To celebrate the centennial anniversary of the discovery of insulin at the University of Toronto, we are happy to announce a new online exhibition featuring highlights from the Library's collection of original documents relating to the history of insulin research.
The Discovery of Insulin at the University of Toronto: An Exhibition in Celebration of the 100th Anniversary features material originally selected for an exhibition that took place at the Fisher Library in 1996, curated by the Library’s former Assistant Director, Katharine Martyn. This digital re-mounting includes many of the same significant documents from the original exhibition, along with an important essay by historian Michael Bliss, republished online for the first time.
The history and development of insulin is thoroughly documented in the Fisher Library’s archives. The original archival documents included in these collections contain material created by the scientific team of Frederick Grant Banting (1891-1941), Charles Herbert Best (1899-1978), James Bertram Collip (1892-1965), and John James Rickard Macleod (1876-1935). These files, which document the various stages of the discovery of insulin, include original handwritten notes and notebooks concerning early experiments - among which can be found the successful formula for insulin - as well as patient charts, academic papers, reports, research files, newspaper articles, photographs, and correspondence between doctors, researchers, patients, the Eli Lilly Company, and the University of Toronto.
This digital exhibition was assembled in 2021 by Alexandra K. Carter and Natalya Rattan.
Exhibition Link: The Discovery of Insulin at the University of Toronto: An Exhibition in Celebration of the 100th Anniversary