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COLLECTION Identifier: H MS c198

Fleischner Society records

Overview

The Fleischner Society records, 1896, 1963-2003 (inclusive), 1969-1994 (bulk), are the product of the Society’s administrative functions, publishing activities, and membership selection process.

Dates

  • Creation: 1896, 1963-2003 (inclusive),
  • Creation: Majority of material found within 1969-1994 .

Creator

Language of Materials

Records are in English.

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for researhc. Access requires advance notice. Access to Harvard University records is restricted for 50 years from the date of creation. These restrictions are noted where they appear in Series I. Access to personal and patient information is restricted for 80 years from the date of creation. These restrictions appear in Series I and III. Researchers may apply for access to restricted records. Consult Public Services for further information.

The Records 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

7.95 cubic feet (8 records center cartons, 1 half legal size document box, 1 flat oversize box, and 1 slide box)

The Fleischner Society records, 1896, 1963-2003 (inclusive), are the product of the Society’s administrative, publishing, and membership recruitment activities. The records are grouped in three series: Series I. Administrative Records (1896, 1963-2002, undated); Series II. Writings and Publications (1980-2000); and Series III. Membership Records (1966-2003, undated).

Series I constitutes the bulk of the collection and consists of: correspondence regarding annual symposium planning and membership recruitment; annual symposium planning records and programs; meeting minutes; financial reports; membership selection records; copies and drafts of symposium lectures on chest diseases and thoracic radiography; articles of incorporation and by-laws; and the records of both the Society’s Archives Committee and its Ad Hoc Committee for Society Reassessment. The series also contains photographs from Society meetings, photographic prints used in lectures and scientific papers, negatives, slides, and memorabilia. Series II consists of correspondence, publications and publication reprints, drafts, and critiques of three of the Society’s published works: “Glossary of Terms for Thoracic Radiology” (1984); The Fleischner Society: A Quarter Century of Progress (1999); and The Fleischner Society: A 30th Anniversary Retrospective (2000). Series III is comprised of the curricula vitae of Fleischner Society membership nominees and members; correspondence regarding member deaths and membership status changes; memorial tributes for deceased members; publications by members prior to their membership in the Fleischner Society; and a videotape entitled, In Memoriam: Benjamin Felson (1913-1988), University of Cincinnati.

Materials are entirely in English.

Historical Notes

The Fleischner Society, named for radiologist Felix Fleischner (1893-1969), was founded in 1969 to further research in fields related to chest radiology and human chest diseases. Fleischner was a chest radiologist who supported the Society’s formation, but died before its first meeting. Founding members of the Society were Robert G. Fraser (1921-2002, the Society’s first President), Norman Blank (1925-1988), Benjamin Felson (1913-1988), Richard Greenspan (1925-2004), Eric N. C. Milne (1929-), Leo Rigler (1896-1979), George Simon (1902-1977), and Morris Simon (1926-2005). It has since grown into an international and multidisciplinary organization of approximately sixty active members, consisting of both radiologists and non-radiologists. Since at least 1977, the Society has received co-sponsorship for its annual symposia from the American College of Radiology, enabling the Society to offer symposium participants Continuing Medical Education Credit from the American Medical Association.

The Fleischner Society was officially incorporated and chartered by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts as a charitable organization in 1972, with offices in the Francis A. Countway Library of Medicine at Harvard Medical School, Boston. Offices have since rotated locations based on the annual election of new officers. According to a statement by Lloyd E. Hawes (1912-1988), the Society’s first archivist, the Society also decided to designate the Francis A. Countway Library of Medicine as the repository of its records around 1972. The organization is governed by its bylaws, originally adopted in 1972, which address the Society’s objectives, membership, governing body, annual meetings, committees, and elections. Officer elections are held annually. The President, President-elect, and Treasurer-elect are limited to one term, while the Secretary and Treasurer may serve up to three terms. Membership in the Society is by invitation only. There are four types of membership: active; senior; inactive; and honorary, and the bylaws limit the organization to approximately sixty active members. Prospective members must be nominated by an active member, followed by a mandated minimum two-thirds vote of the active membership. Members may serve on committees relating to meetings, membership, officer nomination, Society rules, publications, and the Society’s archives.

The primary focuses of the organization are its annual meetings and symposia, where members meet to share their research and elect new members and officers. A regular component of the annual meeting is the Fleischner Lecture, introduced at the 1971 meeting in Williamsburg, Virginia, in which an appointed member lectures on a chosen topic. The annual meeting also serves as the location for awarding the Memorial Fellowship Award, in which a non-member under forty years of age is recognized for original work concerning respiratory system imaging. The award, originally titled the George Simon Memorial Fellowship Award, was first given in 1978, at the San Diego, California meeting. The Society has published numerous works, including: The Fleischner Society: A Quarter Century of Progress (1999); Pulmonary Radiology (1999); and The Fleischner Society: A Thirtieth Anniversary Retrospective (2000). Members also maintain the “Glossary of Terms for Thoracic Radiology,” which has been updated and published several times since 1984 in both Radiology and the American Journal of Roentgenology. More information on the Fleischner Society may be found at its website: http://www.fleischner.org/.

Series and Subseries in the Collection

  1. I. Administrative Records, 1896, 1963-2002, undated
  2. II. Writings and Publications, 1980-2000
  3. III. Membership Records, 1966-2003, undated
  4. ___ A. Curricula Vitae, 1980-1994, undated
  5. ___ B. Correspondence, Memorial Tributes, and Member Publications, 1966-2003, undated

Immediate Source of Acquisition

  1. Accession number 2001-010. Donated on behalf of the Fleischner Society by Reginald Greene, via William H. Northway, November 1999.
  2. Accession number 2011-142. Donated on behalf of the Fleischner Society by Richard Fraser, June 2011.

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

  1. Papers of Felix Fleischner. H MS c57.
  2. Papers of Morris Simon. H MS c227.

Separations

Correspondence of Felix Fleischner and inventory drafts for his papers were removed from the collection and incorporated into the Felix Fleischner papers. A bound copy of Pulmonary Radiology by Potchen, Grainger and Greene was also removed and transferred to the Center for the History of Medicine's Rare Books collection.

Resources

  • Fraser, Robert G. The Fleischner Society: A Quarter Century of Progress. Birmingham: Robert and Joanne Fraser, 1999.

Processing Information

Processed by Amber LaFountain under the supervision of Bryan Sutherland, Processing Archivist, and Meghan Bannon, Processing Archivist, Radiology, Fall 2011.

Processing staff in the Center for the History of Medicine analyzed, arranged, and described the papers, and created a finding aid to improve access. Items were removed from three ring binders 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. Duplicate records and records that did not meet the collection policy of the Center for the History of Medicine were discarded.

Subject

Creator

Title
Fleischner Society. Records, 1896, 1963-2003 (inclusive), 1969-1994 (bulk): Finding Aid.
Author
Francis A. Countway Library of Medicine. Center for the History of Medicine.
Language of description
und
EAD ID
med00151

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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