Margaret Bright Collection

Biography

Margaret Bright began her career at the United Nations Population Division Department of Social Affairs. She was the primary researcher of the 1953 work, “The Determinants and Consequences of Population Trends,” a synthesis of world population data. She published some of the first analyses of race and sex disparities in morbidity. Abraham Lilienfeld recruited her to the Johns Hopkins University School of Hygiene and Public Health in 1959, where she worked to blend social and behavioral science methods into the new field of chronic disease epidemiology, pioneering the use of demography to inform health planning. She was named full professor in 1970 and became a professor emeritus in 1983.

Scope and Content

The Margaret Bright collection consists of correspondence, manuscripts, curriculum vita, personal documents, reports, publications, photographs, and other documents. Manuscripts include “Diary of Brazilian Mission” about her 1960 work with Serviço Especial de Saúde Pública (SESP) rural comprehensive cooperative health service program in Brazil, a manuscript journal of her “India Trip, Dec 1973 -Jan 1974”, a draft- “Report on East Baltimore to the Medical Planning and Development Committee” prepared by Center of Urban Affairs, and other family planning reports regarding inner city studies. Records also include materials related to the Ph.D Program in Sociology and Public Health, and papers related to history of related degree programs/department. Also includes are her 1944 Master’s thesis “Farm Wage Workers in Four Southeast Missouri Cotton-Producing Counties”, and 1950 PhD Dissertation “Occupational Choice Behavior: An Exploratory Study”, University Wisconsin. Typed report: “Changes in Housing by Race and Tenure, Baltimore, MD 1960-1970 a 25 page report with (Department of Chronic Page 1 of 15 Diseases, School of Hygiene) with colored maps. Notes of trip to India and Russia, August 4- 11, 1959 (tan cover);  report Margaret Rowan edited, “Determinants and Consequences of Population Trends”, a publication of Population Division, Department of Social Affairs, United Nations. The volume is trimmed in leather has the title and her name stamped in gold on the cover, front board detached, 1953; and letters in it, about the volume. Paul White’s Self-Study Report Department of Behavioral Sciences, 1978; Thesis manuscript of 278 pages submitted by Chueh Chang for Doctor of Science “Anticipatory Examination Stress on Health of Adolescents in Taiwan”, 1985. Agra Heritage Planning Synopsis, 1994. Master of Public Health – Program Advisory Committee (MPHPAC), Minutes, Agendas, Memos, notes, 1980-1984. Index cards and rolodex with contact information.

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