The records of the Department of Development and Public Affairs span 1876 to 1998. The bulk of the records date from the mid-1940s to the 1990s. Department of Development records include correspondence, memoranda, reports, pamphlets and publications, scrapbooks of newspaper clippings, and a donor's book, recording the names of individuals who underwrote various hospital ward expenses from 1925-1944. A significant portion of the records document the major campaigns of the hospital, as well as the records created for annual fund raising events during the 1980s. Of the campaigns – The 1920s Campaign, the Children's Medical Center Fund effort (1946-1956); the REACH campaign (1966-1970); and the Children's Campaign (1986-1990) - the Children's Medical Center Fund is the most inclusive. The later campaign documents are almost exclusively hospital publications on the progress and result of the fund raising efforts.

The collection contains extensive documentation of the development and execution of the annual WBZ-CH Holiday Fund drive and later telethon. The other activities that have grown out of the WBZ-CH collaboration - the Farm stand, Monster Dash, and televised Tree lighting - also appear in these records. Selected fund raising events dating from 1927-1989 are documented in the records and in scrapbooks of newspaper clippings. Donor recognition in the form of plaques and memorials created between 1881 and 1987 are also documented.

The Health Information Office (HIO) and its predecessor the Health Education Office oversaw the publication of numerous books. Contracts and other legal documents between authors, illustrators, publishers, literary agents, and the hospital's representatives are included. Proposals for book projects never undertaken can also be found. Correspondence concerning specific publications is present in both the general correspondence files and the files pertaining to the publication.

Of special interest are records relating to publishing Curious George Goes to the Hospital, by Margaret Rey and H.A. Rey, which was written using Children's Hospital as the setting.

A major function of Public Affairs is to keep the media informed about the activities of Children's Hospital and respond to specific inquiries from them. The collection contains press releases highlighting the events, personnel, patients, and noteworthy research advances between 1967 and 1992. In addition to press releases, articles about child health and safety were often submitted to newspapers to be edited or reprinted.

The subject files consist mainly of publications about hospital services, programs, and department specialties. Also included in these files are samples of general hospital brochures that were used. Hospital events (e.g., the dedication of the hyperbaric chamber in 1965, and the installation of the hospital's medical records computer in 1967) are documented by brochures or newspaper clippings. Transcriptions of reminiscences for the 1998 Annual Dinner Annual are of special interest. They provide a rich context for the history of Children’s.

The records of both Development and Public Affairs document their outreach and educational efforts and provide a picture of the changing nature of the physical plant. The extensive documentation of the WBZ-CH Holiday Fund drive is the strength of the collection. Especially well represented in the Public Affairs records is the role that was played by the Health Information Office.

Films produced during several of the fundraising campaigns and to mark the publication of Curious George Goes to the Hospital have been removed to the film collection. Please consult the hospital archivist for details.