Guide to the Papers of William McBride

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MS 9299

National Library of Australia View Catalogue Record

Collection Summary

Creator
McBride, William, Dr.
McBride, William, Dr.
Title
Papers of William McBride
Date Range
1953-1996
Collection Number
MS 9299
Extent
5.45 metres (27 ms boxes + 4 ms cartons + 1 large folio box + 1 medium folio box+ 1 sound/av carrier)
Language of Materials
English
Repository
Special Collections (Manuscripts)

Introduction

Scope and Contents

The collection includes correspondence, technical papers, laboratory research papers, patient records, photographs, certificates, newspaper cuttings, printed material, legal case papers and manuscript drafts. A large proportion of this material is photocopies. The papers document the development of McBride's career, the establishment of his medical research organisation Foundation 41 in 1972, and his research into various drugs including Thalidomide, Bendectin (Debendox), Scopolamine and oral contraceptives. There are also papers relating to the allegations of scientific fraud made against McBride in 1987, and subsequent investigations by the Foundation 41 Committee of Inquiry (1988) and the New South Wales Medical Tribunal (1989-1993). As well, there are drafts of and research material relating to McBride's autobiography Killing the messenger. McBride received letters from or corresponded with medical practitioners and researchers, Foundation 41 staff, solicitors, patients and friends. Among the correspondents are John Darling, Paul Brereton, Phillip Knightley, Widukind Lenz, Judy Baber, Patrick Rooney, Betty Mekdeci, Alexander Karczmar, Merrilyn Walton, Maurice Marios, Sir Theodore Fox, Ian Munro, Kathleen King, John Chesterman, Josef Warkany, Helen B. Taussig, Virginia Apgar, Richard Smithells, James Miller, Sir Abraham Goldberg, Arthur Jurand, Ares Damassiotis, Theodore Ingalls, Heinrich Mückter, Peter Arend, J.W. Draper, W.F. Robinson, James Ebert and Ezio Giacobini.

Conditions Governing Access

Please refer to the collection's catalogue record for the access conditions (http://nla.gov.au/nla.cat-vn1501964).

Conditions Governing Use

Copying and publishing of unpublished manuscript material is subject to copyright restrictions. For such material, written permission to publish must be obtained from the copyright holder(s). Copying of unpublished material for research purposes is permissible 50 years after the death of the creator of the material.

Preferred Citation

Items from this collection should be cited as '[Title or description of manuscript item], Papers of William McBride, National Library of Australia, MS 9299, [series/file/item number]'.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Papers of William McBride were first acquired by the Library in April 1995. A second instalment was received from him in August 1995.

Arrangement

For much of the collection, the Library has retained the order in which the papers were kept by McBride. All facsimiles have been photocopied to ensure preservation of their content. Any Files containing patient records, specialist medical reports or case histories are closed, as are papers relating to the Committee of Inquiry and Medical Tribunal proceedings in Series 10.

Biographical Note

William Griffith McBride was born in Sydney on May 25, 1927. He was educated at Canterbury Boys High School, the University of Sydney and the University of London. He graduated from the University of Sydney as Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery in 1950, and Doctor of Medicine in 1962. McBride married Dr Patricia Glover in 1957, and they have four children, Louise, Catherine, John and David. McBride was a Resident Medical Officer at St George Hospital, Sydney 1950, Launceston General Hospital 1951, and the Women's Hospital, Crown Street, Sydney 1952-1953. He was associated with the Women's Hospital, as Medical Superintendent 1955-1957, Consultant Obstetrician and Gynaecologist 1958-1963, and Honorary Obstetrician and Gynaecologist 1965-1983. He was an Obstetrician and Gynaecologist at St George Hospital from 1957. McBride has also been associated with the Royal Hospital for Women, South Sydney Hospital and Bankstown District Hospital. Throughout his career he has published letters and technical papers in various medical journals, including The Lancet, New Ethicals, Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, British Medical Journal, Medical Journal of Australia, Nature, Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health and Teratology. In 1969 McBride was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire for his role in identifying the teratogenic effects of the drug Thalidomide. McBride was the first to name the drug as a possible cause of birth defects in his 1961 letter to The Lancet, 'Thalidomide and congenital abnormalities'. In 1971 he was awarded the BP Prize and Gold Medal of the Institut de la Vie. He was also named New South Wales Father of the Year in 1972, and made an Officer of the Order of Australia in 1977. In 1972 McBride established a medical research organisation, Foundation 41. A Committee of Inquiry conducted an internal investigation into Foundation 41 in 1988, following allegations of scientific fraud against McBride in relation to his paper 'Effects of Scopolamine Hydrobromide on the development of the chick and rabbit embryo', Australian Journal of Biological Science (1982). In 1989 the New South Wales Medical Tribunal began investigating complaints by the New South Wales Department of Health regarding both McBride's research and medical practice. In 1993 the Tribunal found the complaints relating to scientific fraud proved, and ordered the removal of his name from the Register of Medical Practitioners. McBride's account of the proceedings against him, Killing the messenger, was published in 1994. After numerous applications, McBride was reinstated to the Register of Medical Practitioners in November 1998.

Item Descriptions

Series 1. Correspondence (PARTLY CLOSED), 1953-1995

McBride corresponded with or received letters from both Australian and overseas medical specialists and researchers, medical journal editors, solicitors and patients. The medical correspondence generally relates to drug research projects and findings, conferences, and technical papers. The non-medical correspondence includes general and administrative correspondence, such as arrangements for Foundation 41 research fellowships, travel arrangements, requests for reprints of McBride's technical papers, and congratulations on honours, awards and achievements.

McBride corresponded with solicitors, researchers and drug companies regarding various legal proceedings, particularly relating to Distillers Biochemicals and Chemie Grünenthal regarding Thalidomide, and Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals (previously Richardson Merrell) regarding Bendectin (Debendox). The series includes original or copies of Foundation 41 correspondence, memoranda, minutes of meetings and other papers, including letters from or correspondence between McBride, Patrick Rooney, Joan Jones, John Darling, and the Board of Directors of Foundation 41. Correspondence relating to the investigation of Foundation 41 by the Committee of Inquiry and to the proceedings of the New South Wales Medical Tribunal is also found in this series.

Other correspondents include John Chesterman, Geoffrey Bourke, Josef Warkany, Helen B. Taussig, Virginia Apgar, Richard Smithells, Maurice Marios, James Miller, Sir Abraham Goldberg, Arthur Jurand, Ares Damassiotis, Theodore Ingalls, Widukind Lenz, Phillip Knightley, Heinrich Mückter, Peter Arend, J.W. Draper, W.F. Robinson, James Ebert and Ezio Giacobini. There is also correspondence with the editors of various medical journals, including Robert Brent, Ronald Winton, Sir Theodore Fox, Ian Munro, Kathleen King, Renate Kimbrough and Harold Kalter, regarding numerous letters, articles and technical papers submitted for publication.

General correspondence, 1953-1994 (File 1-5) - Box 1

Thalidomide correspondence, 1963-1969 (File 6) - Box 2

Thalidomide correspondence and papers (CLOSED), 1972-1977 (File 7-8) - Box 2

'Solicitors and Doctors letters' (CLOSED), 1978-1985 (File 9) - Box 2

Letters of congratulation, 1969-1970 (File 10) - Box 2

'Overseas correspondence', 1969-1978 (File 11) - Box 3

Correspondence with The Lancet and other medical journals, 1961-1989 (File 12) - Box 3

'Medical correspondence (overseas)', 1986 (File 13-14) - Box 3

'Non-medical correspondence', 1987 (File 15) - Box 3

'Medical correspondence (overseas)', 1987 (File 16) - Box 3

'Medical correspondence (Australia)' (CLOSED), 1987 (File 17) - Box 3

'Medical correspondence', 1988 (File 18) - Box 4

'Non-medical correspondence', 1988 (File 19) - Box 4

'Correspondence', 1989 (File 20) - Box 4

Letters to the editor, Sydney Morning Herald, 1981-1995 (File 21) - Box 4

Series 2. Newspaper cuttings, 1962-1996

This comprehensive collection of newspaper cuttings relates to McBride's research projects and other subjects of interest, including the drugs Thalidomide, Scopolamine and Bendectin (Debendox), the Committee of Inquiry and Medical Tribunal proceedings, Dr Norman Swan and 'The Science Show', and McBride's various awards, honours and achievements.

Newspaper cuttings and photocopies, 1962-1981 (File 1-2) - Box 4

'Newspaper cuttings regarding research projects', 1974-1985 (File 3) - Box 5

Newspaper cuttings, 1986-1997 (File 4-5) - Box 5

Photocopies, 1962-1972 (File 6-8) - Box 5

Photocopies, 1987-1994 (File 9) - Box 5

Scrapbook, 1971-1974 (File 10) - Box 5

Series 3. Printed material

This series includes conference proceedings and programmes, medical textbooks and journals, and reprints and photocopies of technical papers. Some of the publications feature contributions by McBride, including an inscribed copy of Drugs 1960-70 (1969), with McBride's chapter 'Drugs in Obstetrics and Gynaecology'. There are also copies of numerous Medical & Clinical Reports of the Women's Hospital, Crown Street, Sydney.

Technical papers, conference programmes and other printed material (File 1-5) - Box 6

Publications (File 6-39) - Box 7, 8

Series 4. Photographs

This small series contains photographs of McBride and Foundation 41, including a photograph of the resident medical staff of the Women's Hospital, Crown Street (1954).

Miscellaneous photographs (File 1) - Box 9

Photograph of McBride (File 2) - Folio-Box Folio 2

Series 5. Certificates

The certificates in this series document many of McBride's awards, honours and achievements, including membership in the New York Academy of Sciences (1987), foundation fellowship of the Australian College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (1979) and the Order of Australia (1977).

Certificates and awards (File 1-19) - Folio-Box Folio 1, Folio 2

Series 6. Speeches

This series includes typescripts and notes for various speeches by McBride, including McBride's acceptance speech at the annual presentation luncheon of the New South Wales Father's Day Council, Father of the Year (1972). Other topics include 'Food, drugs and the unborn baby' and the closure of the Women's Hospital, Crown Street, Sydney.

Speeches (File 1) - Box 9

Series 7. Technical papers by McBride, 1957-1992

This series comprises drafts and reprints of numerous technical papers by McBride. The drafts include typescripts and page proofs of 'Pathogenesis of Thalidomide teratogenesis', published in Development, Growth and Differentiation (1983) and 'Thalidomide embryopathy', published in Teratology (1977). Photographs relating to many of these technical papers are included in Series 8.

Technical papers, 1957-1992 (File 1) - Box 9

Drafts (File 2-3) - Box 9

Series 8. Research and laboratory records (PARTLY CLOSED) - Box 9

This series includes a small collection of research notes, laboratory results, photographs and x-rays relating to various research topics and technical papers.

Research notebooks (CLOSED) (File 1-2) - Box 10

Photographs and negatives (File 3-7) - Box 10

X-rays (CLOSED) (File 8) - Folio-Box Folio 2

Series 9. Legal proceedings against Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals, 1962-1985

McBride testified at a number of proceedings in the United States involving Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals (previously Richardson Merrell), the manufacturer of the drug Bendectin (Debendox). This small series includes correspondence, legal case papers and research material relating to Koller v. Richardson Merrell, Kim v. Merrell Dow, Havner v. Merrell Dow, Cordova v. Merrell Dow, Mekdeci v. Merrell Dow and McBride v. Merrell Dow.

Papers relating to Mekdeci v. Merrell Dow, 1975-1979 (mostly photocopies) (File 1-2) - Box 11

Papers relating to various legal proceedings against Merrell Dow, 1980-1984 (File 3) - Box 11

Papers relating to McBride v. Merrell Dow, 1984-1985 (File 4) - Box 11

Research material relating to Bendectin (Debendox), 1962-1975 (photocopies) (File 5-7) - Box 11, 12

Series 10. Medical Tribunal and Committee of Inquiry papers (CLOSED), 1961-1994

The series comprises papers relating to the internal investigation of Foundation 41 by the Committee of Inquiry in 1988, and proceedings against McBride by the New South Wales Medical Tribunal from 1989 to 1993. These investigations followed allegations of scientific fraud made against McBride by Dr Norman Swan on 'The Science Show' in December 1987, in relation to the paper 'Effects of Scopolamine Hydrobromide on the development of the chick and rabbit embryo', McBride, Vardy and French, Australian Journal of Biological Science (1982).

The material includes originals or photocopies of correspondence, newspaper cuttings, transcripts of media reports, technical papers, press releases, Foundation 41 correspondence files, and legal case papers including submissions, statements, affidavits and copies of evidence. The material includes a large proportion of photocopies of correspondence and other papers relating to McBride's career from 1961 through to the early 1980s, presumably gathered together by McBride as documentation or evidence. Among the correspondents are Paul Brereton, Patrick Rooney, Judy Baber, John Darling, Phillip Knightley and Betty Mekdeci, as well as Merrilyn Walton and others from the New South Wales Department of Health.

Photocopies of correspondence and other papers documenting McBride's career, 1961-1994 (File 1-2) - Box 12

Correspondence relating to the Committee of Inquiry and Medical Tribunal proceedings, 1987-1994 (File 3-4) - Box 12

'Dr McBride's curriculum vitae' (File 5) - Box 13

'Merrell Dow letters and memos', 1963-1987 (photocopies) (File 6) - Box 13

'Inquiry - Debendox', correspondence and related papers, 1982-1988 (File 7) - Box 13

'Association of Birth Defect Children', 1983-1988 (File 8) - Box 13

'Benevolent Society correspondence', 1983-1989 (File 9) - Box 13

'Paddy Rooney', 1980-1988 (File 10) - Box 13

'Judy Baber', 1984-1989 (File 11) - Box 14

Letters of Judy Baber to Paddy Rooney, 1980-1988 (File 12) - Box 14

'Foundation 41', correspondence and papers relating to Foundation 41 and the Committee of Inquiry, 1963-1988 (File 13) - Box 14

'Foundation 41', 1982-1989 (File 14) - Box 14

'Foundation 41 - 1989', 1987-1989 (File 15) - Box 14

Transcripts of television and radio broadcasts, 1988-1991 (File 16) - Box 15

Newspaper cuttings and photocopies, 1988-1993 (File 17) - Box 15

Printed material, 1961-1993 (File 18-19) - Box 15

Miscellaneous papers, 1961-1985 (File 20) - Box 15

Copy of deposition of Phillip Vardy in Harper v. Merrell Dow, 1988 (File 21) - Box 16

Committee of Inquiry, statements, correspondence and related papers, 1982-1988 (File 22) - Box 16

'Submission of Merrell Dow for the Committee of Inquiry', 1988 (File 23) - Box 16

'Submission of McBride for the Committee of Inquiry', 1988 (File 24) - Box 16

Committee of Inquiry, copy of report, (nd) (File 25) - Box 16

Medical Tribunal, correspondence with counsel, notes and research material, 1982-93 (File 26-28) - Box 17

Medical Tribunal, statements, 1991 (File 29-30) - Box 17

Medical Tribunal, copies of court records and other papers, 1989-1993 (File 31-32) - Box 18

Medical Tribunal, transcript, day 152-157, 1991 (File 33) - Box 18

'Court of Appeal Record Sheet, Judgement of McBride v. Walton', 1994 (File 34) - Box 18

'Report of Associate Professor John Morrison', (nd) (File 35) - Box 18

'Report of Professor Norman Beischer', (nd) (File 36) - Box 18

'Report of Dr Douglas Keeping', (nd) (File 37) - Box 18

'Book 1 The Obstetric Complaints (1-8B)' (File 38) - Box 19

'Book 2 Complaint No. 1' (File 39) - Box 19

'Book 3 Complaints Nos. 2-6' (File 40) - Box 19

'Book 4 Complaint 7' (File 41) - Box 19

'Book 5 Complaints 8A and 8B' (File 42) - Box 19

'Books 6-7 The Scientific Fraud Complaints (9-15)' (File 43-44) - Box 20

'Book 8 Reasons for Determinations and Orders' (File 45) - Box 20

'Submissions for the Respondent', Volumes 1-4B (File 46-50) - Box 20, 21

'Statement of Dr William Griffith McBride Concerning Complaints 9-15' (draft) (File 51) - Box 21

'Statement of Dr William Griffith McBride' (3 copies) (File 52-54) - Box 21

'Transcript of Evidence of Dr McBride', day 77-86, 1990 (File 55) - Box 22

'Transcript of Evidence of Dr McBride', day 89-100, 1990 (File 56) - Box 22

'Respondent's Submissions, Complaints 9-15' (File 57) - Box 22

'Department of Health, Clinical Statements, Volume 7C' (File 58) - Box 23

'Material provided to Experts, Volume 9B' (File 59) - Box 23

'Supplementary Material for Experts, Patient Evidence' (File 60) - Box 23

'Hospital Records, Volume II' (File 61) - Box 24

'Committee of Inquiry, Transcript of Proceedings' (File 62) - Box 24

Medical Tribunal affidavits and evidence relating to complaints 9-15 (File 63-64) - Box 24, 25

Patient records (File 65-66) - Box 25

Series 11. Killing the messenger, (1994)

This series includes drafts, galleys and research material relating to McBride's autobiography Killing the messenger, published by Eldorado in 1994. The book details the development of McBride's career, and the controversy and subsequent legal proceedings which followed allegations of scientific fraud made against him in 1987.

The research material includes original and photocopied correspondence, Foundation 41 records, Department of Health correspondence, newspaper articles and other papers relating to McBride's career and the Committee of Inquiry and Medical Tribunal proceedings. There are handwritten and typescript manuscript drafts, many with extensive revisions and notes.

Research material, 1961-1987 (File 1) - Box 26

Research material, 1988 (File 2-3) - Box 26

Research material, 1989-1994 (File 4) - Box 26

Research material comprising Department of Health correspondence and papers, 1988-1994 (File 5) - Box 26

Research material comprising newspaper cuttings and technical papers, 1962-1994 (File 6) - Box 27

Drafts (File 7-28) - Box 27, 28, 29, 30

Galleys (File 29-30) - Folio-Box Folio 2

Series 12. Miscellaneous papers (PARTLY CLOSED), 1954-1994

This series of miscellaneous papers includes a transcript of McBride's oral history interview with Hazel de Berg, a File of material relating to the Institut de la Vie (including conference programmes, brochures and information sheets), McBride's International Driving Permit, and Royal Agricultural Society prize certificates.

Miscellaneous documents, 1954-1994 (File 1) - Box 31

Transcript of an oral history interview with McBride, 1972 (File 2) - Box 31

'Institut de la Vie', 1970-1977 (File 3) - Box 31

'Obstetrical case records and commentaries submitted for the MRCOG examination by W.G. McBride' (CLOSED), 1954 (File 4-5) - Box 31

Audio cassette tape recording of 'McBride Behind the Myth' by Ramona Kovall on radio station 3LO, 24 August, 1989 (File 6) - Box 31

McBride Behind the Myth' radio program with Ramona Kovall, 3LO. 24/08/1989, 24/08/1989 (Item NLA.MS-SAV014642) - Cassette-Box 662
1 item, Unbranded, Compact cassette tape

15 minutes. From Croll's Monitoring Australia

Two silhouettes of McBride, Tivoli, 1954 (File 7) - Box 31

Caricature of McBride at the Journalists' Club by Tony Rafty, 1972 (File 8)


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