Drs. C.L. and Pauline V. Stocks Papers
Collection 118
Biography
Chester L. Stocks was born in Nashua, Iowa, on December 8, 1867, the son of George W. and Celia I. Wells Stocks. His father was a native of Pennsylvania who had been severely wounded in the Civil War. His mother was originally from New York. Chester was the second of four sons. C. L. Stocks received a high school education in Nashua and became a registered pharmacist for Nashua and nearby Denison, Iowa. In 1896, he graduated from the University Medical College in Kansas City, Missouri, and settled in Bushong, Kansas. On March 22, 1897, he married Lena M. Wieland, a German immigrant from Denison, Iowa.
In 1896, Dr. C. L. Stocks began his long career as a doctor in Bushong and such surrounding communities as Allen and Americus. He also owned a drug store for many years, was vice president of the Bushong State Bank, and was postmaster of the town from 1900 to 1910. He died in Emporia on August 3, 1934, and his wife died in 1937. Their daughter Pauline practiced medicine, also.
Pauline V. Stocks was born on December 3, 1907 and was the only child to survive infancy. She attended primary school at Bethany College of Topeka from approximately 1919-1920. She graduated from Kansas University Medical School in 1930 and practiced medicine in Bushong until 1943, when she left Kansas for Pennsylvania. She continued her work as a physician in Philadelphia until her death on 17 October 1976.
Scope and Content
The collection consists of 8 boxes and includes correspondence, medical and financial records, and prescription slips of Chester L. and Pauline V. Stocks, physicians in Bushong, Kansas. The collection dates from 1902 to 1943. There is a relatively small amount of C. L. Stocks’ correspondence, dating primarily from 1916 to 1932. Pauline Stocks’ letters are more numerous and are divided into personal (with a division for family letters) and professional, the latter covering the period from 1933 to 1943. The medical records include patient records and the prescription slips. The prescription records, most of which are found on 4x6 inch pads, are in chronological order and are particularly complete for the years 1932 to 1943. There is only a small amount of material that relates to the period prior to 1925. The same concentration of material is true for the medical records in the collection which include records of pregnancies and births and other medical charts. The financial records include sections on investments, taxes, and accounts receivable. Material from the year 1935 serves as a sample year for records of the Stocks’ drug store and other financial activities. Printed material in the collection includes drug catalogs dating from 1926-1933 and medical pamphlets from 1920-1940.
Contents List
Box 1
Correspondence, C. L. Stocks, 1905, 1914-1932
Correspondence, Pauline V. Stocks,
Family (includes school papers and medical certificates),
1916-1932
Personal, 1935-1943
Professional, 1933-1943
C. L. Stocks—memberships in lodges, 1902-1936
Box 2
Incomplete prescription records, 1924, 1936
Short-hand prescription records, 1934-1939
Diet Information and Plans
C. L. Stocks’ Medical and Pharmaceutical Certificates, 1902-1934
Drug tax papers, 1919-1940
Medical Charts
Scattered prescription records and patient condition records
General case records, 1930-1940
Records of pregnancies and births, 1930-1940
Box 3
Prescription records, 1912, 1926-1930, 1932-1936
Box 4
Prescription records, 1936-1939
Box 5
Prescription records, 1939-1943
Short-hand prescription records, 1941-1943
Box 6
Financial
Investments and other Assets, 1906-1938
Deposits and Bank Assets, 1905-1934
Accounts Receivable, etc., 1914-1940
Checks paid, 1911-1943
Taxes and other expenses, 1916-1943
Drug Receipts, etc., 1935
1930 Insurance Cases—Correspondence and other materials
Miscellaneous Materials
Box 7
Financial books (miscellaneous), 1902-1937
Bank deposit records, 1918-1939
Box 8
Printed materials
Miscellaneous books
Advertisements and Catalogs, 1926-1934
Books and Directories, 1911-1943
Stationary, etc., 1910-1934
Government material, 1930-1935
Box 8 (cont.) Pamphlets, etc., 1909-1921
Prepared by
Gene Mahan, Intern
Kansas State University
June, 1978
