McGill Library
McLennan Library Building3459 rue McTavish
Montreal, Quebec
H3A 0C9
Miscellaneous correspondence (with Dr. Hans Seyle, 2pp)
File
1.4 cm of textual records
Born in Spokane, Washington, Wilder Penfield received his B.Litt. from Princeton University in 1913 and was a Rhodes Scholar in Oxford (B.A.1916). He received his M.D. from Johns Hopkins in 1918. Studying under Sir Charles Sherrington at Oxford, Penfield became interested in the brain. From 1921 to 1928 he engaged in research and neurosurgery at the Presbyterian Hospital and served on the Medical Faculty of Columbia University. Appointed to the Medical Faculty of McGill University in 1928, he was Chairman of the Department of Neurological Surgery from 1934 to 1960. An endowment from the Rockefeller Foundation enabled him to establish the Montreal Neurological Institute (M.N.I.), which opened in 1934. At the M.N.I. Penfield made many innovations in neurosurgery including a surgical treatment for epilepsy. He devoted much of his research to the study of the physiology of the brain, speech memory and sensation. Besides his numerous scientific publications, Penfield wrote two novels and participated in a large number of professional organizations. Dr. Penfield was a member of the Board of Curators of the Osler Library.
The file contains miscellaneous correspondence with Dr. Hans Seyle and includes correspondence with the Superintendent of Buildings and Grounds on building maintenance; an analysis of the situation faced by the Faculty of Engineering (the situation not described); a McGill Daily article on the MNI; Report of the Committee on Research Funds, 1957; Summary of Proposals by the Committee on Research Funds, 1957; book section ‘The Coats-of-Arms of McGill University and the Faculty of Medicine’ pages 77-88; discussion of the inclusion of men from local French universities and hospitals in their associates list; dedication of the annual publication of the Old McGill to Wilder Penfield, 1958; an appeal to help acquaint Faculty of Medicine teaching staff with the McGill Guidance Service and its resources; Senate notices of departures, including Penfield’s; McGill-Hospitals Advisory Committee meeting notices; awareness of the need for increased financial support for research; and the storage of radioisotopes in the Montreal Neurological Hospital.