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University Libraries Special Collections

INTRODUCTION

The papers of Harrison Stanford Martland, MD date from 1905 to 1954, with bulk dates from the 1920s to the late 1940s. The records total approximately 3 linear feet. They form Personal Collection PC/1 in the Special Collections' Bergen University Archives. The records are open for research without restriction under the conditions of the Archives' access policy.

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH

Harrison Stanford Martland, the son of Dr. William Henry and Ida (Carlyle) Martland, was born in Newark on September 10, 1883. Harrison Martland received a BS degree from Western Maryland College in 1901. After receiving his MD degree from the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Columbia University in 1905, he served an 18-month internship at the municipal New York City Hospital on Welfare Island. He then spent a period of two years in Pathology and Bacteriology at the Russell Sage Laboratory.

Dr. Martland accepted the appointment of the first full-time paid pathologist at the Newark City Hospital in January 1909. On November 16, 1910 he married Myra C. Ferdon and they purchased a house at 180 Clinton Avenue, Newark, which was to be their home until his death in 1954. When World War I broke out, Dr. Martland joined the Bellevue Hospital Unit and as a lieutenant colonel he took charge of a hospital in Vichy, France. He later was awarded a Citation for Exceptionally Meritorious and Conspicuous Service by General John Pershing.

In June 1925 Dr. Martland was chosen to fill the post of Essex County Physician. Immediately, he saw the danger of divided authority in the system that allowed a coroner's jury of laymen to decide causes of sudden death therefore, he set out to establish the medical examiner system in Essex County. He won his fight in the State Legislature and the county government in March 1927, and was appointed Chief Medical Examiner by the Essex County Board of Freeholders. In April 1933, Dr. Martland was named Professor of Forensic Medicine at New York University, a post he held for fifteen years.

Dr. Martland made important contributions in the fields of pathology and forensic medicine. The work that attracted the most attention was his research begun in 1924, on the effects of radioactive material on the human body. Dr. Martland determined that minute traces of radioactivity contained in luminous paint had caused the deaths of watch dial painters employed at the US Radium Corporation in Orange, NJ. The Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) credits Dr. Martland's work with having made it possible for atomic development to proceed with comparative safety. At the request of the AEC, Dr. Martland prepared a permanent exhibit on radioactive dangers and precautions which is on display in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. In 1916, Dr. Martland alerted dynamite manufacturers to the dangers of occupational poisoning in TNT.

It was Dr. Martland who proved, back in 1928, that "punch drunk" prize fighters were suffering from a brain injury caused by the rupture of blood vessels. He did notable work in phases of cardiac syphilis and in the effects of bullet wounds on the body. Dr. Martland's accomplishments also included the first paper establishing the lethal effects of beryllium poisoning, which led to implementation of regulatory reforms governing the use of beryllium in industrial plants.

Dr. Martland received numerous honors and awards. Nobel Prize winners came to Newark three times to salute him at annual Harrison S. Martland Lectures sponsored by the Essex County Anatomical and Pathological Society. The New York Pathological Association named him its first out-of-state president in 1928. He was President of the Essex County Medical Society in 1920 and of the Academy of Medicine of Northern New Jersey in 1922. In 1943, the Academy of Medicine gave Dr. Martland the Edward J. Ill Award as the outstanding physician and citizen of the county. The Newark City Commission paid tribute to the eminent pathologist when the new city hospital was dedicated the Harrison S. Martland Medical Center on January 24, 1954.

After forty-five years as Newark City Hospital Pathologist and twenty-five years as Essex County Medical Examiner, Dr. Martland retired in November 1953. He died on May 1, 1954 at the age of 71.

PROVENANCE

Dr. Martland's papers were given to the Bergen University Archives on October 3, 1979 by Samuel Berg, MD. Dr. Berg rescued the papers from permanent destruction by removing them from the trash at the old Newark City Hospital. A later addendum (90-30) of seven scrapbooks was donated by Frank J. Tomaino (Forensic Administrator, Office of the State Medical Examiner, Newark) in April 1990. In 1994, Dr. Robert Goode, New Jersey State Medical Examiner, donated another addenda (94-22), which included a collection of reprints and a letter.

SCOPE AND CONTENT NOTE

The Harrison Stanford Martland, MD, Papers span the years 1905-1954. They document Dr. Martland's investigations of occupational health hazards in New Jersey. This collection contains four series including Scrapbooks, Publications, Photographs, and Miscellaneous Papers. Publications are the strongest series in this collection, followed by Scrapbooks.

For further biographical information see:

Berg, Samuel. Harrison Stanford Martland, MD: the story of a physician, a hospital, an era. NY: Vantage, 1978.

SERIES DESCRIPTION

SERIES I: SCRAPBOOKS, 1916-1952. [Accession 79-02, 90-30]
The scrapbooks were assembled by Dr. Martland and include material on the health hazards associated with the industrial use of radium, benzol and beryllium compounds. Included in the books are correspondence, newspaper clippings, x-ray films, publications and reprints, personal notes, medical records, autopsy reports, and some photographs. Six of Dr. Martland's Radium scrapbooks, as well as two AEC scrapbooks, were disbound and conserved under a preservation grant from the NJ Historical Commission.

SERIES II: PUBLICATIONS, 1908-1950. [Accession 79-02, 94-22
The publication series, which is arranged chronologically, includes copies of Dr. Martland's articles published from 1908-1950, as well as requests for reprints of his articles. Article topics include: the toxic effects of cyanide of potassium; TNT, radium, beryllium, and carbon monoxide poisoning; cancer; "punch drunk;" cardiac syphilis; air embolisms; and essential hypertension.

SERIES III: PHOTOGRAPHS, 1905-1947, n. d. [Accession 79-02]
The photographs show Dr. Martland at work and at various conferences and lectures, such as the Newark City Hospital Clinical and Pathological Conferences (1940s), the Essex County Pathological and Anatomical Society's Martland Lectures (1948), and the Sixth Saranac Symposium on Beryllium (1947). Dr. Martland is pictured alone and with colleagues, namely Michael Frunzi, Drs. Powers, Snapper, Libman, Berardinelli, Weber, O' Crowley, and Loewi. In addition there are photos of Dr. Martland's family. This series is arranged in alphabetical order by subject. Negatives are available for some prints.

SERIES IV: MISCELLANEOUS PAPERS, 1927-1954. [Accession 79-02, 94-22]
This series consists of correspondence, certificates, commemorative programs, and newspaper clippings. It is arranged alphabetically by subject. Items document Martland's appointment as Chief Medical Examiner in 1927, US Army appointments, Board qualifications, the Martland Medical Center dedication, the Martland Lectures, and the Saner Case (air embolism).

Of special interest is a 1939 letter from J. Edgar Hoover to Dr. Martland regarding his article in the book, Landmarks in Medicine (See Box 4, Folder 34).

BOX LIST

PC/1-1: SCRAPBOOKS ACCESSION 79-02

Radium I, 1925-1927

During the years 1917-1924 employees of the US Radium Corp. Plant in Orange, NJ applied paint containing small amounts of radium to the dials of watches, clocks, etc. This luminous paint was applied with camel hair brushes that were frequently "pointed" by the painters with the lips. The ingestion of radium later caused the death of over 41 dial painters. Dr. Martland was one of the first scientists to conduct investigations to determine the cause of the dial painters' deaths. This scrapbook contains newspaper articles, correspondence, and reprints of publications related to radium poisoning and Dr. Martland's investigations.

Radium II, 1928

Five women employed as dial painters by the US Radium Corp. from 1917-1922 sued the company for $1,250,000 in 1928. They settled out of court for $10,000 each and an annuity of $600 a year, plus medical expenses. The scrapbook contains correspondence relating to the suit as well as notes, dental x-rays, newspaper clippings, and correspondence relating to the radium poisoning victims. Specific items include Dr. Martland's June 1928 letter of appeal to the Surgeon General requesting a federal investigation of radium poisoning. Correspondents include: Archibald P. Evans, MD and Charles Norris, MD.

Radium III, January 1929 - November 1930

This scrapbook contains correspondence, newspaper clippings, x-ray films and publications related to radium poisoning. Included is a February 19, 1929 letter from the Acting Surgeon General requesting Dr. Martland to be a consultant in industrial hygiene to the US Public Health Service and to serve as a member of an Advisory Committee on the health hazards of radium dial painting.

Radium IV, July 1930-November 1931

This scrapbook contains correspondence from Dr. Martland's colleagues regarding radium poisoning and correspondence from victims of radium poisoning. Also included are newspaper clippings, reprints, and a photograph of Dr. Martland's exhibit illustrating he effects of radium poisoning in the watch dial industry displayed at the American Medical Association's Convention in Philadelphia, 1931. Dr. Martland was awarded a silver medal for this exhibit.

Radium V, October 1931-July 1932

The scrapbook contains correspondence, reprints, newspaper clippings and material relating to Dr. Martland's exhibit on radium poisoning. Also included is material on the controversy over the therapeutic use of radioactive waters.

Radium VI, August 1932-1938

The scrapbook contains correspondence, newspaper clippings and reprints regarding radium poisoning caused by the ingestion of radioactive substances and radioactive waters.

Radium VI, 1941-1944

This scrapbook contains Dr. Martland's notes and photographs on methods of detecting and estimating radioactivity in the human body during life and after death. Methods discussed include the Evans Gamma Ray Detector and Evans Breath Radon Analysis. Also included are Dr. Martland's notes on the examination of the dial painters' children and correspondence with Robley D. Evans.

Radium VIII (Malignancy), 1941-1944

This scrapbook consists of Dr. Martland's re-study if the so-called radium sarcomas. Material consists of notes, photographs, reprints, and correspondence. Also included is a draft paper by Edwin E. Ziegler, MD on the Mutation Theory of Cancer, 1941.

Radium IX, 1939-1944

The increase in aviation during World War II created a sudden demand for luminous dials and instruments, which was met by an expanded dial painting industry. This scrapbook contains materials on Dr. Martland's investigation of dial painting methods used at that time. Included are notes, test results following the examination of dial painters, photographs, correspondence and reprints. Correspondents include Robley D. Evans and John Roach, Deputy Commissioner of Labor, State of NJ.

RA Papers, HSM

This scrapbook contains a list of articles written by Dr. Martland on radium poisoning along with a selection of reprints. The second page of the scrapbook is a list of the watch dial painters who used radium paint and their years of employment.

RA Letters/AEC, 1949-1952

This scrapbook contains correspondence between Dr. Martland, Robley D. Evans, Louis H. Hemplemann and J. C. Aub on their joint paper, "Late Effects of Internally Deposited Radioactive Materials in Man." Also included is correspondence with Shields Warren, MD of the AEC regarding the re-publication of Dr. Martland's papers on radium poisoning and the AEC's Symposium on Radium Poisoning held June 13-16, 1951. In addition, there are various requests for reprints of Dr. Martland's articles.

Atomic Energy Commission, 1945-1946

Included is correspondence at the time of the "A" bomb specifically letters from Dr. Samuel Berg and a letter to Major General Leslie Groves of the War Department Washington, D. C.

Benzol, 1916-1928

This scrapbook contains information on industrial benzol poisoning reported to Dr. Martland as Chief Medical Examiner of Essex County. The material includes medical records, autopsy reports, correspondence, newspaper clippings and journal articles.

Beryllium, 1936, 1944-1948

This scrapbook contains correspondence, autopsy reports, newspaper clippings and various published papers on the hazards arising from the industrial use of beryllium compounds. Specific autopsy reports of victims of beryllium poisoning performed by Dr. Martland include:

Alfred V. Jarman, August 2, 1936
Catherine Duncan, May 8, 1944
Alexander Eckles, Jr., July 10, 1947
Dorothy Burns, August 18, 1947

Corespondents include Leroy V. Garner, MD, E. Ward Thompson, and Frances Perkins. Also included is correspondence regarding Dr. Martland's participation in the Sixth Saranac Symposium on Beryllium Poisoning held September 29 - October 1, 1947.

Heart Syphilis, ca. 1930

This scrapbook contains photographs on the gross pathology of cardiovascular syphilis. The photographs were part of an exhibit prepared by Dr. Martland entitled, "Sudden Death in Syphilis of the Aorta and Heart: Gross Pathology." Researchers should note that this scrapbook is not complete; numerous photographs are missing.

ADDENDUM

PC/1-1: SCRAPBOOKS ACCESSION 90-30

7 Volumes:

Suicide, 1942
Asphyxial Deaths
Homicidal Poisonings
The Fight Game (1 TLS, May 12, 1950 re: Punch Drunk)
Homicide, 1941-1946 (1 TLS, J. Edgar Hoover to HSM, May 6, 1941)
[Cancer, 1946-1948]
[Photographic evidence if handwriting samples pertaining to the death of Ocey Snead]

BOX LIST

PC/1-2: PUBLICATIONS ACCESSION 79-02

Sarah A. Hull;
4/99

Page Revised: 3/2/01

For reference service and information contact:

Robert Vietrogoski
Special Collections
vietrora@umdnj.edu
(973) 972-7830
FAX (973) 972-7474