LOCATION AND HOURS 

Cadet Corps Student Nurses Eileen Duffy, Jeanne Simpson, Eleanor Snoke, and Jean Gerhard, Class of 1945. Alumni Association of Philadelphia General Hospital Training School for Nurses photographs, 1885-1977.

• The Center is located in Suite 2U, Claire M. Fagin Hall, 418 Curie Boulevard. Directions to Claire Fagin Hall. 
• The building is handicap accessible.
• To tour the reading room or Center, please schedule an appointment prior to your visit.
• The Center is closed for official University holidays.
• No bags, food, or drinks are permitted in the Ellen D. Baer Reading Room.
• Children under the age of 14 must be accompanied by an adult.

SCHEDULING A VISIT 

• The Barbara Bates Center and Ellen D. Baer Reading Room are open to researchers by appointment only Monday - Friday from 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM (closed from 1:00 - 2:00 PM daily).
• Before visiting the Center researchers should consult the Online finding aids to the Center’s collections and provide staff with a full listing of requesting research materials, including collection name, box number, folder number and series (if applicable).
• Researchers must make an appointment at least two weeks prior to visiting the Center by emailing nhistory@nursing.upenn.edu. Walk-in researchers cannot be accommodated. 
  
  • An appointment is not considered scheduled until a Center staff member has confirmed the date and time with the researcher.
• If you have never used our archives, you will need to review the Reading Room Rules on the researcher application. All researchers must fill out and sign an application prior to their visit. A valid form of photo identification must accompany the signed application in order to access the archives for the first time in a calendar year.  
• Members of our archival staff are available to conduct research as a fee-based service on a case by case basis. Please contact nhistory@nursing.upenn.edu for more information.
• The Center reserves the right to review all archive requests for restricted access, box counts, and scheduling availability.

GUIDE TO THE ARCHIVE

• If you have been to an archive before but need a refresher guide on what information is on a finding aid, check out our quick guide.
• If you have never visited an archive before, we recommend learning the parts of a finding aid to help you plan your visit.
• Need help guiding your research to make your visit more efficient? Consider these questions:
  • What’s your paper/research topic? Identify and clarify which questions you intend to answer as you research.
  • What are you looking to find at the archive?
  • After reviewing the finding aids, which collections do you want to look at?
  • What are you looking for in these collections? What themes are you hoping to uncover?
  • Are there specific types of documents (letters, reports, etc.) that you would like to view?