HF01-17: The Legacy of Leonard J.T. Murphy.
Friday, May 3, 2024 4:22 PM to 4:29 PM · 7 min. (US/Central)
206
Abstract
History of Urology Forum
Information
Full Abstract and Figures
Author Block
John Eckenrode*, Michael E Moran, Columbia, SC
Introduction
The legacy of Leonard James Thomas Murphy (1914-1994) is punctuated by his classic work, The History of Urology. He was a committed urological historian, living and dying in Australia. He specifically mentions that his work was intended to fill a gap from the 1930s to the 1970s and dedicated the work to his wife, Betty. This is a historical investigation into the previously undocumented life and writings of Leonard Murphy.
Methods
We accessed the Archives of the University of Melbourne where Murphy worked. Next, direct contact with the Charles C. Thomas Publishing Company to identify information by and about the publication of Murphy’s classic work was accomplished. The Archivist of the Royal Australian College of Surgeons (RACS, Helen Laffin) had key missing information regarding Dr. Murphy wherein resides his personal, historical library. Finally, the hospital where Murphy practiced, St. Vincent’s Hospital’s archivist, Barbara Cytowicz was an invaluable resource.
Results
Leonard Murphy rose to become Secretary (1952) and then president (1959) of the Urological Society of Australia. He had a genuine interest in the history of urology, writing almost a dozen underappreciated papers on the history of surgery. In 1973, John Herman published his little book on history, and Murphy promptly wrote him a congratulatory letter which we’ve reproduced for this paper. Murphy was a bibliophile, antiquarian collector of surgical instruments, and writer.
Conclusions
Murphy becomes a real individual with the unearthing of his gifts enshrined in RACS and St. Vincent’s Hospital archives and museum. Leonard J.T. Murphy in the opening paragraph of his 1972 work The History of Urology wrote the following: “The study of the history of medicine, a very rewarding exercise, is being appreciated to a much greater extent in recent years. Among the ever-increasing numbers of new books and reprints on the subject, one outstanding lack is a history of urology…This volume is intended to fill this gap until a more detailed and definitive history of urology is compiled by a medical historian.” Anticipating his very own run, Murphy suspected that his history would quickly become a collector’s item. Murphy appears to be a cautious, anticipatory type of historian and we await anxiously for the more “detailed and definitive” history of urology.
Source Of Funding
None
Author Block
John Eckenrode*, Michael E Moran, Columbia, SC
Introduction
The legacy of Leonard James Thomas Murphy (1914-1994) is punctuated by his classic work, The History of Urology. He was a committed urological historian, living and dying in Australia. He specifically mentions that his work was intended to fill a gap from the 1930s to the 1970s and dedicated the work to his wife, Betty. This is a historical investigation into the previously undocumented life and writings of Leonard Murphy.
Methods
We accessed the Archives of the University of Melbourne where Murphy worked. Next, direct contact with the Charles C. Thomas Publishing Company to identify information by and about the publication of Murphy’s classic work was accomplished. The Archivist of the Royal Australian College of Surgeons (RACS, Helen Laffin) had key missing information regarding Dr. Murphy wherein resides his personal, historical library. Finally, the hospital where Murphy practiced, St. Vincent’s Hospital’s archivist, Barbara Cytowicz was an invaluable resource.
Results
Leonard Murphy rose to become Secretary (1952) and then president (1959) of the Urological Society of Australia. He had a genuine interest in the history of urology, writing almost a dozen underappreciated papers on the history of surgery. In 1973, John Herman published his little book on history, and Murphy promptly wrote him a congratulatory letter which we’ve reproduced for this paper. Murphy was a bibliophile, antiquarian collector of surgical instruments, and writer.
Conclusions
Murphy becomes a real individual with the unearthing of his gifts enshrined in RACS and St. Vincent’s Hospital archives and museum. Leonard J.T. Murphy in the opening paragraph of his 1972 work The History of Urology wrote the following: “The study of the history of medicine, a very rewarding exercise, is being appreciated to a much greater extent in recent years. Among the ever-increasing numbers of new books and reprints on the subject, one outstanding lack is a history of urology…This volume is intended to fill this gap until a more detailed and definitive history of urology is compiled by a medical historian.” Anticipating his very own run, Murphy suspected that his history would quickly become a collector’s item. Murphy appears to be a cautious, anticipatory type of historian and we await anxiously for the more “detailed and definitive” history of urology.
Source Of Funding
None
Sessions
History of Urology Forum
206