John Newmeyer papers
Scope and Contents
This collection consists of various materials collected and produced by John Newmeyer, an epidemiologist at the Haight-Ashbury Free Clinic (HAFC) in San Francisco, throughout his career spanning the 1970s to the early 2000s. Included in this collection are manuscripts, notes, press, publications, reports, personal papers, and research files. The prominent themes of this collection pertain to Newmeyer's Research and Personal Papers, HIV/AIDS, Drug Abuse, Newmeyer’s work at the HAFC, and the overlap between HIV and Intravenous Drug Users (IVDUs). A major aspect of his career was his risk reduction programs for IVDUs in the form of needle exchanges and bleach distribution programs to mitigate the spread of HIV and other bloodborne infections. Along with the paper materials that make up the bulk of this collection, it also includes two vials of bleach from these bleach distribution programs. There are duplications present in this collection due to Newmeyer’s compilation of his work both chronologically and thematically.
Dates
- Creation: 1970-2007
Language of Materials
The bulk of the collection is in English, with a few research papers and publications in Russian and German.
Conditions Governing Access
The UCSF Archives and Special Collections policy places access restrictions on material with privacy issues for a specific time period from the date of creation. Access to records that contain personal and confidential information about an individual or individuals is restricted for 75 years from date of creation or until the death of the individual mentioned in the records, whichever is longer. Access to medical records is restricted for 100 years from the latest date of the materials in those files. Restrictions are noted at the series level. This collection will be reviewed for sensitive content upon request. Contact the UCSF Archivist for information on access to these files.
Conditions Governing Use
Some materials in these collections may be protected by the U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.). In addition, the reproduction of some materials may be restricted by terms of the University of California gift or purchase agreements, donor restrictions, privacy and publicity rights, licensing, and trademarks. Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by copyright beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owners. Works not in the public domain cannot be commercially exploited without permission of the copyright owner. Responsibility for any use rests exclusively with the user.
Biographical / Historical
In 1970, John Newmeyer received his Ph.D. from the Department of Social Relations at Harvard University and went on to teach at San Francisco State University and the University of San Francisco. Newmeyer also served as Epidemiologist and Research Director for the Haight-Ashbury Free Medical Clinic (HAFC). At HAFC, Newmeyer concentrated his efforts on harm reduction for intravenous drug users (IVDUs). He helped develop and roll out needle-exchange and bleach distribution programs to reduce the spread of bloodborne infections amongst IVDUs.
Beyond his work at HAFC, Newmeyer ran for Congress in the 2nd District and was California’s first openly gay man to do so, making his unsuccessful bid historic, nonetheless. Newmeyer was heavily involved in his community in San Francisco as a gay activist and now lives as a viticulturist in Napa Valley.
Extent
4.58 Linear Feet (3 Cartons, 2 Boxes)
Abstract
John Newmeyer was an epidemiologist at the Haight-Ashbury Free Clinic in San Francisco. In 1983, Newmeyer instituted a needle exchange and bleach distribution program to help fight the spread of HIV/AIDS among intravenous drug users. This collection includes Newmeyer’s manuscripts, publications, reports, research files, ephemera, and bleach vials. Newmeyer compiled his own research and personal papers chronologically, as found in Series One of this collection, and duplicated much of this work to fit thematically into future sections. The major themes of this collection pertain to HIV/AIDS, Drug Abuse, Newmeyer’s work at the HAFC, and the overlap between HIV and Intravenous Drug Users (IVDUs). It should be noted that this collection contains harmful language/terminology pertaining to people struggling with addiction.
Arrangement
The collection is arranged into five series:
I. Research and Personal Papers, 1970-1989
II. HIV/AIDS, 1983-2007
III. Drug Abuse, 1971-2007
IV. Haight Ashbury Free Clinic, 1971-2007
V. HIV and Intravenous Drug Users, 1983-2007
Series II-V are each arranged into Sub-Series and organized by subject matter.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
This collection was donated to the UCSF Archives and Special Collections by John Newmeyer in two separate accessions, both in 2017.
Accruals
No future additions are expected.
Processing Information
Processed by H. Herrick in 2026.
- Title
- Inventory to the Papers of John Newmeyer
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- H. Herrick
- Date
- March 2026
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the UCSF Archives and Special Collections Repository
UCSF Kalmanovitz Library
530 Parnassus Avenue
San Francisco CA 94143-0840 USA
https://www.library.ucsf.edu/archives/ask-an-archivist/