Errol Payne Palmer, Sr. papers
Photograph. Dr. Palmer (at center with Saguaro cactus directly behind him) with his colleagues and their spouses, undated (Box 2 Folder 4).
Collection area: History of Science
Collection dates: 1907-1969 bulk (bulk 1935-1952)
This collection contains materials which span Palmer’s career in Phoenix, Arizona. This collection documents his contributions to Arizona medicine in its early days, his extensive involvement in professional societies, his high standing and recognition in the profession and his numerous contributions to the body of medical scholarship. It also documents his key role in the formation of Arizona Blue Cross & Blue Shield and his lifelong interest in educating the general public on any number of important public health issues through speeches and radio broadcasts. This collection consists primarily of correspondence, speeches, writings and publications of Dr. Palmer. It also includes newspaper clippings highlighting his professional activities and recognitions he received. It is especially rich in materials relating to his professional activities in the various medical societies he contributed to. Other materials include ephemera, honors and certificates, and miscellanea. This collection is part of the Arizona Health Sciences Library (AHSL), a collection that focuses on the University of Arzona College of Medicine. It was transferred to Special Collections in 2018. Formerly collection number HT 0004.
Dr. Palmer was born in Mississippi where he passed the Mississippi Pharmacy Board at the age of seventeen and became a duly licensed pharmacist. Soon thereafter he moved to St. Louis, passed the Missouri State Pharmacy Board, and earned his way through medical school to graduate from what is now the Washington University School of Medicine in 1895. After graduation, he began practice in St. Louis.
In 1900, he had a severe bout of pneumonia and influenza and was advised to seek a better climate He arrived in Phoenix, Arizona on April 1, 1900 where he ultimately situated himself, his family, and his practice. His Arizona medical license was no. 102. In the early 1920s Dr. Palmer organized the Southwest Clinic and during the next decade he was associated in this practice with several physicians, among them Dr. Frank Milloy, gastroenterologist, the first specially trained specialist in this field in Arizona; Dr. Charles Vivian, urology; Doctor Spencer Whiting, chest disease; Dr. Elton R. Charvoz, obstetrics; and Dr. Charles N. Ploussard, surgery.
Dr. Palmer was a firm supporter of organized medicine and served as president of the Maricopa County Medical Society, the Southwestern Medical Association, and the Arizona Medical Association. Moreover, Dr. Palmer was a charter member of the American College of Surgery and was governor of the college for twenty years for the state of Arizona. He is known to have played a seminal role in standardizing hospital practices across Arizona.
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