This year, Baylor College of Medicine celebrates the 40^th anniversary of the archive’s creation.

Walking the halls of Baylor College of Medicine, you may notice historical photos of the college and early images of the Texas Medical Center on display. Those are thanks to a small, yet mighty team of archivists at Baylor who work to preserve the rich history of the College. But it is more than just historical photos, the Baylor Archives group curates historical items dating back to the College’s inception in Dallas as Baylor University College of Medicine.

David Olmos, archive and historical preservation manager, Benjamin Gorman, archive and historical preservation senior associate, and Kevin Gonzalez, archive and historical preservation senior coordinator, make up the team in charge of maintaining and collecting significant historical items related to the College.

This all started in 1985, when then-president Dr. William T. Butler presented an oral history project idea to Baylor’s board of trustees. It soon developed into the archives department; today, the archive is the institutional memory bank for all of Baylor College of Medicine.  

An average day in the archives of Baylor can run the gamut – from requests from departments for important milestones to media inquiries for historical photos and videos.

“Our department has worked with everyone at Baylor from philanthropic and departmental history projects to researchers from the European Union, Japan, Australia and Brazil on a wide variety of health-related topics,” Olmos said. He has been with the archives group for nine years.

The group also receives calls from current employees or former faculty members and alumni with items to donate. Some of the items they might collect include published studies, historical documents such as affiliation agreements, official meeting minutes or contracts, maps, blueprints, or medical instruments designed at Baylor. Also found in the archives collection are memorabilia such as awards, regalia or videos produced by or featuring Baylor faculty or staff.

“The role of archives is to make available a great treasure of information to those who seek it,” Gonzalez said; he has been working in Baylor archives for about five years. “I want individuals to know they can connect with us to make requests to view items within our holdings, or they can support the growth of the archives through donations to our collections.”

The largest collection in the archive is made up of Michael E. DeBakey-related items. DeBakey not only was the first president of Baylor, he was a pioneering heart surgeon responsible for innovating the field of cardiovascular surgery and inventing numerous medical devices along the way.

“One of my favorite items in the archives is the collection of correspondence between U.S. presidents and Dr. DeBakey,” Gorman said. Gorman has worked on the archives team for eight years.

Some of the more interesting items found in the archives include antique radiology and ophthalmology equipment, the heart pump DeBakey created and successfully implanted in a patient in 1966, a Baylor University College of Medicine 1905 diploma and yearbooks dating back to 1902.

DeBakey died in 2008, but prior to that he helped plan the creation of the Michael E. DeBakey Library and Museum, which opened on Baylor’s main campus two years later. The archives team also is responsible for maintaining and running the museum where guests can find items related to DeBakey and Baylor’s history.

The archives group was involved in the effort to add the Roy and Lillie Cullen Building to the list of historical sites in Texas. In 2014, the archives team, at that time led by JoAnn Pospisil (now retired) completed the application necessary to obtain the Texas Historical Marker from the Texas Historical Commission for the Cullen Building, the first building built for the Texas Medical Center. The marker can be seen displayed on the entrance.

So, how does one start a career in archives?

Olmos used his degree in political science to apply for a job at Baylor where he was trained in logistics and standards of archival work.

Gonzalez, who has a bachelor’s and master’s degree in history, completed an archival internship at the Houston Metropolitan Research Center (now Houston History Research Center), which is the archival branch of the Houston Public Library, before he joined Baylor.

Gorman has a bachelor’s and master’s degree in history along with a master’s degree in library science.

“An archivist must have a love for history, preservation and a willingness to learn,” Olmos said. “I have a love for history, and that has allowed me to excel in the archival field.”

Visits to the archive are by appointment for Baylor business or research purposes only. The archive team can assist and provide availability to the collections. If you’d like to take a video tour, click here: Baylor College of Medicine’s Archives.

For more information on what items can be donated and how to donate, click here.

Take a walk down memory lane with a series of posts from the Momentum blog called “Throwback Thursday” that includes images courtesy of the Baylor Archives.

By Graciela Gutierrez