Paul P. Van Arsdel and Rosemary T. Van Arsdel papers, 1947-2019

Paul P. Van Arsdel, Jr. (1926-1994):

Dr. Paul Parr Van Arsdel, Jr. was born in Indianapolis, IN on November 4, 1926 to Dr. Paul Parr Van Arsdel, Sr. and Ellen Ewing Van Arsdel. Shortly after Paul's birth, the family moved to Seattle. Paul grew up with siblings Ann Van Arsdel (Nugent) and William Ewing Van Arsdel. He graduated from Broadway High School in Seattle at the age of 16. He then attended Yale University, where his studies were interrupted by World War II when he turned 18 and he was drafted to the US Navy. He was trained stateside in electronics. At the end of the war, he completed his final year at Yale and began his first year at Columbia University College of Physician and Surgeons simultaneously. While at Columbia, Paul was a member of Nu Sigma Nu and Alpha Omega Alpha medical honoraria, and he sang in the Bards singing group. Other academic memberships included Phi Beta Kappa and Sigma Xi.

After his medical training, Paul was recruited to the newly formed University of Washington School of Medicine to create and chair the Division of Allergy. Paul became an authority on drug allergies and other internal allergies. He was a Professor of Medicine and Chair of the Division of Allergy at the UW School of Medicine for 40 years and authored over 150 scientific papers and numerous scientific abstracts, chapters in books, and chapters in medical textbooks. He had a program for training post-doctoral fellows in the practice of allergy. From 1983-1985 Paul was Chief of Staff at University Hospital.

From 1970-1971 Paul served as the national President of the American Academy of Allergy and Immunology. In 1977, he was a visiting Fellow at Royal Brompton Hospital in London for chest diseases, and in 1986 he was a visiting Professor of Medicine at London University's Guy's and St. Thomas Hospitals. He was then elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Medicine. In Seattle, Paul served as Attending Physician at University Hospital, Harborview Hospital, and the Veterans Administration Hospital, and he was a consultant at the U.S. Public Health Hospital, Madigan General Hospital, and Children's Hospital Medical Center. He also served for 20 years on the Board of Delegates of The American Medical Society representing the American Academy of Allergy. Paul's hobbies included listening to opera; watching football games, especially the UW Huskies; and spending time at his beach house near Iron Springs Resort in Copalis, WA. In 1989, Paul was diagnosed with oral cancer and he succumbed to the disease on January 16, 1994. His remains are interred at Acacia Memorial Park in Seattle.

Source: Biography by Mary VanArsdel

Rosemary T. Van Arsdel (1926-2019):

Dr. Rosemary Thorstenson Van Arsdel was born on September 1, 1926 in Seattle, WA to Odin Thorstenson, a Seattle pharmacist, and Helen McGregor Thorstenson. She attended the Stevens School on Capitol Hill and Broadway High School, graduating at 16. She then earned B.A. and M.A. degrees in British Literature at the University of Washington, where she was also a member of Kappa Kappa Gamma Sorority. She then began Ph.D study at Columbia University, where her future husband, Dr. Paul P. Van Arsdel, Jr. was in medical school. The couple married on July 7, 1950. Rosemary completed her Ph.D in 1960 while raising two young children.

The Van Arsdels settled back in Seattle, and in 1966, Rosemary accepted employment at University of Puget Sound, where she had a 24-year career as a Professor of English. She served multiple years as the Chairman of the English Department and, later, as the founder and Director of the English Program for UPS's School of Law. She also developed The Writing Institute at UPS. From 1971-1977, Rosemary served as statewide Director of the Achievement Awards Competition for the National Council of Teachers of English. In 1982, she received the Kappa Kappa Gamma Doris Bronson Morrill Award for outstanding service to education.

Rosemary became a pioneer authority on British Victorian periodical literature. She served on the Editorial Board of the 5-volume reference work "The Wellesley Index to Periodical Literature, 1824-1900." She worked on "The Westminster Review" and she served on the advisory board and was a contributor to volume I of "The Waterloo Directory of English Newspapers and Periodicals 1800-1900." Rosemary was the author of nine books on her specialty, as well as numerous chapters in books, encyclopedia articles, and scholarly reviews. Her books include "Florence Fenwick Miller" (2001), a biography of a Victorian pioneer in female journalism and public life. Additionally, Rosemary was the co-editor with J. Don Vann of four volumes of "Victorian Periodicals: A Guide To Research" (1978, 1989, 1994, 1996). In 1968, Rosemary was a founding member, and later President, of the Research Society for Victorian Periodicals (RSVP) and a frequent contributor to its journal, "Victorian Periodicals Review." In 1986, Rosemary was designated a Scholar in Residence at the Fawcett Library in London. In 1990, she was recognized when the RSVP created the international "VanArsdel Prize", an award open to universities worldwide for the best graduate student paper on the history of British Victorian newspapers and periodicals. Later, The Rosemary T. VanArsdel Endowed Library Fund was created by the University of Washington to acquire collections relating to the Victorian and Edwardian periods.

Rosemary held memberships in numerous international literary societies, including the British Royal Society of Literature, the Oxford Bibliographical Society, The British Association for Victorian Studies, the George Elliot Fellowship, and the Victorian Studies Associations of Western Canada, Toronto, and Australia. While her children were young, she was active in Seattle education and arts communities, serving on the boards of The Bush School, Seattle Junior Programs (precursor to Seattle Children's Theatre), and the Seattle Repertory Theatre. Later in life, she served on the board of the Friends of the University of Washington Libraries.

Rosemary passed away in her home on May 3, 2019. She is interred at Acacia Memorial Park in Seattle.

Source: Biography by Mary VanArsdel.