Poliomyelitis and the Salk Vaccine: Primary Archival Sources

Established in 1935, the Bentley Historical Library has amassed extensive holdings on the history of the state and the university, including more than 30,000 linear feet of archives and manuscripts, 60,000 printed volumes, 1.5 million photographs and other visual materials, and over 10,000 maps. Among the material touching upon the history of the university and the state is documentation relating to polio, medical care of polio victims, development of the Salk vaccine, the vaccine field trial and evaluation, and the administration of the vaccine.

This guide highlights material in the archives pertaining to polio, particularly the April 12, 1955 announcement that the Salk vaccine was both safe and effective. Some of the archival record groups and manuscript collections have online finding aids, indicated by a [Finding Aid] link. These detailed descriptions provide both a narrative overview and folder level listing of the contents of a collection or record group.

Searching the Collections

It should be noted that the volume figures given for each collection in this guide are for the entire collection, only a portion of which may relate to polio or the Salk vaccine. It is possible to search an individual finding aid or all Bentley finding aids to retrieve the portions related to polio or the vaccine. Due to different naming conventions used over time and the file identification methods used by the original records creators, it is necessary to search on variant terms such as "polio," "infatile paralysis," "March of Dimes," and "Salk" in order to retrieve all relevant material.

Other Archival Repositories

Additional primary sources relating to polio and the vaccine are known to exist in other archives throughout the country. A few of the most significant are listed here.