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The cover of The Case Against Compulsory Vaccination, an appeal to the common sense to the governor legislature and people of the state of New York by a layman.

Anti-Vaccination Pamphlets from the Jesse Mercer Gehman Collection, ca. 1900-1946

This collection of pamphlets reflects the diverse and often fervent opposition to vaccination and public health regulation in the United States during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Drawn from the Jesse Mercer Gehman Collection, these publications exemplify the rhetoric of medical dissent at a formative moment in American public health history. Jesse Mercer...

Bodybuilder Harry Johnson, 1959 Mr. America on the January 1960 calendar with his measurements and accomplishments.

1960 Bodybuilder Calendar

Published by Strength & Health Magazine, this calendar features many of the greatest Mr. Americas and Mr. Canadas of the era. Each month features a different bodybuilder posing with a photo and stats for every month. To view this issue in PDF format, check out Mr. America Bodybuilder Calendar on The Strongman Project.

Black and white cover with green beneath Sport in the Soviet Union text with photos of a soccer player, hockey player and a female runner.

Sport in the Soviet Union

The Moscow Dynamos, football champions of the U.S.S.R., visited Britain after WWII. Their successful tour, in which they defeated Cardiff City, the Arsenal, and drew with both Chelsea and the Glasgow Rangers, created in Britain a significant interest in Soviet sport. Physical culture and sport in the Soviet Union has always been a government-sponsored affair...

First page of the 1960 Weightlifting calendar featuring the world's strongest man, Paul Anderson with two photos of him lifting.

1960 Weightlifter Calendar

Published by Strength & Health Magazine, this calendar features many of the greatest weightlifters of the era. Each month features a different weightlifter with a photo and stats for every month. To view this issue in PDF format, check out 1960 Weightlifting Calendar on The Strongman Project.  

The cover of Joe Louis's How to Box pamphlet, complete with a photo of Joe Louis in boxing gloves against a red background.

How to Box

Joe Louis Barrow, known as “The Brown Bomber,” was arguably the greatest heavyweight boxer of all time. His career spanned from 1934 to 1951 and he reigned as the Heavyweight Champion of the World from 1937 until his temporary retirement in 1949. During that time, he successfully defended 25 consecutive title defenses, a record for...

Cover of The Chicago Park District Weight Lifting manual from 1950. An illustration of a strongman with a bull on his shoulders in red.

Weight Lifting

The Chicago Park District Recreation Division published this Weightlifting Instruction Manual originally in 1939 and followed it up with a second printing in 1940, and then with this third printing in 1950. Norbert B. Grueber, the Editor for Body Builder Magazine, published this manual under the supervision of the Division of Recreation of the Chicago...

Cover of the booklet Stars of the Mat "one shilling"

Stars of the Mat

The Stars of the Mat booklet is part of the Ottley Coulter Collection. Ottley was an American strongman, circus performer, weightlifter, wrestler, and police officer. He was a co-founder of the American Continental Weightlifting Association, and the author of a book about strength athletics. The booklet features well known bodybuilders and wrestlers and contains photos...

Cover of the pamphlet titled Tennis Fun and Fundamentals by Bruce Barnes

Tennis Fun and Fundamentals

Early pioneer of professional tennis, University of Texas Longhorns Hall of Honor member, and U.S. Davis Cup Coach, Bruce Barnes, published this fun and informative pamphlet to introduce people to tennis. Barnes went undefeated in dual match play his entire career at the University of Texas, dominated singles and doubles play in the Southwest Conference,...

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