John H. Girdner papers
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Abstract
This collection of the work of New York doctor John Harvey Girdner includes drafts of articles and speeches, correspondence, and other ephemera related to Girdner's life and writings.
Biographical / Historical
John Harvey Girdner (1856-1933) was born in Tennessee to Dr. William G. Girdner and his wife Mary Ann. He graduated from Tusculum College in Tennessee in 1876 and continued his education at New York University Medical School, graduating with the highest honors in 1879. In 1886, he married Adela Overton Pratt in Manhattan. He became a Fellow of the New York Academy of Medicine in 1887.
Girdner helped treat President James Garfield when he was shot in 1881. Later he invented the "Girdner telephonic bullet probe," a device widely used to remove bullets before x-rays. He was also a pioneer in skin grafting and performed the first successful transfer of skin from a dead body to a living person. He was a founder of the Post-Graduate Medical School and Hospital of New York City. He taught classes and wrote articles for medical journals.
One of his most well known books is Newyorkitis, a satirical study of a number of physical symptoms prevalent in the inhabitants of New York: "haste, rudeness, restlessness, arrogance, contemptuousness, excitability, anxiety, pursuit of novelty and of grandeur, pretensions of omniscience, and therefore prescience, which of course undermines any pleasure taken in novelty."
According to his obituary in the Brooklyn Eagle, Girdner died of arteriosclerosis in 1933 while visiting his daughter, Mrs. Kimball C. Atwood Jr., in Islip, New York. He was buried in Kenisco Cemetery in Valhalla, New York, and he was survived by his wife, son, and two daughters.
Arrangement
The folders are arranged chronologically.
Scope and Contents
This collection includes John H. Girdner's formal election to the New York Academy of Medicine; a typed draft of his 1896 article "The Plague of City Noises"; correpondence related to and a manuscript draft of his 1897 article "Municipal Legislation and Unnecessary Street Noise"; a typed copy of a speech he gave in 1900 about Governor Odell of New York; correspondence with Charles Henry Parkhurst and William Jennings Bryan; reviews and correspondence about the promotion of Girdner's 1901 book Newyorkitis; a printed copy of his article "The Care of the Human Body"; a typed copy of a 1904 speech given at a "Labor Banquet"; a typed copy of his 1909 article "The Economy of Thought"; undated manuscript notes on "the eight functions of the soul"; and an undated manuscript of an essay on "Mental Economy".
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Organizations
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Access Restrictions
Materials in this collection may be stored offsite. For more information on making arrangements to consult them, please visit www.nyhistory.org/library/visit.
Use Restrictions
Application to use images from this collection for publication should be made in writing to: Department of Rights and Reproductions, The New York Historical, 170 Central Park West, New York, NY 10024-5194, rightsandrepro@nyhistory.org.
Preferred Citation
The collection should be cited as: John H. Girdner Papers, MS 3251, The New York Historical.
Location of Materials
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Gift of Frederic L. Atwood, Jr., 2024. John Harvey Girdner was Atwood's great-grandfather.
About this Guide
Processing Information
Items were transferred to archival folders. The labels from the original folders were copied verbatim.
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Dr. John H. Girdner, Resident Fellow, 1887 October 6
Scope and Contents
Printed form letter with manuscript additions notifying Girdner that he has been elected a Resident Fellow of the New York Academy of Medicine on October 6, 1887.
The Plague of City Noises, [1896?], inclusive
Scope and Contents
Typed draft of "The Plague of City Noises," an article Girdner published in The North American Review (vol. 63) in 1896
Municipal Legislation and Unnecessary Street Noise, 1897, inclusive
Scope and Contents
Autograph letter signed from Edward Owen, Office of the Commissioners of Accounts, to Doctor [John H. Girdner], New York, 1897 August 2
Autograph letter signed from Edward Owen, Office of the Commissioners of Accounts, to Doctor [John H. Girdner], New York, 1897 August 3
Autograph letter signed from Edward Owen, Office of the Commissioners of Accounts, to Doctor [John H. Girdner], New York, 1897 August 4
Autograph letter signed from Charles [Wendel?] to Dr. J.H. Girdner, New York, 1897 May 9 (signature is cut off and name may be longer than Wendel)
Manuscript draft of "Municipal Legislation and Unnecessary Street Noise" by John H. Girdner
Speech to Governor [Benjamin Barker] Odell, [1900?], inclusive
Scope and Contents
Typed draft of a speech about Governor Odell of New York. Odell became governor on January 1, 1901, so this speech probably dates to late 1900 (Girdner writes, "After the first of January, Governor Odell will be my Governor as much as any other citizen's....")
C.H. Parkhurst to John H. Girdner re: W.J. Bryan, 1900-1902, inclusive
Scope and Contents
Typed letter signed from C.H. [Charles Henry] Parkhurst to John H. Girdner, New York, 1900 January 23 (with an autograph reply from Girdner to Parkhurst on verso)
Autograph letter signed from [William Jennings] Bryan to J.H. Girdner, [Scranton, PA], [1902 March 9], with envelope (place of writing and date are from postmark)
Newyorkitis reviews, 1901, inclusive
Scope and Contents
Typed letter signed from E.H. [Ernest Howard] Crosby to [John H.] Girdner, Rhinebeck, NY, 1901 May 20
Various fragments of printed reviews of Girdner's Newyorkitis in French in English (Reviews are in poor physical condition and should not be handled)
Grafton Press correspondence for Newyorkitis, 1901, inclusive
Scope and Contents
Grafton Press catalog of recent publications, including Girdner's Newyorkitis
Typed letter signed from Robert G. Cooke of the Grafton Press to John H. Girdner, New York, 1901 September 13, concerning his proposed promotion of Girdner's Newyorkitis
The Care of the Human Body, 1901 February, inclusive
Scope and Contents
A printed copy of Girdner's article "The Care of the Human Body. Some titles are highlighted in blue, and "Munsey's Magazine February 1901" is written at the head of the first page.
Speech to Labor Banquet, 1904, inclusive
Scope and Contents
Typed draft of speech Girdner delivered "at the Labor Banquet to honor Thomas E. Watson at Palm Garden, New York City," 1904 October 5.
The Economy of Thought, 1909 April, inclusive
Scope and Contents
Typescript draft with manuscript emendations of "The Economy of Thought," an essay written by Girdner that was published in New York World (according to manuscript note at head of first page).
The Eight Functions of the Soul, undated, inclusive
Scope and Contents
Manuscript notes on the "8 functions of the soul"
Mental Economy, undated, inclusive
Scope and Contents
Manuscript draft of an essay called "Mental Economy"