Identity area
Reference code
Title
Date(s)
- 1921-1977 (Creation)
Level of description
Extent and medium
6 boxes
Context area
Name of creator
Biographical history
John Chassar Moir was the first Nuffield Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at the University of Oxford, a post he held from 1937 to 1967. At University College Hospital, London, he and Dr Harold Ward Dudley had isolated the new drug ergometrine, responsible for the traditional clinical effects of ergot, which was rapidly and universally adopted for the prevention of haemorrhage after childbirth, and he had written a thesis on rotation of the foetus in childbirth for which he gained his MD and a gold medal from Edinburgh University. At Oxford, he built up the Radcliffe Infirmary, studied the use of diagnostic x-rays in obstetrics, and made an outstanding contribution to gynaecological surgery, the repair of vesico-vaginal fistulae. He was for several years the co-editor and for the sixth edition sole editor, of Munro-Kerr's well-known textbook Operative Obstetrics. He became president of the obstetrics and gynaecology section of the Royal Society of Medicine, and in 1974 was made an honorary fellow. Further biographical details can be found in the obituaries in the British Medical Journal and the Lancet.
Repository
Archival history
GB 0120 PP/JCM 1921-1977 Collection (fonds) 6 boxes Moir , John Chassar , 1900-1977 , Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology
John Chassar Moir was the first Nuffield Professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at the University of Oxford, a post he held from 1937 to 1967. At University College Hospital, London, he and Dr Harold Ward Dudley had isolated the new drug ergometrine, responsible for the traditional clinical effects of ergot, which was rapidly and universally adopted for the prevention of haemorrhage after childbirth, and he had written a thesis on rotation of the foetus in childbirth for which he gained his MD and a gold medal from Edinburgh University. At Oxford, he built up the Radcliffe Infirmary, studied the use of diagnostic x-rays in obstetrics, and made an outstanding contribution to gynaecological surgery, the repair of vesico-vaginal fistulae. He was for several years the co-editor and for the sixth edition sole editor, of Munro-Kerr's well-known textbook Operative Obstetrics. He became president of the obstetrics and gynaecology section of the Royal Society of Medicine, and in 1974 was made an honorary fellow. Further biographical details can be found in the obituaries in the British Medical Journal and the Lancet.
These papers were given to the Wellcome Library in April and October 1990 by Professor Moir's daughter, Miss Jane Moir.
The collection consists of miscellaneous material pertaining to Professor John Chassar Moir's career which was retained in the family, 1921-1977. This includes biographical material; research files, including on ergot, vesico-vaginal fistula, and history of obstetrics; a few case notes; correspondence; and two films of operations.
A small amount of re-arrangement has been necessary, and the removal of original file covers.
Arranged in sections as follows: Research files; Case notes and clinical material; Radcliffe Infirmary, Oxford; Miscellaneous correspondence; Biographical and career; Portrait photographs; Films; Specimens; Obituaries and letters of condolence received by Moir's widow; Volume of notes by Jane Moir, including biographical details and reminiscences, and lists of the authors of the congratulatory letters in section.
The bulk of the papers are available subject to the usual conditions of access to Archives and Manuscripts material, after the completion of a Reader's Undertaking. Certain files are closed as they contain sensitive information, these files are as follows: PP/JCM/10/1 closed until January 2029, PP/JCM/10/2 closed until January 2043, PP/JCM/10/3 closed until Janary 2033, PP/JCM/10/4 closed until January 2057, PP/JCM/12/2 closed until January 2056.
Material at the Wellcome Library: papers of Moir's successor in the Nuffield Chair, Sir John Stallworthy (Ref. PP/JAS). Material at other repositories: other papers of Professor Moir's are held by the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (Special Collections, reference S/02). These include professional notes and correspondence with Sir Henry Dale on ergot, c.1930-1938, and with others. Forceps and other items are held in the College Museum. The Wellcome Galleries of the Science Museum hold Professor Moir's domiciliary deliveries case.
English
The catalogue is available on microfiche via the National Inventory of Documentary Sources (NIDS).
Copied from the Wellcome Library catalogue by Sarah Drewery.
In compliance with ISAD (G): General International Standard Archival Description - 2nd Edition (1999); UNESCO Thesaurus, December 2001; National Council on Archives Rules for the Construction of Personal, Place and Corporate Names, 1997.
Jan 2009 Moir , John Chassar , 1900-1977 , obstetrician and gynaecologist Information sources Documents Medical records Hospitals Health services Medical institutions Obstetrics Health occupations Occupations Medicine Specialties, surgical Gynecology Medical sciences Surgery Radcliffe Infirmary , Oxford University of Oxford East Asia Far East East Africa Primary documents
Immediate source of acquisition or transfer
These papers were given to the Wellcome Library in April and October 1990 by Professor Moir's daughter, Miss Jane Moir.
Content and structure area
Scope and content
The collection consists of miscellaneous material pertaining to Professor John Chassar Moir's career which was retained in the family, 1921-1977. This includes biographical material; research files, including on ergot, vesico-vaginal fistula, and history of obstetrics; a few case notes; correspondence; and two films of operations.
Appraisal, destruction and scheduling
A small amount of re-arrangement has been necessary, and the removal of original file covers.
Accruals
System of arrangement
Arranged in sections as follows: Research files; Case notes and clinical material; Radcliffe Infirmary, Oxford; Miscellaneous correspondence; Biographical and career; Portrait photographs; Films; Specimens; Obituaries and letters of condolence received by Moir's widow; Volume of notes by Jane Moir, including biographical details and reminiscences, and lists of the authors of the congratulatory letters in section.
Conditions of access and use area
Conditions governing access
The bulk of the papers are available subject to the usual conditions of access to Archives and Manuscripts material, after the completion of a Reader's Undertaking. Certain files are closed as they contain sensitive information, these files are as follows: PP/JCM/10/1 closed until January 2029, PP/JCM/10/2 closed until January 2043, PP/JCM/10/3 closed until Janary 2033, PP/JCM/10/4 closed until January 2057, PP/JCM/12/2 closed until January 2056.
Conditions governing reproduction
Material at the Wellcome Library: papers of Moir's successor in the Nuffield Chair, Sir John Stallworthy (Ref. PP/JAS). Material at other repositories: other papers of Professor Moir's are held by the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (Special Collections, reference S/02). These include professional notes and correspondence with Sir Henry Dale on ergot, c.1930-1938, and with others. Forceps and other items are held in the College Museum. The Wellcome Galleries of the Science Museum hold Professor Moir's domiciliary deliveries case.
Language of material
- English
Script of material
- Latin
Language and script notes
English
Physical characteristics and technical requirements
Finding aids
The catalogue is available on microfiche via the National Inventory of Documentary Sources (NIDS).
Allied materials area
Existence and location of originals
Existence and location of copies
Related units of description
Notes area
Alternative identifier(s)
Access points
Subject access points
Place access points
Name access points
Genre access points
Description control area
Description identifier
Institution identifier
Rules and/or conventions used
In compliance with ISAD (G): General International Standard Archival Description - 2nd Edition (1999); UNESCO Thesaurus, December 2001; National Council on Archives Rules for the Construction of Personal, Place and Corporate Names, 1997.
Status
Level of detail
Dates of creation revision deletion
Language(s)
- English