Descriptive Summary
This is not a comprehensive collection of Bacon's papers, but a fragmented assortment representing various phases of her personal and professional life between 1942 and 1985. Most of the collection comprises reprints, course outlines, references, and guides, with some correspondence and minutes from meetings of the VSBN and the VNA. Her career from 1955 to 1991 is highlighted in documents relating to the Richmond Professional Institute, the Medical College of Virginia, state boards, nurse associations, and junior colleges, as well as the National League for Nursing and the American Nurses Association. The material is most notable for its World War II correspondence, and for an interview of Bacon discussing her war experiences on cassette tape.
Biographical Information
Evelyn Crary Bacon was born in Iowa in 1916 and earned baccalaureate and master's degrees from the University of Iowa School of Nursing in 1937 and 1940. From 1942 to 1945 she served in the Army Nurse Corps in the USA and in England, then taught at UCLA and the University of Iowa before enrolling in a doctoral program at the University of Chicago in 1949. Before completing her degree, she married Franklin Bacon and moved to Charlottesville, Virginia, where she taught extension courses throughout the state for UVA's Cabaniss School of Nursing Education. She served as acting chair of the university's Department of Nursing Education from 1954 to 1956, then joined the faculty of the Medical College of Virginia School of Nursing in 1960. From 1965 to 1968 Bacon headed the Richmond Professional Institute and during the 1970s and 80s she taught at a number of institutions and was in demand as a consultant. Throughout her career in the state, she was a recognized leader in Virginia nursing education, known for her work with the Virginia State Board of Nursing (VSBN), the Virginia Nurses Association (VNA), the Virginia League for Nursing (VLN), and the Southern Regional Education Board. Bacon was also active in the National League for Nursing (NLN). In 1985 she retired from the faculty of the J.S. Reynolds Community College in Richmond, Va.
Scope and Content
Box 1 1942 - 1982
Folder 1 US Army Nurse Corps Materials, 1942-1967; 1994 Mimeographed personal letters, 1942-45; V-Mail personal letters, 1943-44; Memoir of a visit to “Gay Paree,” 1944; Army Nurse Corps brochure,1947; Reunion of WWII Veterans – 25th Anniversary, 1967; taped interview
Folder 2 NLN – BS and Higher Degree Programs, 1952-1967
Materials from the NLN to member institutions regarding baccalaureate and higher degree nursing education, including curriculum, evaluation, accreditation, federal support, etc.
Folder 3 NLN – Curriculum Conference, 1958
Conference program, bibliography, related materials
Folder 4 Evaluation of clinical performance, 1959-1962 and n.d.
Notes, reprints on evaluation of clinical performance
Folder 5 Legalities and Nursing 1962-1982
Reprints of ANA, other articles on legal aspects of nursing; correspondence, notes, and related materials from a 1981 lecture on the topic by Bacon at Henrico Hospital
Folder 6 Teaching: Improvement of Instruction, 1964-1970 and n.d.
Notes, bibliographies, instructional materials from a course
Folder 7 Miscellaneous Virginia Nursing Organizations and State Committees, 1956-1976
Correspondence, notes, meeting minutes for VNA, VLN; journal article on history of VNA; Virginia Senate Bill establishing nursing scholarships; letter re Advisory Council on Nursing Training; minutes of Committee on Status of Women
Folder 8 Virginia Public Health Association, 1966-1972
Newsletter, historical news article, minutes of nursing group
Folder 9 Virginia Nurses' Association, 1957-1971
Meeting minutes, historical articles, correspondence and documents related to 1969 conference
Folder 10 Southern Regional Education Board, Deans' Conference, 1968-1969
Correspondence, documents, and notes related to conferences
Folder 11 Papers by Bacon, 1967-1970
Curriculum development, change, health professions in higher education
Folder 12 UVA - McLeod Hall Dedication Program, 1972
Dedication programs, presentation of independent studies program, Sigma Theta Tau installation speech draft
Folder 13 Course: The Nature of Nursing, 1973
Course materials for basic nursing course (taught by Bacon?)
Folder 14 Credentialing and Scope of Practice, 1974-1978
Materials on advanced practice nursing, physician's assistants, credentialing health manpower
Box 2 1972 - 1991
Folder 1 Primary Care Nursing, 1977-1978
Course materials, papers on primary care nursing (taught by Bacon?)
Folder 2 Virginia State Board of Nursing: Standards of Practice, 1964-1981
Documents related to Bacon's role as consultant in determining Virginia standards of nursing practice
Folder 3 Licensing of Nurses in Virginia, 1968-1980
Miscellaneous materials related to licensure, certification
Folder 4 Piedmont State Hospital, 1976
Documents related to Virginia Board of Nursing consultation on staff issue
Folder 5 Virginia Psychiatric Hospital Regulations, 1976-1980
Documents related to Virginia Board of Nursing consultations on patient care issues
Folder 6 Nursing Ethics, 1979-1981
Documents related to Bacon guest lecture on ethics at UVA
Folder 7 Piedmont Geriatric Hospital, 1979
Documents related to Bacon consultation visit
Folder 8 Geriatric Nursing Assistant Program, 1980
Report, related documents of VA Geriatric Aide Training Task Force
Folder 9 Papers Critiqued by Bacon, 1977-1980
Papers on sanitarian aide training, program evaluation sent to Bacon for comment
Folder 10 Virginia League for Nursing, 1986-1991
Minutes, correspondence, related documents from VLN
Folder 11 VNA, VLN Archives at Virginia Commonwealth University,1983-1991
Correspondence, documents related to establishment of VNA, VLN archives at Virginia Commonwealth University
Folder 12 Medical Sociology Course, 1986
Documents related to guest lecture by Bacon
Folder 13 Virginia Schools of Nursing, n.d.
Lists of Virginia nursing programs
Folder 14 History of Clinical Nursing, n.d.
Manuscript by unknown author on history of clinical nursing
Folder 15 Miscellaneous ANA, NLN, 1966-1982
ANA response to NCN report, statement on community planning for nursing education
Series Description
Because the collection presents no clearly defined structure, it has been arranged into one roughly chronological series from 1942 through 1991. Related topical materials have been combined.
Notes
Access
No Restrictions
Use Restrictions
No Restrictions
Preferred Citation
University of Virginia School of Nursing, Eleanor Crowder Bjoring Center for Nursing Historical Inquiry Evelyn Crary Bacon Collection
Collection acquired from Evelyn Bacon's husband, Franklin Bacon, in 1999.
Processed by Aurelie Knapik, RN, MSN between January 2000-January 2002.