Documents

The Mercy Hospital collection of J. B. Murphy materials consists of papers and images compiled by the staff of Mercy Hospital, Chicago, related to the life and work of surgeon and professor Dr. John Benjamin Murphy, particularly his treatment of Theodore Roosevelt at the Hospital following an assassination attempt in October 1912. The collection also includes materials related to the publication of The Remarkable Surgical Practice of John Benjamin Murphy by Robert L. Schmitz, MD, former chief of staff at Mercy Hospital, and Timothy T. Oh, librarian at Mercy Hospital, as well as hundreds of surgical and medical instruments used at Mercy Hospital, some of which belonged to Murphy.

Notable items in the collection include a photograph of Roosevelt's chest x-ray, a letter written by 13-year-old Werner A. Greve about Murphy's skills as a surgeon, and original portrait photographs of Murphy.

Three of the items in the collection—Roosevelt's chest x-ray, the hospital register page, and the "Dr. John B. Murphy and Theodore Roosevelt" page of information—were framed and displayed in a public space in Mercy Hospital for many years.