Comprises scrapbooks, correspondence, writings, publications, and other materials created or collected by Dr. Leo Leonidas Stanley documenting his personal research and professional work as a prison doctor, ship's physician, and medical experimenter (1913-1974). The scrapbooks contain Stanley's observations of conditions at prison hospitals and road camps in the United States and abroad, as well as descriptions of his travels. Scrapbooks, autobiographical writings, and other materials document the experimental testicular transplant surgeries Stanley performed during his tenure at San Quentin. The collection also contains Stanley's correspondence with prisoners, including J.P. "Bluebeard" Watson; Watson's writings, including his novel Tangled; and official reports and records Stanley collected or transcribed from San Quentin.

Leo Stanley was born in Oregon in 1886 and raised in San Luis Obispo County, California. After receiving his bachelor's degree at Stanford University in 1903 and matriculating to Cooper Medical College in 1908, Stanley served his medical residency at San Quentin State Prison. In 1913, Stanley accepted the position of Chief Medical Officer at the prison, a position he held until his retirement in 1951. During his tenure at San Quentin, Stanley performed medical experiments on prisoners involving testicular transplants, attracting national media attention (the "Buck" Kelly case). This notoriety would cling to him until his death in 1976.

27 boxes (8 linear feet)

All requests to reproduce, publish, quote from or otherwise use collection materials must be submitted in writing to the Director of Library and Archives, North Baker Research Library, California Historical Society, 678 Mission Street, San Francisco, CA 94105. Consent is given on behalf of the California Historical Society as the owner of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission from the copyright owner. Such permission must be obtained from the copyright owner. Restrictions also apply to digital representations of the original materials. Use of digital files is restricted to research and educational purposes.

Documents in the Leo L. Stanley scrapbooks and papers (MS 2061) containing personally identifiable health information are restricted during the lifetime of the person in question. Individuals are presumed to be deceased 100 years after the date of their birth or the date of record creation, whichever occurs first.