Guide to the G.V. Black Manuscripts and Photographs
in the Galter Health Sciences Library, Northwestern University

Compiled by Ron Sims

Chicago, Illinois
2002

WARNING!! This is a test version of the finding aid. Not all of the manuscripts, correspondence, and photographs are listed. Some of the apparent links do not lead to the images described.
A complete version of the finding aid with links to images of all of the items in the collection will be available later this year.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Contact Information
Descriptive Summary
Index Terms
Biographical Sketch
Scope and Content of the Collection
Series I. Manuscripts on general subjects, 1867-1900 (Boxes 1-3)
Series II. Correspondence between G.V. Black and F.S. McKay on mottled enamel of teeth, 1907-1915 (Box 4)
Series III. Correspondence, documents, memorabilia and a photograph related to the World's Columbian Dental Congress, 1893 (Box 5)
Series IV. Photographs (Box 6)
Contact Information:
Galter Health Sciences Library
Special Collections
Northwestern University
303 East Chicago Ave.
Chicago, Illinois 60611
(312) 503-1913
FAX: (312) 503-1204
rnsms@northwestern.edu
 		Project Team:
Project Manager: Ron Sims
Metadata created by: Ron Sims
EAD Encoding and Stylesheets by: Tony Olson
Scanning and compression by: Bryan Ricupero
Scanning by: S.J. Murray
Page Turner written by: Steve Hunt

DESCRIPTIVE SUMMARY

 Title: Guide to the G.V. Black manuscripts and photographs in the Galter Health Sciences Library, Northwestern University
Creator: G.V. Black
Dates: 1867-1915
Quantity: 7 boxes (2 linear feet)
Forms of Material: Manuscripts, correspondence, photographs (black and white), other ephemera
Repository: Galter Health Sciences Library, Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois
Abstract: The Collection includes: manuscripts on general subjects; correspondence between G.V. Black and Dr. Frederick S. McKay on mottled teeth; photographs; correspondence and other ephemera pertaining to the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition held in Chicago, Illinois.
Location: Galter Health Sciences Library: Special Collections

INDEX TERMS

Persons
Black, G. V. (Greene Vardiman), 1836-1915
McKay, Frederick S.

Organizations
Literary Union (Jacksonville, Ill.)
World Dental Congress (1893 : Chicago, Ill)
World's Columbian Exposition (1893 : Chicago, Ill.)

Places
Colorado
Jacksonville (Ill.)

Subjects
Chemistry
Dentistry
Fluorosis, Dental--epidemiology
Tooth Abnormalities
Zoology

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH

Dr. Greene Vardiman Black (1836-1915), the acknowledged father of modern dentistry, was born in Winchester, Illinois. His work and contributions to dentistry were all based in Illinois. His career included dental practices in Winchester and Jacksonville, Illinois. Dr. Black taught at several dental schools in the area, and served as the second dean of the Northwestern University Dental School, which became known as the largest and most outstanding institution of its kind under his administration.

Dr. Black contributed to the advancement of dental science by standardizing operative procedures and providing uniformity in the manufacture of amalgam, cavity preparation and dental terminology. His development of dental amalgams, over 150 years ago, set the standards for formulae, clinical use and techniques. He provided the first dental identification and categorization of dental procedures to restore diseased or injured teeth. Among his dental inventions were the foot-powered drill engine and the gnathodynamometer for measuring bite force.

SCOPE AND CONTENT OF THE COLLECTION

The Northwestern University G.V. Black collection contains 43 manuscripts, 55 letters and several photographs covering the period between 1867 and 1915. Some of the more important items in the collection are: correspondence between Dr. Black and Dr. Frederick S. McKay from the turn of the century that focus on mottled enamel of teeth and early hypotheses on water and fluoridation; correspondence, program announcements and other ephemera from the World Dental Congress held in conjunction with the World's Columbian Exposition in 1893; a manuscript on zoo chemistry.

The collection is organized into four series.

Series I. Manuscripts on general subjects, 1867-1900 (Boxes 1-3)
Series II. Correspondence between G.V. Black and F.S. McKay on mottled enamel of teeth, 1907-1915 (Box 4)
Series III. Correspondence, photographs, other documents and ephemera related to the World Dental Congress, 1893 (Box 5)
Series IV. Photographs (Box 6)

SERIES DESCRIPTIONS

Series I. Manuscripts on general subjects, 1867-1900. 3 boxes.
The basis of morality. (1880) 6 p.
Read before the Literary Union of Jacksonville, Illinois.
Accession No.: 600-5 (Box 2)
Digital Images
Organizations
Literary Union (Jacksonville, Ill.)
Subjects
Morals
A Contribution to the theory of sight. (1882) 20 p.
Translated from the German, additional remarks added by Dr. Black.
Accession No.: D612-33 (Box 3)
Digital Images
Subjects
Vision
Drawings on the Cicada, the seventeen year locust. (1876) 8 p.
Presented to the Jacksonville, Illinois Microscopical Society.
Accession No.: 590-2 (Box 1)
Organizations
Microscopical Society (Jacksonville, Ill.)
Subjects
Hemiptera
Periodical cicada
The earth worm. (1875) 73 p.
Accession No.: 590-1 (Box 1)
Subjects
Oligochaeta
Influence of the middle man in the formation of social casts in America. (1886) 6 p.
Accession No.: 600-14 (Box 2)
Digital Images
Subjects
Middle Class
Social Class
Man, a representative of the universe. (1885) 36 p.
Read before the Literary Union of Jacksonville, Illinois.
Accession No.: 575-1 (Box 1)
Digital Images
Organizations
Literary Union (Jacksonville, Ill.)
Subjects
Hominidae
The Man eater. (1887) 9 p.
Accession No.: 600-19 (Box 2)
Digital Images
Subjects
Dreams
New Orleans. (1889) 21 p.
Accession No.: 600-23 (Box 3)
Places
New Orleans (La.)
Originality, an extract from Wilhelm Jordan's Epic letters. (1878) 16 p.
Translated from the German, with Dr. Black's notes attached.
Accession No.: 600-2 (Box 3)
Digital Images
Persons
Jordan, Wilhelm, 1819-1904
Subjects
Creativeness
Originality
Practical relations of observation and thought. (n.d.) 8 p.
Presented before the Literary Union of Jacksonville, Illinois.
Accession No.: 600-10 (Box 2)
Organizations
Literary Union (Jacksonville, Ill.)
Subjects
Observation
Science--methods
Progress of civilization. (1882) 34 p.
Accession No.: 600-8 (Box 2)
Digital Images
Subjects
Civilization
Salicylic acid as an antispetic. (1881) 57 p.
Translated from the German. Orginal author is H. Humm.
Accession No.: 615.778-1 (Box 3)
Persons
Humm, H.
Subjects
Salicylic Acid
Anti-Infective Agents, Local
Some experiments with acids. (1885) 24 p.
Accession No.: 540-3 (Box 1)
Subjects
Acids
The Walk under the lindens. (1878) 29 p.
Translated from the German.
Accession No.: 600-3 (Box 3)
Subjects
Lindens
Trees
Waste products of thought. (1884) 12 p.
An inaugural address before the Literary Union of Jacksonville, Illinois.
Accession No.: 600-11 (Box 2)
Organizations
Literary Union (Jacksonville, Ill.)
Subjects
Thinking
What is solution, letter to Dr. George H. Cushing replying to a question. (1883) 10 p.
Accession No.: 540-2 (Box 1)
Digital Images
Persons
Cushing, George H.
Subjects
Solutions
Wind and storm. (1882) 97 p.
First, second and third lectures presented before the Jacksonville, Illinois Y.M.C.A.
Accession No.: 600-9 (Box 2)
Digital Images
Organizations
Young Men's Christian Association (Jacksonville, Ill.)
Subjects
Weather
Wind
Rain
Zoo chemistry. (1867) 148 p.
This was used for his lectures when he conducted a class in chemistry.
Accession No.: 540-1 (Box 1)
Subjects
Biochemistry
Return to Table of Contents
Series II. Correspondence between G.V. Black and F.S. McKay on mottled enamel of teeth, 1907-1915. (Box 4)

Description
Between 1908 and 1915 Dr. Black and Dr. McKay, a practicing dentist in Colorado, had a running discussion concerning mottled teeth, or “Colorado Brown Stain”. Dr. Black spent the summer of 1909 in Colorado Springs to gather information and make observations. Their work culminated in the publication of “Mottled teeth: an endemic developmental imperfection of the enamel of the teeth heretofore unknown in the literature of dentistry.” (Dental cosmos, 1916; vol. 58, pp. 129-153, 477-484, 627-644, 781-792, 894-904)

After Dr. Black's death, McKay continued their studies and discovered that fluoride in drinking water was the causal agent of the imperfection, noting the effect on enamel, but the lack of dental caries in those who had the condition. This was a critical breakthrough in understanding the etiology and prevention of dental caries. This discovery is the foundation for water fluoridation, which is the single most effective public health measure to inhibit tooth decay.

Persons
Black, G. V. (Greene Vardiman), 1836-1915
McKay, Frederick S.
Places
Colorado
Subjects
Fluorosis, Dental--epidemiology
Tooth Abnormalities--epidemiology

List of Correspondence
G.V. Black to McKay (Sept. 6, 1907) 1 p.
G.V. Black to McKay (Mar. 5?, 1908) 2 p.
McKay to G.V. Black (Mar. 5, 1908) 2 p.
Digital Images
Return to Table of Contents
Series III.

Documents, correspondence, memorabilia and a photograph related to the World's Columbian Dental Congress, Chicago, Illinois, 1893. (Box 5)

The World's Columbian Dental Congress was held in Chicago, Illinois, August 1893, in conjunction with the World's Columbian Exposition of 1893. The transactions of the Congress were published in a 2 volume set (cited below):

World's Columbian Dental Congress (1893 : Chicago, Ill.). Transactions of the World's Columbian Dental Congress. Chicago (Ill.) : Knight, Leonard & Co., 1894.
The documents and correspondence provide some insight into the planning for the Congress. Dr. Black was the Chairman of the World's Dental Columbian Dental Congress Committee on Nomenclature.

Organizations
World's Columbian Dental Congress (1893 : Chicago, Ill.)
World's Columbian Exposition (1893 : Chicago, Ill.)
Places
Chicago (Ill.)
Subjects
Dentistry

Documents

Preliminary communication from the Committee on Essays, World's Columbian Dental Congress (September 24, 1892) 2 p.

The general program of the World's Congresses of 1893 (April 1893) 18 p.

The World's Congress Auxiliary of the World's Columbian Exposition of 1893. 3 p. Includes general information, and information about the place of the meeting, registration, publications, dates, and hotels.

The World's Columbian Dental Congress, Chicago, Illinois, August 14-19, 1893. 4 p.
A circular announcing the Congress.

Correspondence

A.O. Hunt to G.V. Black (Sept. 10, 1892)
Persons
Hunt, A. O.
Black, G. V. (Greene Vardiman), 1836-1915

A.O. Hunt to G.V. Black (Sept. 13, 1892)
Persons
Hunt, A. O.
Black, G. V. (Greene Vardiman), 1836-1915

Memorabilia

World's Columbian Dental Congress member's ticket (August 14-19, 1892) Front and back of Dr. Black's ticket to the Dental Congress.

Opening of the World's Congresses of 1893 (May 1893) Invitation to the opening ceremonies of the World's Congresses of 1893.

Photograph
Group photograph of participants in the World's Columbian Dental Congress.
Return to Table of Contents
Series IV. Photographs. (Box 6)
G.V. Black statue in Lincoln Park, Chicago, Illinois. (1935)
Dedicated in 1918, the larger than life seated figure was orginally located in Lincoln Park just east of the Chicago Historical Society building. This photograph was taken before the statue was relocated to its current site at the head of Astor Street on North Avenue in Lincoln Park.
Persons
Black, G. V. (Greene Vardiman), 1836-1915
Places
Lincoln Park (Chicago, Ill.)
Subjects
Statues
G.V. Black and colleagues. (1912)
An unidentified patient is surrounded by Dr. Black and other prominent dentists, including Dr. C.N. Johnson at the Institute of Dental Pedagogics meeting in 1912 in Chicago, Illinois.
Persons
Black, G. V. (Greene Vardiman), 1836-1915
Johnson, Charles Nelson, 1860-1938
Organizations
Institute of Dental Pedagogics (U.S.)
Subjects
Dentistry


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