Overview
The Clark W. Heath papers, 1928-1955 (inclusive), are a product of Heath’s research and professional activities throughout the period of his service at Harvard Medical School as Instructor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School’s Thorndike Memorial Laboratory at Boston City Hospital as Research Resident, and Harvard University as Principal Investigator of the University’s Grant Study.
Dates
- Creation: 1928-1955 (inclusive).
Creator
- Heath, Clark Wright, 1900-. (Person)
Language of Materials
Papers are in English.
Conditions Governing Access
Collection is open for research. Access requires advance notice. Access to personal, patient, and student information is restricted for 80 years from the date of creation. Researchers may apply for access to restricted records. Consult Public Services for further information.
The Papers are stored offsite. Researchers are advised to consult Public Services for further information concerning retrieval of material.
Conditions Governing Use
The Harvard Medical Library does not hold copyright on all materials in the collection. Researchers are responsible for identifying and contacting any third-party copyright holders for permission to reproduce or publish. For more information on the Center's use, publication, and reproduction policies, view our Reproductions and Use Policy.
Extent
.33 cubic feet ( (1 letter size document box))The Clark Wright Heath papers, 1928-1955 (inclusive), are a product of Heath’s research and professional activities throughout the period of his service at Harvard Medical School’s Thorndike Memorial Laboratory at Boston City Hospital as Research Resident, Harvard Medical School as Instructor of Medicine, and Harvard University as Principal Investigator of the University’s Grant Study. The bulk of the papers contain personal and professional correspondence, concerning: requests from Heath’s colleagues for research and medical advice on iron, anemia, and its treatment with liver extract; administration of the Thorndike Memorial Laboratory; employment recommendations to and from Heath’s colleagues; Harvard Medical School students and teaching responsibilities; and personal correspondence with friends and colleagues. Correspondents include: colleague George R. Minot (1885-1950) regarding research on iron and anemia, and Thorndike Memorial Laboratory administration; and colleague Merrill Moore (1903-1957) regarding employment recommendations, and research advice. Papers also include: scientific paper manuscripts composed by Heath on various topics, such as anemia, statistical methods used in medical research, and the relationship between physician and patient; and a small amount of administrative correspondence generated by George R. Minot at Harvard Medical School’s Thorndike Memorial Laboratory at Boston City Hospital, maintained by Heath with his personal and professional papers.
Papers are entirely in English.
Biographical Notes
Clark Wright Heath (1900-1986), B.A., 1922, Harvard College, Cambridge, Massachusetts, M.D., 1926, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, was Research Resident at Harvard Medical School’s Thorndike Memorial Laboratory, Boston City Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, Instructor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, Principal Investigator of the Grant Study at Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, and Director of Health Services and Professor of Hygiene at Tufts University, Medford, Massachusetts. Heath’s research focused on anemia and various other hematological diseases.
Clark Wright Heath was born in Buffalo, New York in 1900 to William R. Heath (born 1864) and Mary H. Heath (born 1865). He received his B.A. from Harvard College in 1922 and his M.D. from Harvard Medical School in 1926. He was a Research Resident under George R. Minot at Harvard Medical School’s Thorndike Memorial Laboratory at the Boston City Hospital, Massachusetts, where he conducted iron-deficiency anemia research with George R. Minot (1885-1950) and William B. Castle (1897-1990). Heath served five years as Instructor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School (1933-1937), and three years as Physician of the Harvard University Hygiene Department, Cambridge, Massachusetts (1935-1937). In 1938, he was named Principal Investigator of Harvard University’s Grant Study (1938-1954), during which time he researched physical and mental health of Harvard University students. He left Harvard in 1955 for Tufts University, where he was appointed Director of Health Services (1955-1966) and Professor of Hygiene (1955-1966). Heath was Editor of the Harvard Medical School Bulletin and Secretary of the Harvard Medical Alumni Association.
Clark Wright Heath married Katharine Calef (1905-1975) and had four children, Martha Wieneke, Emily Nickerson, Dr. Clark W. Heath, Jr., and Everett Heath. After his wife’s death, he married Lucy Allen in 1976. Heath died on 9 July 1986, in Rockport, Massachusetts.
Arrangement
Papers have been maintained in their original arrangement.
Processing Information
Processed by Amber LaFountain, 2012 November.
Processing staff in the Center for the History of Medicine analyzed and described the papers, and created a finding aid to improve access. Items were rehoused and, where necessary, photocopied to acid-free paper. Folder titles were transcribed from the originals when available; titles supplied by the processing staff appear in brackets only on the physical folders.
- Title
- Heath, Clark Wright, 1900-. Papers, 1928-1955 (inclusive): Finding Aid.
- Author
- Francis A. Countway Library of Medicine. Center for the History of Medicine.
- Language of description
- und
- Sponsor
- Processing of the Clark Wright Heath papers was funded by the Francis A. Countway Library of Medicine's Charles S. Minot Fund for Hematology.
- EAD ID
- med00173
Repository Details
Part of the Center for the History of Medicine (Francis A. Countway Library of Medicine) Repository
The Center for the History of Medicine in the Francis A. Countway Library of Medicine is one of the world's leading resources for the study of the history of health and medicine. Our mission is to enable the history of medicine and public health to inform healthcare, the health sciences, and the societies in which they are embedded.