Papers of Thomas Hornbein, M.D., professor emeritus at the University of Washington and a prominent anesthesiologist, physiologist, and mountaineer. The collection documents his scientific and exploratory achievements in the areas of high-altitude breathing and the regulation of brain/acid balance, notably including materials from the American Mount Everest Expedition where Hornbein and his climbing partner Willi Unsoeld reached the summit of Mount Everest via the West Ridge in 1963.
Thomas Hornbein Papers, 1958-2003 (MSS 669)
OFF-SITE STORAGE: COLLECTION STORED OFF-SITE. ALLOW ONE WEEK FOR RETRIEVAL OF MATERIALS.
Restrictions: Original sound and videorecordings in Series 14 are restricted. Viewing/listening
copies may be available for researchers.
Extent: 24.4 Linear feet (60 archives boxes and 1 card file box), + .036 GB of digital files
Born in 1930 in St. Louis, Missouri, Thomas Hornbein developed an early interest in geology and mountain exploration. He began his academic career as a geology major at the University of Colorado from (1948-1952) where he began teaching mountain rescue and first aid courses, prompting an interest in medicine. He returned to his hometown in St. Louis, Missouri, to attend medical school at Washington University School of Medicine (1952-1956) and then residency training and postdoctoral research (1957-1961). He continued his interest in high altitude and physiology of breathing as a NIH-supported research fellow with Dr. Albert Roos.
After holding an instructorship at Washington University, St. Louis, he served his military duty as a Lieutenant Commander in the United States Navy stationed in San Diego Naval Hospital (1961-1963), during which time he requested an honorable discharge to be a member of the American Mount Everest Expedition in 1963. With veteran mountaineer Willi Unsoeld, Hornbein reached the summit of Mount Everest on May 22, 1963, to become the first climbers to ascend the mountain via the West Ridge and to traverse down the other side. The team was presented with the National Geographic Society Hubbard Medal by President John F. Kennedy in July 1963.
Upon returning from the Everest expedition, Hornbein assumed a position as Assistant Professor, joint appointment in the Department of Anesthesiology and the Department of Physiology and Biophysics at the University of Washington in Seattle (1963). His tenure at UW continued as Associate Professor (1967), Professor (1970-2002), Chairman of the Anesthesiology Department, School of Medicine (1978-93), and Professor Emeritus (2002-present).
Dr. Hornbein's research has focused on the stimuli which prompt animals to breathe, particularly carotid body and central chemosensors and the regulation of brain acid base balance. His studies have yielded over 100 journal articles and book chapters. He also maintained editorial responsibilites for High Altitude: An Exploration of Human Adaptation, co-edited with Robert Schoene, M.D., which included more than twenty contributing authors. His editorial responsibilities have extended to the American Physiological Society, as an editor and book reviewer and to scholarly journals such as Anesthesiology and the Journal of Applied Physiology.
Dr. Hornbein's interest in expedition and mountaineering has led him to climbs in Karakoram in Pakistan and China. In addition to his international expeditions, he has climbed Mount Rainier in Washington and Long's Peak in Colorado. The climb of Masherbrum peak (1960) provided a unique experience for Hornbein, prompting him, with the support of the Maytag Company, to devise a single-valved oxygen mask more effective for high altitude climbing. The concept mask was subsequently created for the Everest climb in 1963.
Dr. Hornbein currently lives in Estes Park, Colorado and continues his interest in mountaineering and high altitude adaptation medicine.
Papers of Thomas Hornbein, M.D., professor emeritus at the University of Washington and a prominent anesthesiologist, physiologist, and mountaineer. The collection documents his scientific and exploratory achievements in the areas of high-altitude breathing and the regulation of brain/acid balance, notably including materials from the American Mount Everest Expedition where Hornbein and his climbing partner Willi Unsoeld reached the summit of Mount Everest via the West Ridge in 1963. Hornbein authored Everest: The West Ridge (1965) and co-edited, with Robert Schoene, High Altitude: An Exploration of Human Adaptation, and research files, manuscripts and drafts relating to these publications are in the collection. It also includes correspondence, papers on other significant mountain expeditions in China and Pakistan, documentation of Hornbein's professional affiliations, additional grant and research projects, and biographical materials. A modest portion of the collection relates to administrative records during his chairmanship of the University of Washington, Department of Anesthesia and his commitment to resident education.
Arranged in fourteen series: 1) CORRESPONDENCE, 2) WRITINGS BY HORNBEIN, 3) AMERICAN MOUNT EVEREST EXPEDITION (1963), 4) OTHER EXPEDITIONS, 5) LECTURES AND TALKS, 6) CONFERENCES AND SEMINARS, 7) SUBJECT FILES, 8) PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS, 9) TEACHING MATERIALS, 10) GRANT MATERIALS, 11) RESEARCH PROJECTS, 12) UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON - DEPARTMENT OF ANESTHESIA, 13) BIOGRAPHICAL MATERIALS, and 14) AUDIOVISUAL MATERIALS.
This collection has additional unprocessed materials not described in this finding aid. See the UC San Diego Library catalog record to view the acquisition dates and extent of unprocessed additions.