Historical Documents

Ravi D. Goel, MD has donated historical documents, manuscripts, and collections to the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library, Amherst College, Dickinson College, Forest History Society, Harvard University, Minnesota Historical Society, Princeton University, Yale University, and YIVO Institute. The Goel collections were recently profiled in The Ophthalmologist, The Wills Eye Alumni Society Newsletter (pdf), Yale Reunion Giving Volunteer Newsletter (blog post), and the Manuscript Society’s Manuscript Mondays webinar series (YouTube).

Dr. Goel’s efforts highlight the importance of preserving history to foster understanding and connection across generations. Through curating and donating these materials, he enhances their accessibility for scholars, researchers, and the public, ensuring their lasting relevance and impact.

Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum

Ravi D. Goel Collection of Heber S. Thompson. Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum. The Ravi D. Goel Collection of Heber S. Thompson highlights the Civil War experiences of the first Yale College student to answer President Lincoln’s call for volunteers after the Battle of Fort Sumter. Heber S. Thompson, a member and author of The First Defenders, enlisted in the Civil War on April 17, 1861. The collection includes a handwritten note from Yale Professor (later 11th President) Noah Porter advising Thompson to, “ask a furlough” in order to return to Yale for final exams. Also includes a letter signed by senior classmates, including Confederates, who state Thompson was, “among the very first to hasten to Washington for the defence of the National Capitol” and petition “the Faculty to admit him to the honors of graduation with his class.” Thompson’s Class of 1861 album is filled with personal entries and connections to fellow students, many of whom served on both sides of the Civil War. These materials provide unique insights into Thompson’s life, his contributions to the Union Army, and the broader context of early Civil War history. (Donated December 2024; Lincoln Presidential Library finding aid | Lincoln Presidential Library blog post | ProtectingSight blog post | Manuscript Society presentation YouTube) (#17, 2024)

Amherst College

Ravi D. Goel Collection of George Hibbert Driver (AC 1900). Amherst College Archives and Special Collections, Amherst College Library. George Hibbert Driver was a distinguished poet, preacher, and theologian (Amherst BA 1900, Amherst MA 1904, Yale Bachelor of Divinity 1905, Harvard Master of Sacred Theology 1940). The Driver poetry archive includes a manuscript copy of his book, A Fare of Poems (Part I, 2015). Driver’s sermons were donated in honor of Amherst’s bicentennial anniversary (Part II, 2019). (Amherst Library finding aid | ProtectingSight blog post) (#04, two accessions: 2015, 2019)

Dickinson College

Ravi D. Goel Collection of Herbert Wing, Jr. Papers. Dickinson College Archives and Special Collections. Professor Herbert Wing Jr. (Harvard AB 1909, Wisconsin PhD 1915) maintained a lifelong connection with Dickinson College, earning an elder statesman-like status among its faculty, students, and alumni. The collection includes letters addressed to Professor Wing’s family during their time in Carlisle, PA, as well as his correspondence on college life and affairs. Spanning the years 1915–1952, these letters complement Dickinson’s existing Wing archives. (Dickinson College finding aid) (#09, 2021)

Forest History Society

Ravi D. Goel Collection of John R. Neetzel Papers. Library and Archives, Forest History Society, Durham, NC, USA.  John R. Neetzel corresponded with many prominent figures in American forestry (University of Minnesota BS Forestry 1929, University of California MS Forestry 1930). The collection includes an extraordinary poem written by Bob Marshall — an early forester, conservationist, and co-founder of The Wilderness Society — to fellow forestry icon Raphael Zon. (Forest History Society finding aid) (#07, 2018)

Harvard University

  1. Ravi D. Goel Collection of correspondence related to a memorial for Justice Louis D. Brandeis and the United States Supreme Court, 1942-1960. Historical & Special Collections, Harvard Law School Library. US Supreme Court Justice Louis D. Brandeis entered Harvard Law School in 1875 at the age of 18. Despite poor eyesight, Brandeis graduated as the 1877 valedictorian and held the highest GPA in Harvard Law School history for more than eight decades.  The collection includes memorial resolutions distributed by a committee led by his former Supreme Court clerk, Harvard Law Vice Dean, and Judge Calvert Magruder (Harvard Law 1916). Also included are unrelated and fascinating correspondence regarding the attacks on the US Supreme Court in the mid-1950s. Judge Mendon Morrill (Harvard Law 1926) was a key correspondent in these latter exchanges. (Harvard HOLLIS finding aid | Protecting Sight blog post) (#11, 2021)
  2. Ravi D. Goel Collection of Correspondence, Photographs, Class Albums, and Other Records Related to Harvard University [accessions], 1786-1968. Harvard University Archives. Includes letters by Harvard Presidents Samuel Webber (Harvard BA 1784, MA 1787) and James Walker (Harvard 1814, Harvard Divinity 1817. Harvard DD 1835). Two letters by standout Harvard football star Huntington Reed “Tack” Hardwick (Harvard 1915) are mesmerizing in their first-hand details of the Great War. The highlight is a 100-foot, 16 mm reel of the 25th reunion of the Harvard Class of 1904 in which New York Governor Franklin D. Roosevelt (FDR) served as Chief Marshal. Eleanor Roosevelt can be seen leading a group of spouses and family, dressed in white and carrying 1904 flags, to Harvard Baseball’s defeat against the Yale Bulldogs on June 19, 1929. This is the earliest known film footage of Eleanor Roosevelt walking on the Harvard campus. (Harvard HOLLIS finding aid) (#14, 2023)

Minnesota Historical Society

Ravi D. Goel collection of Samuel James Renwick McMillan family papers, 1818-1956. Minnesota Historical Society. Samuel James Renwick McMillan was born in Brownsville, Pennsylvania and moved to Minnesota in 1852. Minnesota became the 32nd US state on May 11, 1858 and McMillan was named the first judge of the newly formed Minnesota District Court. McMillan served as the Chief Justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court (1864 -75) and US Senator from Minnesota (1875-87). The collection spans five generations and includes connections to the Revolutionary War and the Battle of Wounded Knee. Included is a rare photo of Medal of Honor recipient Albert McMillan (Princeton 1884) as a young man. (Minnesota Historical Society finding aid | ProtectingSight blog post) (#12, 2021)

Princeton University

Dala’il al-hayrat’s “Guide to Happiness” (believed 17th century) MSS. Princeton Islamic Manuscripts Collection. Ms. codex includes 162 leaves with color illustrations. Written in maghribi script in brown ink and European glazed, laid paper; rubrication in red, green, and blue. (Princeton Library finding aid) (#10, 2021)

Yale University

  1. Ravi D. Goel Collection on Yale (RU 1081). Manuscripts and Archives, Yale University Library.  200+ documents related to Yale history from the 1700s to present day.  The Goel collections include documents related to Yale’s 1st student (Jacob Heminway 1704), 1st Chinese student (Yung Wing 1854), 1st Native American student (Henry Roe Cloud BA 1910 MA 1914), and 1st African American PhD candidate (Edward Bouchet BA 1874, PhD 1876). (Yale Library finding aid | ProtectingSight blog post) (#01, five accessions: 2008, 2012, 2013, 2019, 2021)
  2. Ravi D. Goel Collection of Reuven Kosakoff (MSS 130). Irving S. Gilmore Music Library of Yale University.  Reuven Kosakoff (1898-1987) was born in New Haven and studied at the Yale School of Music from 1908-1913. He then studied at the Institute of Musical Art (later renamed the Julliard School) and in Europe with Artur Schnabel. The collection includes Kosakoff compositions and arrangements.  (Yale Library finding aid) (#02, 2013)
  3. Ravi D. Collection on Henry Roe Cloud (MS 2008). Manuscripts and Archives, Yale University Library. Henry Roe Cloud, a Ho-Chunk Native American & member of the Winnebago tribe of Nebraska, is the first known Native American to graduate from Yale College (BA 1910, MA 1914).  The collection includes his Yale degrees, private papers, numerous photos (including his Elihu Club delegation photo), and the original manuscript of his famous 1915 essay, “From Wigwam to Pulpit: A Red Man’s Own Story of His Progress from Dark to Light.” (Yale Library finding aid | ProtectingSight blog post | Yale Club Washington DC Symposium Presentation (YouTube)) (#03, 2014)
  4. Yale Skull & Bones Delegation of 1966 Photo Album. Manuscripts and Archives, Yale University Library. This 1966 Bones Club photo album, known as a Skull & Bones “Black Book,” features notable figures such as former Secretary of State John F. Kerry, FedEx founder Fred Smith, Vietnam War hero Richard Warren Pershing, and map collector David Rumsey. One of 15 albums in private hands and the sole copy housed in a research library (Russell Trust Association, 322). (Yale Library finding aid | ProtectingSight blog post) (#05, 2017)
  5. Ravi D. Goel Collection of Frederic Taber Cooper. Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library. American editor, literary critic and author Frederic Taber Cooper (1864-1937) was Harvard AB 1886, Columbia LLB 1887, AM 1891, PhD 1895, and an NYU associate professor of Latin and Sanskrit (1895-1902).  The Frederic Taber Cooper collection includes a rare draft fragment from Frank Norris’ acclaimed novel, The Octopus. (Yale Library finding aid | ProtectingSight blog post) (#06, 2018)
  6. Ravi D. Goel collection on Philip Dodson Sprouse, 1939-2019. Manuscripts and Archives, Yale University Library. The collection highlights the career of U.S. Ambassador Philip D. Sprouse (Cambodia), a diplomat with close ties to prominent figures in American diplomacy. Ambassador Sprouse authored the final report documenting General George C. Marshall’s mission to China (1945–1947). His papers address sensitive issues related to his global postings and reveal a close relationship with Secretary of State Dean Acheson (Yale 1915). The highlight is a carbon copy of a letter from Secretary Acheson to the King of Cambodia, introducing Ambassador Sprouse prior to his presentation of credentials. (Yale Library finding aid) (#08, 2019)
  7. Ravi D. Goel Collection of John J. Slocum Papers Relating to James Joyce. Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University. John Jermain Slocum (Harvard AB 1936) was a diplomat, book collector, literary agent, and scholar. He was one of the foremost James Joyce collectors of the 20th century. The Slocum letters and correspondence are rich with “Joyceana after Joyce,” offering insights from leading Joyce collectors of the early 20th century. These materials complement archives across the global Joycean community. (Yale Library finding aid | ProtectingSight blog post) (#13, 2022)
  8. Ravi D. Goel collection of George T. Pack Papers. Harvey Cushing / John Hay Whitney Medical Library of Yale University. George T. Pack, MD (1898 – 1969, Yale MED 1922) was the surgical oncologist to world leaders in the mid-20th century.  He traveled twice to operate on Argentinian First Lady Eva Peron. In a 1960s lecture titled, “Impact of Illness on World History,” Dr. Pack shared details of Boston-based colleague Dr. Frank Lahey’s consultation with 32nd President Franklin D. Roosevelt, which inspired additional research in FDR’s health and death. The collection includes four hand-illustrated medical books, on anatomy, neurology, pathology, and physiology, while Dr. Pack was a Yale medical student and destined for surgical greatness. (Yale Library finding aid | ProtectingSight blog post) (#15, 2023)
  9. Yale Skull and Bones Delegation of 1910 Photograph Album. Manuscripts and Archives, Yale University Library. This rare “Black Book” photograph album contains the original mounted portraits of all fifteen members of the Skull and Bones Club of 1910, including Senator Robert A. Taft, pioneering bacteriologist Stanhope Bayne-Jones, Federal Reserve Bank of New York president George Leslie Harrison, ACLU co-founder Albert DeSilver, and Yale football legend Edward Harris “Ted” Coy. The album was the personal copy of Stanhope Bayne-Jones and bears his name inscribed on the cover. One of fifteen originally issued, it is the sole known copy housed in a research library (Russell Trust Association, 322). (Yale University Library finding aid pending) (#18, 2025).

YIVO Institute for Jewish Research

Ravi D. Goel collection of Robert A. Silverman Papers. YIVO Institute for Jewish Research. The collection includes letters addressed to philatelist and researcher Robert A. Silverman, M.D., following the publication of his article, “French Concentration Camps: A Brief Political and Philatelic History,” in The American Philatelist magazine (December 1982). The collection is housed in a 3-inch black binder labeled “French Concentration Camps” (presumably Dr. Silverman’s original binder). Correspondents share their personal experiences in concentration camps and offer corrections and additions to Dr. Silverman’s list of more than 200 camps and detention centers. In addition to philatelic-related material, the collection includes letters from luminaries associated with Varian Fry (“The American Schindler”), such as Miriam Davenport Ebel, Hiram Bingham IV, and Albert O. Hirschman. (Donated December 2024; YIVO collection number 2410; finding aid not yet available online) (#16, 2024)

Presentations

1. Yale Class of 1993 25th reunion exhibit in May 2018:

2. The Frederic Taber Cooper collection includes a fragment from Frank Norris’ novel The Octopus:

3. Manuscript Society presentation: First to Answer Lincoln’s Call, Rejected by Yale: Heber S. Thompson and the Power of Manuscripts (08/11/25):

Media

  1. Sarah Healy, “Finders Sharers,” The Ophthalmologist, June 2023. “Ravi D. Goel on his passion for collecting historical documents, why art should be made accessible worldwide, and the importance of having a creative outlet in a high-powered career.” (link)
  2. Ravi D. Goel, “The Collector: Preserving Sight, Protecting History.” The Wills Eye Alumni Society Newsletter, Spring 2023. (pdf)
  3. Ravi D. Goel, “A #YaleReunion thrill: Sharing my passion for collecting with classmates & friends.” Yale Reunion Giving Volunteer Newsletter, Fall 2023. (blog post)
Yale Reunion Giving Volunteer Newsletter, Fall 2023 (blog post)