Records of the Trustees of the Nathan Lewis Hatfield Prize and Scholarship
Scope and Contents
The records of the Trustees of the Nathan Lewis Hatfield
Prize and Lectureship, spanning 1898 to 1930, consist of the
original deed of the Nathan Lewis Hatfield Prize,
correspondence, and financial records, including ledgers,
checks, checkbooks, receipts, and bank statements.
Much of the correspondence relates to the trustees'
investment of the Nathan Lewis Hatfield Fund. Some of the
letters document the trustees' first major investment, their
1901 purchase of four houses on Gratz Street in
Philadelphia. In a letter of 1907 July 27, trustee Robert
G. Le Conte expresses concern about the depreciation of the
properties; he admits that the trustees were "rather
nervous over the investment" and that they "feared trouble".
After the 1907 liquidation of these properties, the
trustees purchased bonds from the Canton Electric Company
and the Lehigh Valley Railroad.
Also included in the correspondence are two letters from H.
F. Harris, the first recipient of the Nathan Lewis Hatfield
Priie, and a letter from Martin Fischer, the 1909 recipient
of the award. Other significant correspondents include
trustee Robert G. Le Conte and lawyer Charles Francis
Gummey, who provided legal counsel for the trustees.
Monthly bank statements from 1910 to 1917, checks from 1898
to 1925, and a ledger from 1898 to 1902 have been discarded;
the information they contained is recorded elsewhere in the
collection.
Dates
- Creation: 1898 - 1930
Creator
- College of Physicians of Philadelphia. Trustees of the Nathan Lewis Hatfield Prize and Scholarship (Organization)
Biographical / Historical
The Nathan Lewis Hatfield Prize was established by the
College of Physicians of Philadelphia in 1898. Nathan Lewis
Hatfield (1804-1887), a Philadelphia physician, was a
graduate of Jefferson Medical College and a Fellow of the
College of Physicians of Philadelphia from 1855 until his
death in 1887. At a meeting of the College on 1 December
1897, president J. M. Da Costa announced that Walter and
Henry Reed Hatfield wished lo establish a prize in memory of
their father. During a Council meeting on 28 December 1897,
it was decided that the object of this award would be to
further original medical research.
As indicated in the deed of trust of the Nathan Lewis
Hatfield Prize, drafted in January 1898, three trustees were
responsible for administering the Hatfield Prize Fund. In
addition, a Committee on the Nathan Lewis Hatfield Prize,
consisting of three Fellows appointed by the President, was
established to select the recipient of this triennial award.
The deed also stated that the prize would take the form of
an essay contest and was open to all members of the
scientific and medical professions in the United States.
The first Nathan Lewis Hatfield Prize was awarded in 1901 to
Professor H. F. Harris of Atlanta, Georgia. Due to
inadequate submissions, the next prize was not awarded until
1909. In 1913, the rules governing the prize were amended,
and the award was converted to a lectureship. The Hatfield
Lectures were discontinued in 1972, but reinstated i11 1984
by Brooke Roberts, president of the College, who selected
new trustees for the fund. At this time, the trustees
elected to combine the Hatfield Lecture Fund with the
College's Common Discretionary Fund, thereby eliminating the
trusteeship. As of 1991, the Hatfield Lectureship is
administered through the College's Committee on Program.
Full Extent
.8 Linear feet (2 boxes)
Language of Materials
English
Custodial History
This collection of records of the Trustees of the Nathan
Lewis Hatfield Prize and Lectureship was donated to the
College of Physicians of Philadelphia by Onille Horwitz,
circa 24 January 1984.
The collection was processed and catalogued in 1991.
Genre / Form
- Title
- Records of the Trustees of the Nathan Lewis Hatfield Prize and Scholarship
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the Historical Medical Library of The College of Physicians of Philadelphia Repository
19 S. 22nd Street
Philadelphia PA 19103 United States
