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COLLECTION Identifier: H MS c205

Manfred S. Guttmacher papers

Overview

The collection consists of records created and collected by Manfred S. Guttmacher over the course of his career as a criminal psychiatrist and specialist in the relationship between psychiatry and the law.

Dates

  • Creation: 1928-1964 (inclusive)

Creator

Language of Materials

Papers are primarily in English with a small amount of material in French.

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for research. Access requires advance notice.

Access to personally identifying and patient information is restricted for 80 years from the date of creation. These restrictions are noted with each folder where they appear in Series I, II, and III. Researchers are advised to contact Public Services staff for more information regarding retrieval of material. Consult Public Services for further information.

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

3 cubic feet (3 records center cartons and 1 legal-size document box.)

The papers reflect the personal and professional activities of Manfred Guttmacher and consist of correspondence, writings and publications, lectures and speeches, and professional activities records.

Correspondence (Series I) consists of letters sent to and from Manfred Guttmacher by colleagues and coworkers. Guttmacher was a consultant for the United States Army during the 1940s and 1950s as well as running the Baltimore Court Clinic and his advice was sought by jurists and psychiatrists across the country. Also included here is correspondence with collaborators including Winfred Overholser and Henry Weihofen.

Professional activities and associations records (Series II) consist of records reflecting Guttmacher’s involvement with professional associations, primarily the American Psychiatric Association, and his work with Maryland state bodies as well as with the Baltimore courts. Records include newspaper and magazine clippings, patient reports, case notes, committee records, and administrative records for the Baltimore Court Clinic.

Writings and speeches (Series III) consist of manuscripts, notes, and reprints for some of Guttmacher’s publications, primarily journal articles.

Papers are primarily in English with a small amount of material in French.

Biographical Note

Manfred S. (Schanfarten) Guttmacher (1898-1966), B.A., 1919, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland; M.D., 1923, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine; was a specialist in criminal psychiatry.

Manfred Guttmacher was born May 19, 1898, along with his twin brother Alan Guttmacher (1898-1974) in Baltimore, Maryland, to Adolph and Laura (Oppenheimer) Guttmacher. Manfred graduated from Student Park School in Baltimore in 1915. Both Alan and Manfred received their advanced degrees from Johns Hopkins University; Manfred recieved his B.A. in 1919 and his M.D. in 1923. Manfred held internships at the Johns Hopkins Hospital (1924-1925) and Boston Psychopathic Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts (1927-1928).

Guttmacher held a position as a psychiatrist at the Maryland Mental Hygiene Clinic, Baltimore, Maryland, from 1928-1930 and was an instructor in neurology at Johns Hopkins during the same period. In 1930, he was appointed chief medical adviser at the Court Clinic for the Supreme Bench of Baltimore, a position he held until his death in 1966. During World War II, Guttmacher held the rank of lieutenant colonel with the medical corps of the United States Army and he worked as an independent consultant for the United States Army after the war.

Manfred Guttmacher specialized in criminal psychiatry, including patient care, and engaged in extensive writing and lecturing on crime and mental illness. His career included work on the definitions of insanity and the psychological requirements for responsibility for crime. He was also interested in the development of a revised penal code to replace state codes which were often inconsistent. He was involved in the development of the American Law Institute's Model Penal Code during the 1950s. This project, funded by the Rockefeller Foundation, sought to establish a comprehensive penal code that could be applied across the United States. Guttmacher was an advocate of the court-appointed expert and the establishment of psychiatric clinics associated with the courts.

Guttmacher was a prolific author, publishing numerous articles and books on criminal psychiatry and psychiatry and the law. Titles include The mind of the murderer (1960), Sex offenses (1952) and Psychiatry and the law (1952), the last two co-written with Henry Weihofen (1904-1993) who also worked on the Model Penal Code project. Guttmacher was also the author of numerous articles in medical and lay journals.

Manfred Guttmacher married Jocelyn McDonough in 1928; the couple divorced in 1940. Guttmacher married Carola Blitzman (1917-) in 1946. He died November 7, 1966 in Stevenson, Maryland. At his death, Guttmacher was survived by wife Carola, and four sons: Richard, Jonathan, Laurence, and Alan Edward.

Collection Arrangement

  1. I. Correspondence, 1928-1955
  2. II. Professional Activities and Associations Records, 1931-1964
  3. III. Writings and Speeches, 1929-1964

Immediate Source of Acquisition

The collection was transferred to the Center for the History of Medicine by Jonas R. Rappaport in 1971.

  1. Jonas R. Rappaport. 1971 October 21.

Related Collections in the Francis A. Countway Library of Medicine, Center for the History of Medicine

Processing Information

Processed by Hanna Clutterbuck-Cook, 2018 June.

Staff at the Center for the History of Medicine refoldered and reboxed material and created a finding aid to increase researcher access. Original folder titles were retained where they existed; folder titles were supplied for unfoldered or unidentified materials. Rusty fasteners were removed.

Title
Guttmacher, Manfred S. (Manfred Schanfarber), 1898-1966. Papers, 1928-1964 (inclusive): Finding Aid.
Author
Hanna Clutterbuck-Cook
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
und
EAD ID
med00556

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.

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