AnnouncementsMemorial DayThe Special Collections Public Services Desk will be open by appointment only on Monday, May 27, 2013, in observance of Memorial Day. Please order materials by 5pm on Wednesday, May 22, 2013, to ensure delivery prior to the holiday. The Special Collections Public Services Desk will resume normal hours on Tuesday, May 28, at 8am. If you have any questions, please contact, via email, Gwynn Thayer or Eli Brown. MC 00124 Guide to the Henry Brower Smith Papers, 1970-1972This collection is arranged chronologically.
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CreatorSmith, Henry Brower, 1917- Quantity0.25 Linear feet General Physical Description note1 archival half box LocationFor current information on the location of these materials, please consult the
Special Collections Research Center Reference Staff LanguageEnglish Acquisitions InformationGift of Henry Brower Smith, 1979 August 17 (Accession no. 1979-0019). ProcessingProcessed by: Will Andersen;machine-readable finding aid created by: Will Andersen Scope and Content NoteThe Henry Brower Smith Papers consist of correspondence and other materials, 1970-1972, involving the Medical Plastics Corporation of America's development and marketing of its line of products containing the controversial antibacterial agent hexachlorophene. Smith, a professor of engineering at North Carolina State University, was a member of the board of directors of the company. Correspondents include the United States Food and Drug Administration, the Pesticides Regulation Division of the United States Environmental Protection Agency, the Agricultural Research Service and Consumer and Marketing Service of the United States Department of Agriculture, United States Senator B. Everett Jordan of North Carolina, and Robert J. Brown, special assistant to President Richard M. Nixon. Other materials in the collection include Medical Plastics memoranda and financial documents, copies of articles from newspapers and medical journals, laboratory reports, and notes by Smith. Biographical NoteHenry Brower Smith was born in Durham, North Carolina, on 1917 July 9. He received a B.S. from the North Carolina State College of Agriculture and Engineering (later North Carolina State University) in 1938, an M.S. from the Virginia Agricultural and Mechanical College and Polytechnic Institute (later Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University) in 1939, and a Ph.D. from the University of Cincinnati in 1942. All his degrees were in chemical engineering. Smith was an assistant professor of chemical engineering at Bucknell University from 1941 to 1942, and a research engineer at the Air Reduction Company from 1942 to 1943. After serving as a special projects officer with the U.S. Army's Chemical Warfare Service Technical Command from 1943 to 1946, he was a supervisor of research engineering at the Air Reduction Company from 1946 to 1948, and a professor of chemical engineering at Bucknell University from 1948 to 1951. He then was a technical director at General Foods Corporation from 1951 to 1957, director of research at General Foods from 1957 to 1962, and vice president of Armour Grocery Products Company from 1962 to 1965. Smith joined the faculty of North Carolina State University as a professor of chemical engineering in 1965. During his career at North Carolina State, he was first associate dean for research and graduate studies of the School of Engineering, then vice provost and dean for university research. He retired as professor emeritus in 1983. In addition, Smith was a member of the Institute of Food Technologists, and a fellow in the American Institute of Chemical Engineers. From 1970, Smith was a member of the board of directors of the Medical Plastics Corporation of America of Greensboro, North Carolina. Medical Plastics was the manufacturer of "Medi-Gard" brand plastic products, which contained hexachlorophene, an antibacterial agent. Just as the company was developing and marketing its line of Medi-Gard products, news reports spread great popular concern over the toxic danger of hexachlorophene, thus severely damaging consumer confidence in products containing the agent. Medical Plastics believed the U.S. Food and Drug Administration acted irresponsibly by fueling public concern over the safety of hexachlorophene. However, the company was unable to obtain any remedy from that agency, and was apparently forced out of business by the controversy. Smith resigned as a director of Medical Plastics in 1972. Controlled Terms
Access to CollectionThis collection is open for research; access requires at least 24 hours advance notice. For more information contact us via mail, phone, fax, or our web form. Special Collections Research Center Telephone(919) 515-2273 Fax(919) 513-1787 Preferred Citation[Identification of item], Henry Brower Smith Papers, MC 124, Special Collections Research Center, North Carolina State University Libraries, Raleigh, NC Access to CollectionThe nature of the NCSU Libraries' Special Collections means that copyright or other information about restrictions may be difficult or even impossible to determine despite reasonable efforts. The NCSU Libraries claims only physical ownership of most Special Collections materials. The materials from our collections are made available for use in research, teaching, and private study, pursuant to U.S. Copyright law. The user must assume full responsibility for any use of the materials, including but not limited to, infringement of copyright and publication rights of reproduced materials. Any materials used for academic research or otherwise should be fully credited with the source. |
