Robert F. Pitts, MD Papers

Collection

Identifier: US-NNCORMA-RGPPM-051

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Scope and Contents

This collection only offers a small glimpse of Dr. Pitt's work in the field of physiology. The collection has been organized into four series: correspondence (1932-1971), research notebooks (1960s), lecture notes (1930-1962), reprints (1932-1971), and miscellaneous (1938-1974).

The miscellaneous series includes a box of awards. The photographs have been removed to the personal photographic collections. See photo catalog.

Two series were discarded. One series was physiology equipment catalogs, and the other was abstracts and citations written on index cards.

Dates

1930 - 1974

Conditions Governing Access

Historical records in the Medical Center Archives are protected by HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996), internal policies requiring protection and confidential handling of PHI (protected health information), FERPA (Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act), or other institutional polices regarding internal or confidential records, and may require additional permissions prior to access. Some records in this collection are restricted and require additional permissions prior to access. View the container inventory for more information and visit the Medical Center Archives website for the most updated policies and procedures regarding access to historical materials containing restrictions.

Conditions Governing Use

Materials from this collection cannot be reproduced outside the guidelines of United States Fair Use (17 U.S.C., Section 107) without the advance permission of the Medical Center Archives of NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medicine or the copyright holder. In the event that anything from the collection become a source for publication, a credit line indicating the Medical Center Archives of NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medicine is required.

Historical records in the Medical Center Archives are protected by HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996) and internal policies which require protection and confidential handling of all protected health information (PHI). Materials containing PHI, personally identifiable information (PII), and/or student information (protected under FERPA) have been restricted and require additional permissions prior to reproduction and use.

Please visit the Medical Center Archives website for the most updated policies and procedures regarding reproduction and use.

Biographical / Historical

Dr. Pitts did pioneering work on the kidney and its role in maintaining the body's balance of acid and alkaline states. He was one of the world's leading kidney physiologists, but was also known for work he did from 1938 to 1942 on the neurophysiology of cats. He isolated the areas of the cat's brain that controls respiration and the rhythm of breathing.

Born: Indianapolis, Indiana - October 24, 1908. (John Franklin Pitts, Estella Coffin) Married: Marjorie Anna Wallace - December 25, 1936 Children: Robert Wallace - July 11, 1939 and Marjorie Ann - May 4, 1944 Died: June 6, 1977, Gainesville, Florida

Education B. S. 1929 Butler University; Senior Scholar; Phi Kappa Phi Ph.D. 1932 Johns Hopkins University; Bruce Fellow; Sigma Xi; Phi Beta Kappa M.D. 1938 New York University College of Medicine: Cellano Gold Medal in Pathology; Alpha Omega Alpha; A.O.A. Senior Prize in Medicine; Senior Prize in Surgery

Appointments Adam T. Bruce Fellow in Biology, Johns Hopkins University 1931-1932 Assistant in Physiology, New York University Medical College 1932-1933 Instructor in Physiology, New York University Medical College 1933-1938 Medical Fellow of the Rockefeller Foundation at the Neurological Institute, Northwestern University 1938 Medical Fellow of the Rockefeller Foundation at the Eldridge Reeves Johnson Foundation for Medical Physics, Univ. of Pennsylvania 1939 Assistant Professor of Physiology, New York University Medical College 1940-1942 Assistant Professor of Physiology, Cornell University Medical College 1942-1944 Associate Professor of Physiology, Cornell University Medical College 1944-1946

Professor and Chairman of the Department of Physiology at Syracuse University Medical College 1946-1950 Professor and Chairman of the Department of Physiology at Cornell University Medical College 1950-01/1973 Professor of Physiology, Cornell University Medical College 01/1973-07/1974 Emeritus Professor of Physiology, Cornell University Medical College 07/1974-6/1977 Research Professor, Renal Medicine and Physiology, University of Florida, Gainesville 07/1974-6/1977

Awards-Honors Borden Award in Medical Science 1960 New York University Medical Alumni Award 1962 Homer W. Smith Award in Renal Physiology, New York Heart Association 1963 Visiting Fellow, St. Catherine's College, England 1967-1968 Honorary Master's Degree, Oxford, England 1967 American College of Physicians Award for Distinguished Contribution in Science as Related to Medicine 04/1970 Association of Chairmen of Departments of Physiology, First Annual Award for Outstanding Contributions to the Teaching of Physiology 04/1972 Honorary Fellowship Award, Cornell University Medical College Alumni Association 04/1972 Honorary Doctor of Science Degree, Indiana University 05/1972

Extent

8.42 Linear Feet (12 boxes)

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Immediate Source of Acquisition

These papers were received by the Archives in bits and pieces: Dr. Roger Greif contributed the 1938 New York University Medical School Yearbook and reprints in 1983; Dr. Erich Windhager and the Department of Physiology sent the bulk of the material in April 1980, and the Archives itself has added assorted reprints.

Related Materials

Reprints by other physiology faculty were either placed with their papers or in their biography files. They included Drs. Erich Windhager, David Thompson, Thomas Meikle, Jr, and Graham Lusk.

Processing Information

This collection was processed and finding aid was written by Barbara Niss in 1986. Edits were made by Elizabeth Shepard in 2008. Minor modifications to the finding aid were made during migration to ArchivesSpace in 2024.