Myron Bender (1924-1988) Papers

The Myron Bender Papers include biographical information from Northwestern University, correspondence regarding nominations and inductions to the National Academy of Sciences, and manuscript materials and correspondence regarding published works.

Of note are the letters between Bender and his publishers, colleagues, and peers, as well numerous copies of his various works. Most of the articles here are published in journals for the National Academy of Sciences, the National Research Council, Accounts of Chemical Research, and the National Institute for Health. His textbooks were printed by many companies, and in multiple languages.

Some of the unique elements of Bender’s papers include examples of his fight for human rights. There are a few papers in Box 2, Folder 6 that are copies of letters Bender wrote to the USSR, often to Russian military personnel in the Kremlin, in attempts to persuade the release of wrongly accused scientists. Bender believed that science is an international field, and so believed in the safety and just treatment of his international peers.