IDENTITY STATEMENT
Reference code(s): GB 0120 SA/BSI
Held at: Wellcome Library
Title: British Society of Immunology
Date(s): 1956-1998
Level of description: Collection (fonds)
Extent: 34 boxes
Name of creator(s): British Society of Immunology
CONTEXT
Administrative/Biographical history:
The British Society of Immunology (BSI) was founded in 1956 to promote the study of immunology. It does this primarily through scientific meetings and its journals, Immunology and Clinical and Experimental Immunology. It also supports regional immunology groups, and affinity groups which meet to discuss particular interests such as comparative and veterinary immunology. It arranges summer schools and supports the organisation of conferences for those in further education.
The BSI has representatives on the committees of related organisations and vice versa. It is affiliated to the Research Defence Society and the Institute of Biology. It is a member of the International Union of Immunological Societies and the European Federation of Immunological Societies. The Society is registered as a charity and became a company limited by guarantee in 1995. It set up its own trading company, Triangle 3 Ltd in 1994. This enables it to create additional income without affecting its charitable status. The directors of the company are the BSI's Management Committee.
CONTENT
Scope and content/abstract:
Papers of the British Society of Immunology since the 1950s, plus some papers of individuals connected with the Society.
ACCESS AND USE
Language/scripts of material: English
System of arrangement:
The original order of the records has been kept or reconstructed, where it has been possible to determine this. However, as few of the records were in any sort of discernible order, most of them have been arranged into artificial series according to their creator, function or form. The original order of the papers within the files has been respected. Duplicate publications, papers and correspondence have been disposed of, as has routine administrative correspondence.
Divided into sections as follows:
A BSI COMMITTEE 1953-1992: A.1 BSI Committee minutes 1953-1992;
A.2 BSI Committee meeting papers and correspondence 1971-1989.
B JOURNAL COMMITTEES 1957-1991:
B.1 Journal Committee minutes 1957-1963;
B.2 Immunology Editorial Board Meeting papers and correspondence 1973-1978;
B.3 Clinical and Experimental Immunology Editorial Board Meeting papers andcorrespondence 1973-1979;
B.4 Journals Working Party papers and correspondence 1984-1991.
C BRITISH NATIONAL COMMITTEE FOR IMMUNOLOGY 1976-1989;
C.1 BNCI minutes, papers and correspondence 1976-1989.
D FINANCE 1957-1994:
D.1 Accounts 1957-1968;
D.2 BSI accounts expenditure 1987-1988;
D.3 Financial statements 1994;
D.4 Overseas members subscriptions book 1957-1966;
D.5 Treasurer's papers and correspondence 1974-1978.
E PROPERTY 1984-1990:
E.1 No 11 Hobart Place, London, SW1W OHL 1984-1990;
E.2 Parkwest House, 10 Furmage Street, London, SW18 1988-1989.
F MEMBERSHIP 1962-1995:
F.1 Rules and list of members 1962-1980;
F.2 Yearbooks 1982-1995;
F.3 Honorary membership 1975-1988.
G PUBLICATIONS 1973-1997:
G.1 Handbooks 1985-1995/6;
G.2 Newsletters 1973-1993;
G.3 Immunology News: The bulletin of the British Society for Immunology 1994-1997;
G.4 Clinical and Experimental Immunology 1983-1990;
G.5 Journal publicity 1991-1995;
G.6 BSI published publications 1988-1992;
G.7 Non BSI publications 1966-1994.
H MEETINGS 1957-1996:
H.1 Spring, Summer and Autumn Meeting programmes 1957-1994;
H.2 Spring and Autumn Meeting attendance books 1956-1993;
H.3 Papers and correspondence on organisation of joint BSI and Société Française d'Immunologie Spring Meeting, 7-8 Apr 1988, Paris, France 1987-1988;
H.4 Soirée tickets for Spring and Autumn Meetings 1985-1992;
H.5 Annual Congress programmes and abstracts 1993-1996.
J SUMMER AND POSTGRADUATE SCHOOLS 1975-1997:
J.1 Summer school programmes, proceedings and lecture notes 1985-1997;
J.2 Papers and correspondence on organisation of summer schools 1975-1994;
J.3 Postgraduate school lecture notes 1989.
K FELLOWSHIPS, AWARDS AND BURSARIES 1986-1996:
K.1 Robert White Memorial Fund 1986-1990;
K.2 Travel bursaries 1994-1995;
K.3 Reciprocal Exchange Fellowships 1995;
K.4 Travel awards 1995-1996.
L RELATIONS WITH BRITISH ORGANISATIONS 1965-1996:
L.1 British Society for Allergy and Clinical Immunology 1988;
L.2 British Transplantation Society 1972-1984;
L.3 Jenner Educational Trust 1990-1996;
L.4 Scottish Immunology Group 1965-1973;
L.5 Meetings sponsored by BSI 1989-1991.
M RELATIONS WITH OVERSEAS ORGANISATIONS 1970-1998:
M.1 International Secretaries' files 1970-1985;
M.2 General Secretaries' files 1973-1992;
M.3 Organisation of European and international meetings 1971-1977;
M.4 Publicity for overseas meetings 1977-1998.
N ARCHIVES AND HISTORY OF BSI 1961-1996:
N.1 Papers and correspondence on archives and history of BSI 1961-1996.
O PAPERS OF SOCIETY OFFICERS 1956-1987:
O.1 Prof RRA Coombs 1956-1987.
P PHOTOGRAPHS AND TAPE RECORDINGS 1990-1994:
P.1 Photographs of individuals [n.d.];
P.2 Meetings 1990-1994;
P.3 Places c.1990;
P.4 Tape recordings 1992-1993.
Q MEMORABILIA [n.d.] : Q.1 Ties [n.d.].
Conditions governing access:
These papers are available to researchers subject to the usual conditions of access: by appointment with the Archivist and completion of the Reader's Undertaking form. There are restrictions on access to a file in the BSI Committee meeting papers and correspondence series (A.1/10) and to Section K dealing with fellowships, awards and bursaries, which are set out in detail at the appropriate point in the catalogue.
Conditions governing reproduction:
Photocopies/photographs/microfilm are supplied for private research only at the Archivist's discretion. Please note that material may be unsuitable for copying on conservation grounds, and that photographs cannot be photocopied in any circumstances. Readers are restricted to 100 photocopies in twelve months. Copyright retained by the Society: researchers wanting to publish must seek permission from the Society. Permission can give given for photocopying for research purposes.
Finding aids:
ARCHIVAL INFORMATION
Accruals:
Further accessions of BSI records are expected in the future.
Archival history:
Although the Society retained most of its records, others were in the possession of its former officers. Between 1990 and 1995, the BSI employed an honorary archivist, Prof Richard C Nairn. He succeeded in locating them and they were deposited in a filing cabinet at the Society's administrative offices in 2 Triangle House, 2 Broomhill Road, London, SW18 4HX. Further details can be found in the records contained in Section N.
Immediate source of acquisition:
These records were presented to the Archives and Manuscripts department of the Wellcome Library by the British Society for Immunology (BSI) in two accessions (nos.795 and 808) during April and August 1999.
ALLIED MATERIALS
Related material:
For related collections consult Archives and Manuscripts Sources Leaflet No 40, "Immunology, Virology, Vaccination". The Wellcome Library's Archives and Manuscripts department also holds the archive of the Research Defence Society (SA/RDS).
DESCRIPTION NOTES
Archivist's note: Copied from the Wellcome Library catalogue by Sarah Drewery.
Date(s) of descriptions: Jan 2009