Papers of P. C. C. Garnham

What do Edgar Allen Poe, protozoology and breeding rabbits have in common? The answer: Percy Cyril Claude Garnham, a rabbit breeding, Poe reading Professor of Medical Protozoology whose papers are held by the Wellcome Library.

Although the majority of Garnham’s papers were catalogued in the early 1980s, the catalogue was not available to view online until now. Additionally, papers given to the library since the collection was catalogued have now been integrated. The whole catalogue can be viewed online via the Archives and Manuscripts online catalogue.

Cyril Garnham, as he was known, was instrumental in the discovery of the pre-erythrocytic and exo-erythrocytic forms of several species of Plasmodia, the malaria causing parasites. The Archives and Manuscripts sources guide on Malaria contains more information about our holdings in this area.

The Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene annually awards the Garnham Fellowship, which aims to encourage young scientists to carry out field based projects, something which Cyril Garnham would certainly have approved.