Identity elements
Reference code
Name and location of repository
Level of description
Collection
Title
James Greenwood Sr. and Jr., MDs papers
Date(s)
- 1910-1983 (Creation)
Extent
3.3 cubic feet (7 boxes)
Name of creator
Biographical history
James Greenwood Sr. (1878-1949), and James Greenwood Jr. (1907-1993) were a father and son who practiced neuropsychiatry and neurosurgery, respectively, for many years in Houston, Texas. While usually identified by the suffixes of Sr. and Jr., James Greenwood Sr. sometimes was identified as James Greenwood, Jr., as his father was James Greenwood (1851-1925) of Seguin, Texas.
James Greenwood Sr. was born April 18, 1878, in Seguin, Texas to James and Corinna (Henderson) Greenwood. He graduated from University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) Galveston in 1901 and began practice in Seguin. From 1902 to 1906 he was on the staff of the San Antonio State Hospital for Mental Diseases. From 1906 to 1908 he maintained a private practice in Seguin, Texas. From 1908 to 1912 he served on the faculty of the Department of Medicine at UTMB Galveston. In 1912 he opened the Greenwood Sanitarium for the treatment of neuropsychiatry diseases in Houston, Texas, located northwest of the current intersection of Fannin St and Old Spanish Trail, and continued its operation until his retirement in 1947. He was also the first Chairman of the Department of Neuropsychiatry at the Baylor University School of Medicine in Houston. He died August 22, 1949, in Houston, Texas.
Name of creator
Biographical history
James Greenwood Jr. was born on July 19, 1907, in Seguin, Texas. He received a B.A. degree from the Rice Institute in 1927 and an M.D. degree from UTMB in Galveston in 1931. He interned at the Philadelphia General Hospital before returning to Houston and serving as Chairman of the Division of Neurosurgery at the Methodist Hospital from 1936 to 1980. He began teaching at Baylor College of Medicine in 1943 and was active in many medical societies as well as an organizing member of the Houston Surgical Society. He was the first neurosurgeon in Houston and the Southwest United States. An innovator in his field, he invented the bipolar coagulation forceps and developed bipolar electrocoagulation, which enabled surgeons to staunch bleeding while irrigating incisions to prevent tissue from overheating and incurring more damage. He was the first neurosurgeon in the world to successfully remove intramedullary spinal cord tumors. He died July 3, 1993, in Houston, Texas.
Content and structure elements
Scope and content
The James Greenwood Sr. and Jr., MDs papers consists of article drafts and reprints, professional correspondence, patient notes, journals, and photographs that document the careers of James Greenwood Sr. and James Greenwood Jr. in the fields of neuropsychiatry and neurosurgery, respectively.
System of arrangement
Conditions of access and use elements
Conditions governing access
This collection is available for research. The material is mostly unrestricted with a few exceptions for patient records that are clearly marked on the appropriate box and folder number.
Physical access
The papers are generally in good condition. Some papers in Series I are fragile.
Technical access
Conditions governing reproduction
Copyright restrictions may apply. Permission to publish from this material must be facilitated through the repository, McGovern Historical Center.
Languages of the material
- English
Scripts of the material
- Latin
Language and script notes
Finding aids
Yes.
Generated finding aid
Acquisition and appraisal elements
Custodial history
Deed-2
Immediate source of acquisition
Correspondence in physical control folder indicates donation by Dr. James Greenwood Jr., prior to 1982.
Appraisal, destruction and scheduling information
Accruals
No accruals are expected.
Related materials elements
Existence and location of originals
Existence and location of copies
Related archival materials
The Woodson Research Center at Rice University Fondren Library in Houston, Texas holds a related collection, Anderson-Greenwood Family History records.
Notes element
Specialized notes
- Citation: James Greenwood Sr. and Jr., MDs papers; MS 029; McGovern Historical Center, Texas Medical Center Library. Please cite the box and folder numbers where appropriate.
Alternative identifier(s)
TARO
Description control element
Rules or conventions
Sources used
Archivist's note
Processed by Archives Intern Joy Oria, spring 2023.
Access points
Subject access points
Place access points
Name access points
- Baylor College of Medicine (Subject)
- Methodist Hospital (Houston, Tex.) (Subject)
- University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston (Subject)
- Greenwood Sanitarium (Subject)