Summary The Choh Hao Li papers consist of 52 cartons and 2 boxes containing files spanning his career at the University of California, (1938-87) with the bulk of the material dating from the 1960s through his retirement from the Hormone Research Laboratory (1983). The papers represent his scientific, administrative, collegial and private life. Topics covered by the papers include research documentation (laboratory notebooks, paper drafts, tables, and correspondence about research with a variety of colleagues), acquisition of research materials --especially animal and human pituitary glands, work on advisory, editorial and other professional committees, clinical trials and requests for help from the public, and some materials on the direction of the Hormone Research Laboratory and University of California administrative files. There are also some biographical and personal items in the collection, including material on Li's visa status in the 1930s and 40s, as well as letters to and from his wife and children during his lengthy travels. Materials in the collection include: correspondence, laboratory notebooks, research notes, manuscripts, reprints, administrative files, annual reports, photographs, illustrations, and scrapbooks.

A significant minority of the letters and other documents in the collection are written in Chinese, especially some of his correspondence with family members and with Chinese officials and colleagues. There are also scattered letters in various European languages in the collection, but many of these have English translations attached.

The Li Papers have been divided into 10 series: Correspondence, University of California, Laboratory Notebooks, Manuscripts (including reprints and illustrations), Grant Applications, Photographs (and news clippings), Thesis, Requests for Help (Restricted), Personnel Files (Restricted), Restricted Materials.

There does not seem to have been a clear differentiation in the filing system between Li's personal, professional and laboratory correspondence. While the majority of the correspondence and other papers in the collection are by or about Li, there is also correspondence between third parties and third party manuscripts and reprints. Most third-party material was either sent to Li by one of the concerned parties or is by or to a member of his laboratory.

Correspondence Series Only the Correspondence Series (Series I) has been fully processed and is described at the folder level, the rest of the materials have been roughly orgainized into series and have box-level description.

The Correspondence Series is the largest series in the collection (18 cartons) iand is divided into four major subseries: general correspondence, subject correspondence, award correspondence, and travel correspondence. The General Correspondencesubseries contains the bulk of the material and covers a wide variety of topics. The Subject Correspondence subseries is made up of several short runs of correspondence on variety of topics including the b-MSH controversy, the Endocrine Dinner Club, editorial files for the book, Hormonal Proteins and Peptides, which Li edited, and letters seeking employment with the lab, Lasker Foundation and Hormone Research Foundation Correspondence. The Awards Correspondencesubseries documents Li's receipt of several awards and his later service on the prize committees for the American Academy of Arts and Sciences' Amory Award and the Lasker Foundation's Lasker Award. The Travel Correspondencesubseries includes travel reports of varying depth, correspondence from and about trips, conference announcements and expense reports. Some folders contain detailed correspondence and planning materials for conferences or symposia. The Awards and Travel sub-series have not been fully processed. Original Photographsfound within the Correspondence Series have been replaced with photocopies. The original photographs have been added to the Series VI: Photographs/Clippings.

The Correspondence Series as a whole documents Li's active involvement with a cross-section of the scientific community, and includes personal as well as strictly business letters. Li's correspondents ran the gamut from Nobel Prize winners such as Christian Anifsen, Stanford Moore, Frederick Sanger, William Stein, Arne Tiselius, and Vincent du Vigneud to other significant members of the scientific community and students and former students, including Sidney and Seymor Farber, Ardis Lostroh, Max Geffen, S.L. Chien, and Dwight Ingles. He also corresponded with prominent members of the Chinese American community such as the architect I.M. Pei, and there are scattered letters from entertainment figures such as Danny Kaye and Eddy Arnold.

Scientific and professional issues predominate, such as the letter from Laurence Kinsell explaining his reasons for leaving UC and discussions of research, the work of the National Pituitary Agency in trying to arrange for glands from animal and human sources to provide enough material for both clinical and research uses; and evaluations of journal articles and individuals. However more personal topics, including wedding and birth announcements, discussions of family and work life are also appear.

Li carried on extensive correspondence with scientists around the world, having major contacts in Europe and South America. He corresponded regularly with researchers and doctors in Sweden, England, France, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, Italy, Germany, Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Japan, Australia, Israel, Iraq, Canada, Mexico and China. This international correspondence occasionally includes insider opinions on major political and social events, such as a letter from Hector R. Croxatto of the Universidad Catolica de Chile (Dec. 20, 1973) describing his feelings about the overthrow of Salvador Allende.

The Chinese correspondence documents his role in promoting science education in Hong Kong and Taiwan, including letters to and from officials at the Academia Sinica (Taiwan) and the Chinese University of Hong Kong, covering hiring decisions, placement of students, curriculum issues and more. This correspondence can be found both under the names of the Institutions and in "China --miscellaneous" folders, as well as under the names of specific individuals such as: Shih-Liang Chien, Tung-bin Lo, Choh-Ming Li (CHL's brother), Ma Lin, and others.

Major correspondents include: Howard Bern , Yehudith Birk --Israel, Michel Chretien --France, Peter Condliffe, Hector Croxatto --Chile, Thomas L. Dao, Konrad Dobriner, Ralph I. Dorfman, Enrique Egana --Chile, Escamilla, Roberto, Evans, Herbert, Alice Fordyce [See Also --correspondence in Lasker Foundation and Hormone Research Foundation sub-sub Series], Peter Forsham, William Ganong, Maxwell Geffen, David W. Golde, Laszlo Graf --Hungary, Antonietta and Renzo Grattarola --Italy, George P. Hess, Charles Huggins [Li's nomination of Huggins for Nobel prize is filed under Huggins, Charles --Nomination for the Nobel Prize 1957], Dwight J. Ingle [See also Upjohn Co.], Marion Jutisz --France, Hiroshi Kawauchi --Japan, John H. Lawrence, Rolf Luft --Stockholm, Sweden, Johannes Meienhofer, N. Raghu Moudgal --India, Hans Neurath, Willem Oelofson--South Africa, Kai O. Pedersen --Uppsala, Sweden, Brian T. Pickering --England, John G. Pierce, Gregory Pincus, Jerker Porath --Uppsala, Sweden, William O. Reinhardt, T. S. Anantha Samy, Andrew Schally, Hans Selye --Montreal, Canada.

Major companies and organizations represented in the correspondence include Armour & Company, Eli Lilly & Company, Upjohn Co., Merck and Co., CIBA Foundation, Guggenheim Foundation, American Academy of Arts and Sciences, American Cancer Society, American Chemical Society, Endocrine Society, National Academy of Science, National Institutes of Health, National Pituitary Bank, National Research Council, New York Academy of Arts. Letters from the same person may appear in both the company/ organization files and under their own name.

There are also three files of correspondence from his stint as editor of the International Journal of Peptide and Protein Research, (1972-87); and files from the Endocrine Dinner Club which he organized and ran from 1952-63.

Family correspondence is also found in this collection. Li's correspondence with wife and children appear in the Travel Correspondence sub-series, as well as under Li Family Correspondence among the General correspondence sub-series, though most of that folder contains correspondence with siblings. Li's brothers Choh Ming and Choh Luh, both have several correspondence files in the General correspondence sub-series. Of special interest are Choh Ming Li's 1946 CV, and a 1972 article on Acupuncture which refers to Choh Luh Li.

Other Series Li's research is documented not only by his correspondence but also in the unprocessed, two carton Laboratory Notebooks Series (Series III) and the extensive unprocessed Manuscripts Series which appears to contain drafts, reprints, illustrations and data for all or most of Li's and or the labs papers, including unpublished papers. Also of interest are the Grant Application files (Series V) and the carton containing the Thesis (Series VII) of several of Li's colleagues and advisees. Series II: University of California contains material relating to Li's responsibilities as Director of the Hormone Research Lab and as a member of the faculty at the University of California. There is also a photograph and clipping file (Series VI) which contains a variety of photographs of Li and co-workkers, a super-8 film of the Hormone Research Lab and a clippings on Li from the 1940s-1960s. Series VIII, XI & X are restricted for reasons of confidentiality and privacy. Materials in these files will be opened to the public as restrictions expire. Series VIII contains laboratory personnel records. Series XI consists of Help Requests from the public asking about the availability of the hormones that Li had helped to isolate or synthesize, or offering themselves as research subjects. Series X contains miscellaneous restricted files.

The Choh Hao Li papers consist of 52 cartons and 2 boxes containing files spanning his career at the University of California, (1938-87) with the bulk of the material dating from the 1960s through his retirement from the Hormone Research Laboratory (1983). The papers represent his scientific, administrative, collegial and private life. Topics covered by the papers include research documentation (laboratory notebooks, paper drafts, tables, and correspondence about research with a variety of colleagues), acquisition of research materials --especially animal and human pituitary glands, work on advisory, editorial and other professional committees, clinical trials and requests for help from the public, and some materials on the direction of the Hormone Research Laboratory and University of California administrative files. There are also some biographical and personal items in the collection, including material on Li's visa status in the 1930s and 40s, as well as letters to and from his wife and children during his lengthy travels. Materials in the collection include: correspondence, laboratory notebooks, research notes, manuscripts, reprints, administrative files, annual reports, photographs, illustrations, and scrapbooks.

A significant minority of the letters and other documents in the collection are written in Chinese, especially some of his correspondence with family members and with Chinese officials and colleagues. There are also scattered letters in various European languages in the collection, but many of these have English translations attached.

The Li Papers have been divided into 10 series: Correspondence, University of California, Laboratory Notebooks, Manuscripts (including reprints and illustrations), Grant Applications, Photographs (and news clippings), Thesis, Requests for Help (Restricted), Personnel Files (Restricted), Restricted Materials.

There does not seem to have been a clear differentiation in the filing system between Li's personal, professional and laboratory correspondence. While the majority of the correspondence and other papers in the collection are by or about Li, there is also correspondence between third parties and third party manuscripts and reprints. Most third-party material was either sent to Li by one of the concerned parties or is by or to a member of his laboratory.

Only the Correspondence Series (Series I) has been fully processed and is described at the folder level, the rest of the materials have been roughly orgainized into series and have box-level description.

The Correspondence Series is the largest series in the collection (18 cartons) iand is divided into four major subseries: general correspondence, subject correspondence, award correspondence, and travel correspondence. The General Correspondencesubseries contains the bulk of the material and covers a wide variety of topics. The Subject Correspondence subseries is made up of several short runs of correspondence on variety of topics including the b-MSH controversy, the Endocrine Dinner Club, editorial files for the book, Hormonal Proteins and Peptides, which Li edited, and letters seeking employment with the lab, Lasker Foundation and Hormone Research Foundation Correspondence. The Awards Correspondencesubseries documents Li's receipt of several awards and his later service on the prize committees for the American Academy of Arts and Sciences' Amory Award and the Lasker Foundation's Lasker Award. The Travel Correspondencesubseries includes travel reports of varying depth, correspondence from and about trips, conference announcements and expense reports. Some folders contain detailed correspondence and planning materials for conferences or symposia. The Awards and Travel sub-series have not been fully processed. Original Photographsfound within the Correspondence Series have been replaced with photocopies. The original photographs have been added to the Series VI: Photographs/Clippings.

The Correspondence Series as a whole documents Li's active involvement with a cross-section of the scientific community, and includes personal as well as strictly business letters. Li's correspondents ran the gamut from Nobel Prize winners such as Christian Anifsen, Stanford Moore, Frederick Sanger, William Stein, Arne Tiselius, and Vincent du Vigneud to other significant members of the scientific community and students and former students, including Sidney and Seymor Farber, Ardis Lostroh, Max Geffen, S.L. Chien, and Dwight Ingles. He also corresponded with prominent members of the Chinese American community such as the architect I.M. Pei, and there are scattered letters from entertainment figures such as Danny Kaye and Eddy Arnold.

Scientific and professional issues predominate, such as the letter from Laurence Kinsell explaining his reasons for leaving UC and discussions of research, the work of the National Pituitary Agency in trying to arrange for glands from animal and human sources to provide enough material for both clinical and research uses; and evaluations of journal articles and individuals. However more personal topics, including wedding and birth announcements, discussions of family and work life are also appear.

Li carried on extensive correspondence with scientists around the world, having major contacts in Europe and South America. He corresponded regularly with researchers and doctors in Sweden, England, France, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, Italy, Germany, Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Japan, Australia, Israel, Iraq, Canada, Mexico and China. This international correspondence occasionally includes insider opinions on major political and social events, such as a letter from Hector R. Croxatto of the Universidad Catolica de Chile (Dec. 20, 1973) describing his feelings about the overthrow of Salvador Allende.

The Chinese correspondence documents his role in promoting science education in Hong Kong and Taiwan, including letters to and from officials at the Academia Sinica (Taiwan) and the Chinese University of Hong Kong, covering hiring decisions, placement of students, curriculum issues and more. This correspondence can be found both under the names of the Institutions and in "China --miscellaneous" folders, as well as under the names of specific individuals such as: Shih-Liang Chien, Tung-bin Lo, Choh-Ming Li (CHL's brother), Ma Lin, and others.

Major correspondents include: Howard Bern , Yehudith Birk --Israel, Michel Chretien --France, Peter Condliffe, Hector Croxatto --Chile, Thomas L. Dao, Konrad Dobriner, Ralph I. Dorfman, Enrique Egana --Chile, Escamilla, Roberto, Evans, Herbert, Alice Fordyce [See Also --correspondence in Lasker Foundation and Hormone Research Foundation sub-sub Series], Peter Forsham, William Ganong, Maxwell Geffen, David W. Golde, Laszlo Graf --Hungary, Antonietta and Renzo Grattarola --Italy, George P. Hess, Charles Huggins [Li's nomination of Huggins for Nobel prize is filed under Huggins, Charles --Nomination for the Nobel Prize 1957], Dwight J. Ingle [See also Upjohn Co.], Marion Jutisz --France, Hiroshi Kawauchi --Japan, John H. Lawrence, Rolf Luft --Stockholm, Sweden, Johannes Meienhofer, N. Raghu Moudgal --India, Hans Neurath, Willem Oelofson--South Africa, Kai O. Pedersen --Uppsala, Sweden, Brian T. Pickering --England, John G. Pierce, Gregory Pincus, Jerker Porath --Uppsala, Sweden, William O. Reinhardt, T. S. Anantha Samy, Andrew Schally, Hans Selye --Montreal, Canada.

Major companies and organizations represented in the correspondence include Armour & Company, Eli Lilly & Company, Upjohn Co., Merck and Co., CIBA Foundation, Guggenheim Foundation, American Academy of Arts and Sciences, American Cancer Society, American Chemical Society, Endocrine Society, National Academy of Science, National Institutes of Health, National Pituitary Bank, National Research Council, New York Academy of Arts. Letters from the same person may appear in both the company/ organization files and under their own name.

There are also three files of correspondence from his stint as editor of the International Journal of Peptide and Protein Research, (1972-87); and files from the Endocrine Dinner Club which he organized and ran from 1952-63.

Family correspondence is also found in this collection. Li's correspondence with wife and children appear in the Travel Correspondence sub-series, as well as under Li Family Correspondence among the General correspondence sub-series, though most of that folder contains correspondence with siblings. Li's brothers Choh Ming and Choh Luh, both have several correspondence files in the General correspondence sub-series. Of special interest are Choh Ming Li's 1946 CV, and a 1972 article on Acupuncture which refers to Choh Luh Li.

Li's research is documented not only by his correspondence but also in the unprocessed, two carton Laboratory Notebooks Series (Series III) and the extensive unprocessed Manuscripts Series which appears to contain drafts, reprints, illustrations and data for all or most of Li's and or the labs papers, including unpublished papers. Also of interest are the Grant Application files (Series V) and the carton containing the Thesis (Series VII) of several of Li's colleagues and advisees. Series II: University of California contains material relating to Li's responsibilities as Director of the Hormone Research Lab and as a member of the faculty at the University of California. There is also a photograph and clipping file (Series VI) which contains a variety of photographs of Li and co-workkers, a super-8 film of the Hormone Research Lab and a clippings on Li from the 1940s-1960s. Series VIII, XI & X are restricted for reasons of confidentiality and privacy. Materials in these files will be opened to the public as restrictions expire. Series VIII contains laboratory personnel records. Series XI consists of Help Requests from the public asking about the availability of the hormones that Li had helped to isolate or synthesize, or offering themselves as research subjects. Series X contains miscellaneous restricted files.