania League of Nursing's history. It includes board minutes, correspondence with affiliated agencies, educational fund files, newsletters and bulletins, and other materials documenting the League's activities.

The Philadelphia District, No. 1, was admitted to the Pennsylvania Nurses Association in 1919. These records of District 1 cover the majority of the organization's history. Materials include minutes, proceedings, reports, correspondence, finance information, and photographs.

This unprocessed collection contains the records of the Pennsylvania Nurses Association, District 2.

This artificial collection contains miscellaneous small donations related to the Philadelphia General Hospital School of Nursing. They were primarily given by alumni over a period of many years, but some items are of unknown provenance. This collection may include artifacts, publications, personal papers, photographs, and records related to the PGH Training School for Nurses.

This collection documents the founding, flourishing and eventual closing of the Presbyterian School of Nursing, a hospital-based nursing school in Philadelphia. The hospital itself was founded in 1871 under the sponsorship of the Presbyterian Church. Its nurse training program was begun in 1889. The collection's strength is the relative completeness of student records, good documentation of the school's curricula and teaching materials. The supportive role both the Ladies Aid Society and the Alumni Association played in the growth of the School are evident in these records.

The Princeton Community League Visting Nurse Committee collection includes administrative, financial, and miscellaneous records, primarily dating from the 1920s and 1930s. The collection documents the growth and expanded services of the Visiting Nurse Committee, the relations with Princeton Hospital, and other individuals and agencies concerned with public health in the early twentieth century.

This collection contains administrative records of St. Joseph Hospital, Lancaster, PA. Materials include nursing surveys and studies, various committee minutes, correspondence, nursing course files, and student transcripts.

The Starr Centre was a settlement house with an extensive array of programs in South Philadelphia and Germantown. Through its Medical Department and a cooperative agreement (later a merger) with the Visiting Nurse Society of Philadelphia, the Starr Centre provided home health care to Philadelphia's African American and immigrant communities. This collection contains the agency's administrative records documenting its long history of service, as well as photographs, artifacts, and scrapbooks.