Working on the Army Epidemiological Board in the 1940s, Joseph Stokes, Jr. discovered the value of gamma globulin for the prevention of epidemic hepatitis. His subsequent research included immunization against influenza, protection against poliomyelitis by gamma globulin, antigenic difference between epidemic and serum hepatitis, immunization procedures in mumps, development of a vaccine against measles. His clinical focus was on the causes and prevention of childhood infectious diseases. His administrative work includes the transformation of Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and the University of Pennsylvania, School of Medicine, Department of Pediatrics. His community work consists of public health and environment control issues.

Correspondence, notebooks, research data related to Cole's career as the first director at the Hospital of the Rockefeller Institute of Medical Research, 1908-1937. His research of pneumonia was conducted when the disease was epidemic. Personal correspondence reflect Cole's life as a medical resident at Johns Hopkins, 1899-1908. Documented are his memberships in leading medical organizations throughout his career, including the Association of American Physicians and the New York Academy of Medicine. This collection showcases the evolving changes in the medical profession from practicing physician to clinician.