It was on this day in 1896 that Marcia Crocker Noyes began a career at the Medical & Chirurgical Faculty of the State of Maryland which would span the next 50 years, ending with her death just a few days after her anniversary.
Dr. William Osler recruited Marcia from her position at the Pratt Library on the advice of his friend, Bernard Steiner, who was head of the Pratt.
Just two short weeks later, her entire life had changed. She went from living with her sister and working at the Pratt to living alone at the Faculty's offices on Hamilton Terrace (now Eutaw Street) and working for the Faculty.
She found a library collection in complete disarray and began the work of putting it in order, getting rid of books which were in bad condition and outdated.
Marcia was just 27 years old when she started at the Faculty, and while she had library skills, she didn't know about medicine. But she worked hard to make friends with the physicians, and with Dr. Osler's support of her, she succeeded in bringing the physicians to her side.
She helped found the Medical Library Association, which has named their highest award after her. She went on to travel extensively, visiting other medical societies around the country, and spending time at her camp in the Adirondacks.
Eventually, Marcia was named as the Executive Secretary of the Faculty, surely one of the first women at that time to head a state medical society.
She held that position until her death on November 24, 1946, just a few days after her 50th Anniversary with the Faculty. Her influence and presence echoes down through the years, and through the hallways.
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