Category Archives: Special Collections

Posts related to special collections held by any UC Libraries.

Vaccination Efforts from Around the Globe: The Story of Dr. Sabin and Dr. Harshavardhan

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Dr.

Dr. Harshavardhan (1969)

By: Dr. G. V. J. A. Harshavardhan and Nathan Hood

Dr. Albert Bruce Sabin’s extremely influential role in the development and production of an Oral Polio Vaccine (OPV) simply cannot be disputed; however, information on the precise details of his contributions are not always as well-known or as accessible as one would hope. Fortunately, The Winkler Center for the History of Health Professions’ NEH-funded project to digitize many of Dr. Sabin’s papers has now reached researchers around the globe. Several months ago, the project attracted the delighted attention of Dr. Harshavardhan, a vaccinologist in India, and the exchange of information since has been enlightening for both sides.

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Wisdom on The Walls of The Old College of Medicine

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By: Nathan Hood

fischer edited

Portrait of Dr. Martin H. Fischer,
undated

Dr. Martin H. Fischer designed many of the interior, decorative elements in and around his lecture hall located within the University of Cincinnati’s old College of Medicine. The majority of these ornaments were engravings expertly crafted by Dr. Fischer’s technical assistant and friend, Josef Kupka. Mr. Kupka was Dr. Fischer’s assistant for thirty years, from 1912 to 1942. He served Dr. Fischer for the greater part of the former’s active career as a professor of physiology at the University of Cincinnati.

It has been suggested that Dr. Fischer conceived the idea for the engravings after recognizing how the daily quotations he shared with his classes interested and inspired his students. However, the idea was only realized after his place of instruction was moved from the University’s Cunningham Hall to the newly constructed College of Medicine building in 1917. Continue reading →

The Stained Glass Windows of Dr. Martin H. Fischer’s Lecture Hall

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By: Nathan Hood

Close-up.
A variation of the University’s
coat of arms remains in the
Health Professions building.

In the University of Cincinnati’s modern- looking Health Professions building, the students in Room 231 have the odd privilege of enjoying several beautifully old, stained glass windows. The windows are reminiscent of a time before the renovations, when the building was the University’s College of Medicine. In the past, one of these rooms served as the physiology lecture hall, initially overseen by Dr. Martin H. Fischer. That intriguing space once featured the entire Cantagalli Pharmacy installation, numerous symbolic engravings, and leather orchestra chairs; but the stained glass windows of that old classroom and the neighboring library are an interesting story by themselves.
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Dr. Martin H. Fischer and The Cantagalli Pharmacy

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By: Nathan Hood

Major renovations of the University of Cincinnati’s previous College of Medicine building, now the Health Professions building, led to The Winkler Center for the History of the Health Professions’ acquisition of numerous, intricately decorated artifacts altogether known as The Cantagalli Pharmacy. The entire collection represents a precise imitation of a 15th-16th Century Italian Apothecary and originally functioned as an exhibit for the 1900 Paris Exposition.

15th-century pharmacy Cantagalli II

The Cantagalli Pharmacy in its Exposition configuration.
This photo also serves as a link to film footage from the 1900 Paris Exposition.

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Countercurrent Distribution Once Again : Notes from the Oesper Collections, No. 32, May/June 2015

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The circa 1949 Craig cylindrical countercurrent distribution apparatus recently donated to the Oesper Collections by Dr. Edward Bennett (Jensen-Thomas Apparatus Collection).

The circa 1949 Craig cylindrical countercurrent
distribution apparatus recently donated to the Oesper Collections by Dr. Edward Bennett (Jensen-Thomas Apparatus Collection).

Issue 32 describes the recent acquisition of an even earlier version of a Craig countercurrent distribution apparatus than the version that was described in issue 3 of 2010.

Click here for all other issues of Notes from The Oesper Collections and to explore the Jensen-Thomas Apparatus Collection.

Nathan Tallman to Attend ILEAD USA

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Nathan Tallman

Nathan Tallman

Nathan Tallman, digital content strategist and assistant librarian for digital collections and repositories at the University of Cincinnati Libraries, has been selected as one of 13 future library leaders to participate in ILEAD USA – Ohio 2015.

Sponsored by The State Library of Ohio, ILEAD USA is a multi-state program designed to help library staff understand and respond to user needs through the application of participatory technology tools. Ohio participants will join others from Wisconsin, South Carolina, Pennsylvania, Delaware, North Dakota, New York, Maine, Illinois and Utah in this national initiative. Participants are organized into teams, mentors and instructors for the year-long program. Tallman and his team members, Jillian Carney (Ohio History Connection), Shannon Kupfer (State Library of Ohio) and Elizabeth Allen (Bexley Public Library), successfully submitted a proposal for a team focused on digital preservation of Ohio cultural heritage materials. Continue reading →

Stumping the Curator : Notes from the Oesper Collections, No. 31, March/April 2015

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The restored 1913 Foster flashpoint apparatus.

The restored 1913 Foster flashpoint apparatus.

Issue 31 of Museum Notes recounts some of the puzzles that have confronted the museum curator when it comes to identifying the nature and use of some of the items that are donated to the museum.

Click here for all other issues of Notes from The Oesper Collections and to explore the Jensen-Thomas Apparatus Collection.

Checking Out the Neil Armstrong Website

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websiteHave you visited the Neil Armstrong Website? The site pays tribute to Armstrong’s professional life from his early career as a test pilot to his monumental first steps on the moon and concluding with his time as a professor and researcher at the University of Cincinnati?

Check out what others are saying about it:

From CHOICE Reviews Online

Anyone curious about the career of the first man to walk on the moon should begin with this site.  The rich content exposes users to highlights as well as little-known but important, interesting aspects of Neil Armstrong’s life.

From Air@Space Smithsonian

The University [of Cincinnati] has a nice online archive commemorating Armstrong’s time on the faculty.  The collection includes some items from the astronaut’s early life, like his pilot’s log book from the Navy, but mostly it covers in pictures and documents his career in academia.

The Siemens Elmiskop 1A Electron Microscope : Notes from the Oesper Collections, No. 30, January/February 2015

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Front view of the Siemens IA Elmiskop in its original location at UC Environmental Health and Safety.

Front view of the Siemens IA Elmiskop in its
original location at UC Environmental Health and Safety.

Issue 30 of Museum Notes highlights the recently acquired, circa 1964, Siemens Elmiskop 1A Microscope now on display on the upper mezzanine of the Chemistry-Biology Library in 503 Rieveschl.

Click here for all other issues of Notes from The Oesper Collections and to explore the Jensen-Thomas Apparatus Collection.