Several years ago a teacher in my daughter's school was converting the loft in her garage into a yoga studio. In the Park Hill neighborhood of Denver - where she lives, many houses were built in the early 1900's and they are charming.
There was a stack of roofing shingles in the corner of the loft. When she went to move these stacks, she saw that they were magazines wrapped very diligently in butcher paper and twine in groups of 12. As she unwrapped a package, she realized that they were old scientific dental journals - specifically, JADA ("Journal of the American Dental Association).
She called me up to see if I could help her get them to a museum. From what we could tell, Dr. Jackson (the former owner of the house) had been collecting them since the early 1900's though 1950 or so.
After calls to the ADA library and the dental museum in Maryland, they had no use for them since they weren't a complete set (1860's-present day). I took them and continue to store them in my garage - still wrapped.
Every once in a while, I open up a stack and peruse through the pages. I am the chair of the ADA's Science and Research Institute (ADASRI) and have been focusing a lot more this past year on reading the multitudes of current journals so I have my finger on the pulse of the latest trends in current dental research.
Back in 1939, there was only the "Journal of the American Dental Association" (to the best of my knowledge). There was no internet. Local/regional/national dental society meetings, study clubs and dental conventions were sporadic.
The only source of what was going on in dentistry came once a month in these pages. New materials, techniques, equipment were all highlighted here. It was truly their window to the world. I am sure it was an exciting day for Dr. Jackson when the new journal arrived every month!
I find these journals to be intriguing and cerebral as these pioneers were "figuring things out." One of the responsibilities of being a profession is to share new knowledge with our colleagues to continue to raise the bar so we can treat our patients in the best possible manner.
Today's JADA is equally insightful, but since we have so many sources to get knowledge, it doesn't have the same effect on me as these would have back in that time period.
I am so grateful for those who paved the way for myself and my colleagues in the dental profession. After reading a few pages of these journals from 1939, I am reminded that on behalf of today's dentist, we truly stand on the shoulders of giants!
If any of my colleagues are interested in these journals, please DM me, happy to share.
