Title
Oliver Perry Jones
Subject
Faculty member at University of Buffalo Medical School
University of Buffalo. School of Medicine--History
Capen, Samuel Paul, 1878-1956
University of Buffalo. Department of Anatomy--History
Description
Professor in the Department of Anatomy of the Medical School of the University of Buffalo and the State University of New York at Buffalo, 1937-1976; Chairman, 1943-1971. Tape of an interview with Jones conducted by Brenda K. Shelton, January 10, 1979. Concerns his childhood, Medical School at UB, part-time and full-time faculty, his relationship with Chancellor Capen, and his membership in various committees.
Overview: Dr. Oliver P. Jones was a member of the faculty of the Medical School at the University of Buffalo (and the State University of New York at Buffalo) from 1937~1976. He served as chairman of the department of anatomy from 1943-1971. Dr. Jones begins this interview by talking about his childhood and the development of his interest in medicine. He then discusses the medical school at UB, emphasizing various topics, including the relationship of the medical school to downtown hospitals, the comparative roles of the part-time and full-time faculty members, and the 1953 move to the Main Street campus. Dr. Jones also talks about his relationship with Chancellor Capen and about his membership on various committees over the years, including the Medical School Admissions Committee.
Interviewer's Observations: Dr. Oliver P. Jones, January 10, 1979
Dr. Jones, a widower, lives alone in a house on Berkeley Place. He is currently involved in a number of projects, some of which he alludes to in the interview. During the interview, he kept hitting his hand on a wooden stand next to his chair and frequently ruffled papers lying there. At one point he walked away to get a box of slides and then placed the box on the stool next to the microphone while he opened it. A number of times he stood up and walked around while he was talking. After I had put the tape recorder away, Dr. Jones talked at length about various topics. He never liked the Buffalo orientation of the Medical School and felt that too many of its students and faculty were from Buffalo, had attended school and college in Buffalo and then went on to practice in Buffalo. He worked to attract students from outside western New York, and resisted alumni pressure to admit Buffalo students. He strongly criticized the General Hospital which he called "parochial" and which he claims has been detrimental to the practice and teaching of medicine in Buffalo. He has a low opinion of physicians who served as voluntary professors, calling them poorly educated and not qualified for anything but clinical teaching. It seems clear that there was conflict between him and those professors who were practising physicians.
Dr. Jones, a widower, lives alone in a house on Berkeley Place. He is currently involved in a number of projects, some of which he alludes to in the interview. During the interview, he kept hitting his hand on a wooden stand next to his chair and frequently ruffled papers lying there. At one point he walked away to get a box of slides and then placed the box on the stool next to the microphone while he opened it. A number of times he stood up and walked around while he was talking. After I had put the tape recorder away, Dr. Jones talked at length about various topics. He never liked the Buffalo orientation of the Medical School and felt that too many of its students and faculty were from Buffalo, had attended school and college in Buffalo and then went on to practice in Buffalo. He worked to attract students from outside western New York, and resisted alumni pressure to admit Buffalo students. He strongly criticized the General Hospital which he called "parochial" and which he claims has been detrimental to the practice and teaching of medicine in Buffalo. He has a low opinion of physicians who served as voluntary professors, calling them poorly educated and not qualified for anything but clinical teaching. It seems clear that there was conflict between him and those professors who were practising physicians.
Date
1979-01-10
Type
Sound recording
Interviews
Sound
Identifier
OH-15
Date Created
2/27/2013
Video Filename
UA014-jones-oliver.mp3
Original Format
2 sound cassettes
Duration
ca. 70 min.
Interviewer
Shelton, Brenda K.
Interviewee
Jones, Oliver Perry, 1906-
Collection
Citation
“Oliver Perry Jones,” Digital Collections - University at Buffalo Libraries, accessed April 19, 2024, https://digital.lib.buffalo.edu/items/show/4288.