"Nestor of American Surgery", 15 March 1922

Item — Box: 1

Scope and Contents

From the Series: he collection consists primarily of letters dated from the 1880s and 1890s written by William W. Keen to his daughter, Margaret. There are also some letters from other Keen family members addressed to Ms. Keen as well as newspaper clippings.

The earliest letters (folder 1.1) are addressed to Ms. Keen as a young girl. These brief notes advise Ms. Keen to be careful of her misspellings (among other things) and include two notes written by Dr. Keen in 1886 with his left hand (due to an injury). A letter dated July 10, 1897 (also in folder 1.1) and marked "Private" discusses the death of "your dear mother" upon the first anniversary of her passing.

Folder 1.2 includes letters from Europe (aboard the "Umbria" and from Oxford, Paris, Munich, Interlachen, and Canterbury). Folder 1.4 includes a pocket-sized promotional calendar from The West End Trust and Safe Deposit Company. Letters in Folder 1.4 begin an intermittent but long-term discussion of finances between father and daughter. Folder 1.5 includes a note with a doodle (possibly drawn by Dr. Keen?) Folder 1.5 also includes a letter dated Jan. 18th, 1897 discussing a "Diplomatic Corps" reception attended by Dr. Keen and "the girls" with President and Mrs. Cleveland at the White House. Folder 1.6 includes a letter dated February 17, 1897 that discussed Dora’s election as "school director." Folder 1.7 includes a document from the "Annual Banquet of the Alumni Association of Jefferson Medical College," dated May 13, 1897.

There is a significant gap in the series of letters between the time of the second to last letter (dated September 27, 1897) and the final letter (dated June 20, 1928).

The remaining series include correspondence from Florence Keen, "Mary", E.D. Gillespie, Dora Keen, and "Aunt Hattie" to Margaret Keen. It also includes letters from Dr. Keen to his daughters Dora and Florence as well as a group of letters to Dr. Keen from assorted individuals.

The newsclippings’ folder includes a feature article on Dr. Keen from The Philadelphia Press, dated July 23, 1899. It also includes a letter to the editor written by Dr. Keen, and a cartoon that features Dr. Keen. [N.B. -- Newspaper clippings included by Dr. Keen in letters to his daughter Margaret have been filed with the letter that they accompanied and not in the newsclippings folder.]