Historical Archives

Search Guide to Historical Archives Available Online

The Society’s collection of available historical archives is online through the Center for the History of Medicine, Francis A. Countway Library of Medicine in Boston, MA. Seachable online since 2009, this was made possible through a financial contribution from the Society under the leadership of then-President Ed Ryan, MD, DTMH, FASTMH, with the goal of opening the records to research on behalf of the membership and in service to the public.

In Boston or traveling to Boston soon? You can view the collection in person. See details below on making an appointment.

1908 to 2013
ASTMH records date from 1908 to 2013, with the bulk of the collection dating from the 1930s through the 1980s. The collection reflects the activities and development of the Society between the early 1900s and the early 2000s, including the 1951 merger of four societies to create ASTMH: the American Academy of Tropical Medicine, American Foundation for Tropical Medicine, National Malaria Society and Society of Tropical Medicine.

 

Historical records include: Correspondence Agendas Meeting minutes Charges Publications Photographs Slides, audio and A/V recordings Conference programs Publication abstracts and proposals

The historical records also reflect the Society's involvement with other professional medical organizations, including the AMA, American Type Culture Collection, American Society of Parasitology, Gorgas Memorial Institute of Tropical and Preventive Medicine, and American Society of Tropical Veterinary Medicine and Hygiene. Additionally, the records reflect the activities of Society subgroups, particularly the American Committee on Arthropod-borne Viruses (ACAV), which was established in 1961 and made a formal part of the Society in 1987.

Keep in Mind:
 – Be as precise as possible when submitting a request. Countway staff cannot perform extensive searches for specific documents nor scan large numbers of documents.
 – Free: Low-res scans in PDF format. Countway will charge a fee for high-res, professionally scanned copy suitable for printing.
 – Scans take at least one business week.
 – Want to search something from the collection in person at Countway? Email chm@hms.harvard.edu with your request (and include what box(es) you are interested in) at least two full days before arriving at the Center.

Assistance
Center for the History of Medicine staff are available to help navigate the guide, answer questions about records in the collection, help set up appointments to use the records on-site in its Boston offices, and process requests for scans or photocopies of specific records in the collection. Please contact the Center’s Public Services staff via email at chm@hms.harvard.edu. Detailed information about the Center’s research and access policies are available on its website at https://www.countway.harvard.edu/chom/research-and-access.