This annotated bibliography of reference works or "secondary sources" in the history of medicine was prepared to assist people interested in reading or writing about medical history. Many physicians and others involved in health care are curious about the history of medicine, but few received formal training in it. Their interest may be casual or serious, and their intent may be simple enjoyment, self-education, or a desire to contribute something to the literature of medical history through research and writing.
Before commencing a historical project, it is important to review what has been written on the subject. But how does one do this? Like most disciplines, the history of medicine has its own literature. Thousands of monographs exist on various aspects of the history of medicine and allied sciences, an equal number of full-length biographies of physicians and medical scientists, and tens of thousands of articles on these subjects. The books listed here are the key to this vast literature.
This annotated list of references includes comprehensive bibliographies of primary sources (original printed works and manuscripts), secondary sources (historical or derivative works), general histories of medicine, and collected biographies of physicians and medical scientists. Most of the titles included are broad in scope. By consulting them the reader or researcher will find references to specific topics of interest.
This list is limited to printed sources. The National Library of Medicine developed HISTLINE to permit online computer searches of their enormous database of monographs, journal articles, and other publications in the history of medicine and related sciences. Information on HISTLINE can be obtained from the MEDLARS Management Section, National Library of Medicine, Bethesda, MD 20894.
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Historiography and Bibliographies of Secondary Sources
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1. Blake JB, Roos C. Medical Reference Works, 1679-1966: A Selected Bibliography. Chicago: Medical Library Association; 1967.
Lists more than 2700 reference works, including many secondary sources in the history of medicine.
2. Clarke E, ed. Modern Methods in the History of Medicine. London: Athlone Press; 1971.
Includes 21 essays on historiography with emphasis on newer techniques applicable to the history of medicine.
3. Corsi P, Weindling P, eds. Information Sources in the History of Science and Medicine. London: Butterworth Scientific; 1983.
A guide to recent trends in the historiography of medicine and science; includes extensive bibliographies. Charles Webster wrote the chapter on the history of medicine.
4. Durbin PT, ed. A Guide to the Culture of Science, Technology, and Medicine. New York: Free Press; 1980.
Includes bibliographic essays on the history, philosophy, and sociology of medicine.
5. Emmerson JS. Translations of Medical Classics: A List. Newcastle upon Tyne: University Library; 1965.
References to English translations of 400 classic medical works.
6. Erlen J. The History of the Health Care Sciences and Health Care, 1700-1980: A Selective Annotated Bibliography. New York: Garland; 1984.
Bibliography of secondary sources in the history of medicine and allied fields; includes 5004 entries, mostly annotated. Monographs, journal articles, and dissertations are included. Arranged by subject and includes a name index.
7. Freidel F, ed. Harvard Guide to American History. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press; 1974.
Comprehensive, although somewhat dated, short-title list of secondary sources on practically every aspect of American history. Includes a section of works on historiography.
8. Kronick DA. The Literature of the Life Sciences. Philadelphia: iSi Press; 1985.
Provides an overview of the evolution of the literature of medicine and includes chapters devoted to the distinction between primary and secondary sources, searching and reading the medical literature, and writing and publishing medical papers.
9. Miller G. Bibliography of the History of Medicine of the United States and Canada, 1939-1960. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Press; 1964.
Arranged by subject and includes references to thousands of articles dealing with the history of medicine in North America. Extensive biographical section.
10. Moore G. A Guide to the Literature of the History of Medicine. Toronto: University of Toronto Library; 1978.
Annotated list of secondary sources in medical history arranged by subject.
11. National Library of Medicine. Bibliography of the History of Medicine. Bethesda, Maryland: U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, Public Health Service. 1965-present.
Comprehensive bibliography of books and articles on the history of medicine that is published annually. Cumulative bibliographies are issued every 5 years. Each volume is arranged by topic with a chronologic and regional breakdown by subject. Includes a section listing biographies.
12. Smit P. History of the Life Sciences: An Annotated Bibliography. New York: Hafner; 1974.
Annotated bibliography of more than 4000 secondary sources in the history of medicine and allied sciences. Includes an extensive section on individual and collected biographies.
13. Wellcome Historical Medical Library. Current Work in the History of Medicine. London: Wellcome Institute for the History of Medicine; 1954-present.
Index of articles on the history of medicine and allied sciences arranged alphabetically by subject. Published quarterly, it includes an author index and a listing of new books.
14. Wellcome Institute for the History of Medicine. Subject Catalogue of the History of Medicine and Related Sciences. Munich: Kraus International Publications; 1980.
Exhaustive bibliography of secondary sources in the history of medicine that includes a subject section in nine volumes, a biographical section in five volumes, and a topographic section in five volumes. An indispensable reference that should be consulted before embarking on any serious historical study.
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History of Medicine: General Surveys
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15. Ackerknecht EH. A Short History of Medicine. Revised ed. Baltimore, Maryland: Johns Hopkins University Press; 1982.
Brief survey of major themes and events in medical history from antiquity to the early 20th century. Includes a list of suggested readings and a name-subject index.
16. Bordley J, Harvey AM. Two Centuries of American Medicine, 1776-1976. Philadelphia: W. B. Saunders; 1976.
Emphasizes American medicine since the middle of the 19th century. The sections on medical education and medical research are especially valuable. A chronology of important events and a name-subject index are included.
17. Cassedy JH. Medicine in America: A Short History. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press; 1991.
Lively survey of American medicine that reflects the recent emphasis on social history. In addition to traditional medicine, unorthodox healers are discussed.
18. Castiglioni A. A History of Medicine. Krumbhaar EB, ed. 2d ed. New York: Knopf; 1947.
Comprehensive survey of the history of medicine from antiquity to the early 20th century with emphasis on Europe. Name and subject indexes and a useful bibliography.
19. Faber KH. Nosography: The Evolution of Clinical Medicine in Modern Times. 2d ed. New York: AMS Press; 1978.
Beginning in the 17th century with Sydenham, the author traces the development of what has come to be called internal medicine. Trends rather than individuals or events are emphasized. The sections dealing with the "Paris school" and scientific medicine in Germany in the 19th century are especially valuable.
20. Garrison FH. An Introduction to the History of Medicine. 4th ed. Philadelphia: W. B. Saunders; 1929.
Chronologically arranged compendium of medical history from ancient times to the early 20th century. An essential reference that emphasizes individuals and events rather than trends and includes numerous references to original sources, an 80 page chronology of important events in medical history, and name and subject indexes.
21. Mettler CC. History of Medicine. Mettler FA, ed. Philadelphia: Blakiston; 1947.
Arranged by subject. Useful for tracing the development of specific medical and surgical specialties.
22. Packard FR. History of Medicine in the United States. 2d ed. 2 vols. New York: Hoeber; 1931.
Comprehensive history of American medicine from colonization to the middle of the 19th century. Colonial epidemics, early medical schools, and medicine during the Revolution are especially well covered. Name and subject indexes and an extensive bibliography of secondary sources.
23. Shryock RH. The Development of Modern Medicine: An Interpretation of the Social and Scientific Factors Involved. Madison, Wisconsin: University of Wisconsin Press; 1979.
Trends rather than names and dates are emphasized. Stresses the importance of viewing the evolution of medicine in the context of social, political, and economic events.
24. Singer C, Underwood EA. A Short History of Medicine. 2d ed. Oxford: Clarendon; 1962.
Chronologically arranged. Includes a useful bibliography of secondary sources.
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Bibliographies of Primary Sources
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25. Bloomfield AL. A Bibliography of Internal Medicine: Communicable Diseases. Chicago: University of Chicago Press; 1958.
Excerpts from classic publications on 30 communicable diseases reprinted with brief historical summaries of each condition.
26. Bloomfield AL. A Bibliography of Internal Medicine: Selected Diseases. Chicago: University of Chicago Press; 1960.
Annotated bibliography of the historical literature on several common medical conditions with excerpts from important primary sources. Cardiac, endocrine, and hematologic diseases are the main focus.
27. Kelly EC. Encyclopedia of Medical Sources. Baltimore: Williams & Wilkins; 1948.
Arranged alphabetically by author. Cites the source of the original descriptions of several thousand conditions and procedures that are associated with the name of a physician, surgeon, or medical scientist.
28. Norman JM, ed. Morton's Medical Bibliography: An Annotated Check-list of Texts Illustrating the History of Medicine. (Garrison and Morton) 5th ed. Brookfield, Vermont: Gower; 1991.
The standard guide to classic books and papers in medicine and related scientific disciplines. Includes more than 6000 citations to primary sources and several hundred citations to secondary sources. Arranged chronologically within each subject and includes author and subject indexes.
29. Index-catalogue of the Library of the Surgeon-General's Office, United States Army. Five series (61 vols.): v 1-16; 2d series, v 1-21; 3d series, v 1-10; 4th series, v 1-11 (A-Mn); 5th series, v 1-3. Washington: U.S. Government Printing Office; 1880-1961.
An indispensable guide to primary sources in medicine. Includes references to biographies. Arranged alphabetically, author and subject headings are listed together. Includes more than 3 million books, articles, and pamphlets from the 16th to the 20th century. Items listed are now at the National Library of Medicine.
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Collected Biographies of Physicians and Medical Scientists
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30. Atkinson WB. A Biographical Dictionary of Contemporary American Physicians and Surgeons. 2d ed. Philadelphia: D. G. Brinton; 1880.
Biographical sketches of approximately 2500 19th century American physicians and surgeons. The first edition (1878) included several dozen engraved portraits deleted from this expanded edition.
31. Bailey H, Bishop WJ. Notable Names in Medicine and Surgery. 4th ed. London: H. K. Lewis; 1983.
Includes biographic sketches and portraits of several hundred persons whose names are associated with medical and surgical conditions and procedures.
32. Barr ES. An Index to Biographical Fragments in Unspecialized Scientific Journals. University of Alabama Press; 1973.
Guide to published biographic sketches of prominent scientists (including biomedical scientists). Includes 15 000 entries.
33. Bayle A, Thillaye A. Biographie M
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Aaedicale par Ordre Chronologique. Two volumes. Amsterdam: B. M. Israel; 1967.
Originally published in 1855. Chronologically arranged biographical dictionary. Especially valuable for its coverage of French physicians and surgeons.
34. Fischer I. Biographisches Lexikon der Hervorragenden
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Adunfzig Jahre. Two volumes. Berlin: Urban & Schwarzenberg; 1932-1933.
Emphasis on western Europe, but includes leading physicians and surgeons from other parts of the world. Supplements Hirsch (item 38).
35. Fox DM, Meldrum M, Rezak I; eds. Nobel Laureates in Medicine or Physiology: A Biographical Dictionary. New York: Garland; 1990.
Includes biographical sketches of every recipient of the Nobel Prize in medicine or physiology between 1901 and 1989. Entries also contain lists of selected primary and secondary sources.
36. Fruton JS. A Bio-bibliography for the History of the Biochemical Sciences since 1800. Philadelphia: American Philosophical Society; 1982.
The scope is greater than the title suggests. References to biographies of several thousand medical scientists from the 18th to the 20th century. A supplement appeared in 1985.
37. Gillispie C, ed. Dictionary of Scientific Biography. 18 vols. New York: Scribner; 1970-1990.
Although most entries relate to the physical sciences, several hundred biographies of medical scientists are included. Covers antiquity to the 20th century, and each sketch is accompanied by a list of references to primary and secondary sources. Volume 16 is a comprehensive name and subject index.
38. Hirsch A; ed. Biographisches Lexikon der Hervorragenden
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Adolker. 2d ed. Six volumes. Berlin: Urban & Schwarzenberg; 1929-1934.
Includes biographical sketches of several thousand prominent physicians and surgeons from antiquity to the end of the 19th century. Although the emphasis is on western Europe, leading figures from other parts of the world are also included. Most entries contain references to the author's most important publications.
39. Holloway LM, Feind EN, Holloway GN. Medical Obituaries: American Physicians' Biographical Notices in Selected Medical Journals before 1907. New York: Garland; 1981.
An indispensable guide to biographies and obituary notices of approximately 15 000 American physicians who practiced in the 19th century. Many minor or obscure physicians are included.
40. Kaufman M, Galishoff S, Savitt TL, eds. Dictionary of American Medical Biography. 2 vols. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press; 1984.
Includes biographical sketches of prominent American physicians and nontraditional healers from colonial times to the 20th century. Each entry includes references to pertinent primary and secondary sources. Appendixes include listings by date of birth, place of birth, state where prominent, specialty or occupation, and medical college.
41. Kelly HA, Burrage WL, eds. Dictionary of American Medical Biography: Lives of Eminent Physicians of the United States and Canada, from the Earliest Times. New York: D. Appleton & Co.; 1928.
Contains more than 2000 alphabetically arranged biographical sketches. The most useful single source for information about prominent American physicians. Includes a bibliography of biographical sources. The first edition, edited by Kelly alone, included references to additional biographic sources for each subject that were deleted in this final edition.
42. Lindeboom GA. Dutch Medical Biography: A Biographical Dictionary of Dutch Physicians and Surgeons, 1475-1975. Amsterdam: Rodopi; 1984.
Comprehensive bibliography of Dutch medicine. Includes several hundred entries as well as references to primary and secondary sources.
43. Morton LT, Moore RJ. A Bibliography of Medical and Biomedical Biography. Brookfield, Vermont: Gower; 1989.
An alphabetically arranged listing of English-language biographies of approximately 1600 physicians and medical scientists. Also includes lists of collective biographies. Some entries include the location of archival materials pertaining to the subject.
44. Munk W. The Roll of the Royal College of Physicians of London, Comprising Biographical Sketches. Three volumes. London: Royal College of Physicians; 1878.
Brief biographical sketches of 1700 leading British physicians elected to the College before 1825. G. H. Brown edited a supplementary volume covering 1826-1925 (London: Royal College of Physicians, 1955), and R. Trail edited another volume covering 1926-1965 (London: Royal College of Physicians, 1968).
45. Stone RF. Biography of Eminent American Physicians and Surgeons. Indianapolis, Indiana: Carlon & Hollenbeck, 1894.
Includes hundreds of biographic sketches. Complements similar works by Atkinson and Watson.
46. Talbott J. A Biographical History of Medicine: Excerpts and Essays on the Men and Their Work. New York: Grune & Stratton; 1970.
Arranged chronologically. Includes several hundred brief biographical sketches and excerpts from the most significant works of the subjects represented.
47. Thacher J. American Medical Biography. Memoirs of Eminent Physicians Who Have Flourished in America. To which is Prefixed a Succinct History of Medical Science in the United States, from the First Settlement of the Country. New York: Milford House; 1967.
Originally published in 1828. Includes biographical sketches of leading early American physicians and surgeons and a survey of the history of medicine in the United States to the early 19th century.
48. Watson IA. Physicians and Surgeons of America. (Illustrated.) A Collection of Biographical Sketches of the Regular Medical Profession. Concord, New Hampshire: Republican Press Association; 1896.
Includes several hundred biographical sketches as well as numerous portraits of prominent as well as lesser-known medical practitioners.
49. Chaff SL, Haimbach R, Fenichel C, Woodside NB. Women in Medicine: a Bibliography of the Literature on Women Physicians. Metuchen, New Jersey: Scarecrow Press; 1977.
Lists more than 4000 books and articles on all aspects of women and medicine published between 1750 and 1975. Author, subject, and personal name indexes are included. Annotated.
50. Clendening L. Source Book of Medical History. New York: Hoeber; 1942.
Includes excerpts from almost 150 important publications from antiquity to 1900. Almost half is devoted to the 19th century. Subjects include preventive medicine, modern clinical descriptions, instruments of precision, and the rise of the specialties.
51. Fye WB. The literature and history of internal medicine: an annotated bibliography. Ann Intern Med. 1977; 87:123-8.
Emphasizes books on the history of internal medicine and its subspecialties. Subspecialties included are allergy, cardiology, dermatology, endocrinology, gastroenterology, hematology, infectious diseases, nephrology, neurology, pulmonary medicine, and rheumatology.
52. Gilbert JB. Disease and Destiny: A Bibliography of Medical References to the Famous. London: Dawsons of Pall Mall; 1962.
Alphabetically arranged. Cites references to their medical conditions as well as to their writings about medical subjects. Includes prominent people in all aspects of world culture from antiquity to the 20th century.
53. Harvey AM. Science at the Bedside: Clinical Research in American Medicine, 1905-1945. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press; 1981.
A comprehensive history of clinical investigation. Provides insight into the development of modern academic medicine in America. Name and subject indexes.
54. Hirtle PB, Rothenberg DE, eds. Blacks in American Medicine: A Bibliography of Secondary Sources, 1970-1987. Bethesda, Maryland: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, National Institutes of Health; 1988.
A short title list of 339 historical publications on all aspects of African Americans and medicine and the allied health professions. Alphabetically arranged bibliography includes a name-subject index.
55. Lipp, MR. Medical Landmarks USA: A Travel Guide to Historic Sites, Architectural Gems, Remarkable Museums and Libraries, and Other Places of Health-Related Interest. New York: McGraw-Hill; 1991.
Describes more than 600 sites across America that are of interest from the standpoint of the history of medicine. Hospitals, museums, libraries, and other sites are included. Arranged geographically.
56. Major RH. Classic Descriptions of Disease with Biographical Sketches of the Authors. 3d ed. Springfield, Illinois: Charles C. Thomas; 1945.
Arranged by subject. Includes excerpts from original or classic descriptions of nearly 100 common disorders.
57. Maulitz RC, Long DE, eds. Grand Rounds: One Hundred Years of Internal Medicine. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press; 1988.
Discusses the history and literature of internal medicine. Also includes chapters devoted to the history of cardiology, gastroenterology, infectious diseases, nephrology, and rheumatology. Emphasizes American medicine.
58. Power D, Thompson CJ. Chronologica Medica: A Handlist of Persons, Periods and Events in the History of Medicine. New York: Hoeber; 1923.
Chronologically lists the important developments and influential physicians from antiquity to the end of the 19th century.
59. Strauss MB, ed. Familiar Medical Quotations. Boston: Little, Brown; 1968.
Includes more than 7000 quotations; an index of almost 40 000 key words, phrases, and concepts; and author and subject indexes.
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