Summary Information
Wisconsin Surgical Society Records
1946-1982
- Wisconsin Surgical Society
Micro 402; Micro 802; Micro 939
7 reels of microfilm (35mm)
Wisconsin Historical Society (Map)
Records of the Wisconsin Surgical Society, a statewide association of surgeons; documenting medical treatment developments, the Society's efforts to promulgate and enforce a code of ethics for its members, and its reaction to legislation affecting the profession. The major portion of the collection consists of programs and papers presented at semi-annual meetings. Also included are articles of organization and bylaws, minutes, correspondence, membership materials, newsletters, and other documents.
English
http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/wiarchives.uw-whs-micr0402 ↑ Bookmark this ↑
Biography/History
Plans for the formation of the Wisconsin Surgical Society began in June, 1946 when twelve Wisconsin surgeons met in Milwaukee to organize a new statewide surgical association. Prior to its founding, there existed the Wisconsin Academy of Surgery, a loosely organized surgical organization which had evolved from the earlier Milwaukee Society for Clinical Surgery. In order to form the new group the Academy's members voted to disband, and its officers and council became the nucleus of the new society. At an organizational meeting in September 1946, 51 founding members formed the Wisconsin Surgical Society. Dr. F. Gregory Connell was elected the first president.
The Society attempted to bring together surgeons from all sections of the state in order to cultivate and improve the surgical services patients received and to promote closer professional and social relations among the state's surgeons. In its efforts to improve surgery, the Society encouraged members to present papers at semi-annual scientific meetings during which surgical experiences could be shared and critiqued. In addition the Society promulgated a code of ethics. In a serious effort to encourage ethical behavior among its members in 1959 the Society voted to audit members' records from the standpoint of ethical practices. In this way the Society hoped to prevent such practices as the direct payment of assistants by surgeons and charging a reduced fee if the referring doctor assisted in the operation. Through the Society's efforts, practices such as fee splitting and itinerant surgery were reduced. At this writing (1980), the Society has over 225 active members.
Scope and Content Note
The records of the Wisconsin Surgical Society all were loaned to the Historical Society for microfilming then return of the originals. This microfilming occurred at three different times so the collection is described below in three parts, each with its own microfilm call number.
Part I (Micro 402) was produced in 1960 and consists of 1 reel of microfilm containing bylaws, records of meetings, and reports, June 9, 1946 - Sept. 18, 1959.
Part II (Micro 802) was produced in 1980 and consists of 5 reels of microfilmed records dating 1947-1978. These records have been organized in three categories: Minutes, a Meetings File, and a Miscellaneous File.
Minutes consist of a minutebook, 1957-1966, and fragmentary miscellaneous minutes, 1947-1978. Included are minutes of both council and business meetings. Among the topics discussed are routine matters such as applications for membership, dues and general finances of the Society, the formation of various committees, changes in the organization's by-laws, and arrangements for semi-annual meetings. The Society's efforts to promulgate and enforce a code of ethics and its reaction to legislation affecting the medical profession are also revealed in this series.
The Meetings File comprises the major portion of the collection and consists of the general programs and individual papers presented at the Society's semi-annual meetings. Individual meetings files usually begin with the formal program followed by papers arranged alphabetically by author. Many of the programs, particularly those from 1954 and later, also list the Society's members and officers.
The majority of the papers are technical in nature and focus on specific aspects of treatment, surgery, or care. A study of these may reveal the evolution of the treatment and surgical techniques employed in cases such as cervical and breast cancer or cardiac and gall bladder surgery. Some papers, particularly the presidential addresses, are more general in nature and provide overviews of the condition of Wisconsin surgery and medicine.
The Miscellaneous File contains articles of organization and by-laws, correspondence, membership materials, committee lists, obituaries of noted members, reports, and miscellany. The majority of the correspondence focuses on the meetings and papers presented at them. Brief mention is also made of the Society's policing members by auditing their records. Of interest is a letter of resignation (November 12, 1974) from a physician whose itinerant surgical circuit was discouraged by the Society. He expressed the opinion that this action was a detriment to the surgical care these communities received.
Part III (Micro 939) was produced in 1982 and consists of 1 reel of microfilmed scrapbooks, 1977 April-1982 May. The scrapbooks contain programs, minutes, newsletters, correspondence, and other records.
Administrative/Restriction Information
Micro 402 materials loaned for microfilming by Dr. Norman Becker, Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, February 1960. Micro 802 materials loaned for microfilming by the Wisconsin Surgical Society via Dorothy Whitcomb, Madison, Wisconsin, 1976-1979, and Micro 939 materials via Dorothy Whitcomb, 1982. Accession Number: M76-278, M76-418, M79-265, M82-225
Micro 802 materials processed by Christine Rongone, January 1980; Micro 939 materials processed by Karen Baumann, November 12, 1982.
Contents List
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Micro 402
Reel
1
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Series: Part I, 1946-1959
: Bylaws, records of meetings, and reports
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Micro 802
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Series: Part II, 1947-1978
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Subseries: Minutes
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Reel
1
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Minutebook, 1957-1966
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Reel
2
Frame
1
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Minutes, 1947-1978
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Subseries: Meetings File
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Reel
2
Frame
140
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1946
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Reel
2
Frame
156
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1948 February 14
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Reel
2
Frame
212
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1948 May 15
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Reel
2
Frame
282
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1948 September 18
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Reel
2
Frame
318
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1949 May 7
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Reel
2
Frame
404
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1949 September 17
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Reel
2
Frame
457
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1950 April 29
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Reel
2
Frame
503
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1950 September 16
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Reel
2
Frame
558
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1951 April 21
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Reel
2
Frame
625
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1951 September 22
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Reel
2
Frame
678
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1952 April 26
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Reel
2
Frame
723
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1952 September 13
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Reel
2
Frame
776
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1953 May 9
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Reel
2
Frame
849
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1953 September
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Reel
2
Frame
871
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1954 May 1
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Reel
2
Frame
966
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1954 September 17-18
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Reel
3
Frame
1
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1955 April 16
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Reel
3
Frame
57
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1955 September 10
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Reel
3
Frame
115
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1956 May 2
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Reel
3
Frame
171
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1956 September 14-15
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Reel
3
Frame
301
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1957 May 8
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Reel
3
Frame
395
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1957 September 21
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Reel
3
Frame
490
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1958 May 8
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Reel
3
Frame
543
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1958 September 19-21
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Reel
3
Frame
713
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1959 May 7
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Reel
3
Frame
775
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1959 September 19
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Reel
3
Frame
870
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1960 May 5
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Reel
3
Frame
994
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1960 September 17
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Reel
3
Frame
1077
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1961 May 4
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Reel
4
Frame
1
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1961 September 16
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Reel
4
Frame
114
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1962 May 10
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Reel
4
Frame
177
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1962 September 15
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Reel
4
Frame
202
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1963 May 9
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Reel
4
Frame
287
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1963 September 13
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Reel
4
Frame
351
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1964 May 13
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Reel
4
Frame
381
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1964 September 12
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Reel
4
Frame
439
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1965 May 6
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Reel
4
Frame
457
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1965 September 10-11
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Reel
4
Frame
472
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1966 May 12
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Reel
4
Frame
509
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1966 September 10
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Reel
4
Frame
524
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1967 May 11
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Reel
4
Frame
560
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1967 September 15-16
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Reel
4
Frame
625
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1968 May 16
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Reel
4
Frame
640
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1968 September 21
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Reel
4
Frame
656
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1969 May 15
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Reel
4
Frame
693
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1969 September 18-24
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Reel
4
Frame
749
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1970 May 14
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Reel
4
Frame
806
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1971 May 12
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Reel
4
Frame
828
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1971 September 17-19
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Reel
4
Frame
991
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1972 May 11
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Reel
4
Frame
1006
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1972 September 16
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Reel
4
Frame
1036
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1973 March 27
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Reel
5
Frame
1
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1973 September 14
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Reel
5
Frame
200
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1974 March 26
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Reel
5
Frame
262
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1974 September 13
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Reel
5
Frame
453
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1975 April 8
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Reel
5
Frame
484
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1975 September 12-13
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Reel
5
Frame
624
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1976 March 30
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Reel
5
Frame
658
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1977 September
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Reel
5
Frame
668
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1978 September
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Subseries: Miscellaneous File
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Reel
5
Frame
720
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Articles of Organization and By-Laws, 1958, 1966
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Correspondence
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Reel
5
Frame
748
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General, 1949-1974
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Reel
5
Frame
825
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re Papers, 1949-1974
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Reel
5
Frame
877
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Membership Applications, 1974
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Reel
5
Frame
899
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Membership Lists and Committee Lists, 1949-1952, 1959-1964
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Reel
5
Frame
936
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Obituaries, alphabetically arranged, circa 1947-1963
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Reel
5
Frame
965
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Reports, 1959, undated
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Reel
5
Frame
972
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Miscellany, 1964, 1968, undated
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Micro 939
Reel
1
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Series: Part III, 1977-1982
: Scrapbooks, Volumes 1-3, containing programs, minutes, newsletters, correspondence, and other records
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