The Dr. Ardwin H. Barsanti and Dr. John D. Bunce Medical Equipment, c. 1950s - 1960s, c. 1990

Access and use

Location of collection:
Fairfax County Public Library
Fairfax County Public Library
City of Fairfax Regional Library
Virginia Room
10360 North Street
Fairfax, VA 22030-2514
Contact for questions and access:
POC: Chris Barbuschak
Phone: (703) 293-2142
Phone: (703) 293-6227 ext. 6 (Virginia Room)
Fax: (703) 293-2155

Summary

Extent:
.5 linear feet
Creator:
Barsanti, Ardwin H. (1925-) and John D. Bunce (1924-2004)
Abstract:
The Dr. Ardwin H. Barsanti and Dr. John D. Bunce Medical Equipment date from the 1950s-1960s and consists of medical tools used in the offices of the first dedicated pediatric practice in Fairfax County, Virginia by Doctors Barsanti and Bunce in Annandale, Virginia.
Language:
English

Background

Scope and content:

The Dr. Ardwin H. Barsanti and Dr. John D. Bunce Medical Equipment date from the 1950s-1960s and consists of medical tools used in the offices of the first dedicated pediatric practice in Fairfax County, Virginia by Doctors Barsanti and Bunce in Annandale, Virginia.

Biographical / historical:

Dr. Ardwin H. Barsanti and Dr. John D. Bunce (1924-2004) started in practice together on November 11, 1953 as the first pediatricians in Fairfax County, Virginia. Dr. Barsanti, originally from Union City, New Jersey, attended Emmerson High School and graduated from New York University. Barsanti received his medical degree from the Bellevue Medical Center in New York City and completed his residency in pediatrics at the Arkansas Children’s Home and Hospital in Little Rock, Arkansas. John Daniel Bunce was a native of Buffalo, New York and served in the Army Specialized Training Program during World War II. He graduated from Canisius College and received a medical degree from Georgetown University.

In 1951, the pair met at the Children’s Hospital of the District of Columbia when Barsanti was appointed Instructor in Pediatrics and Bunce appointed Assistant in Pediatrics. In 1953, the two formed their own pediatric practice in Annandale, Virginia in a converted house at the intersection of Gallows Road and Columbia Pike.

House calls were routine at the time. Their territory extended from Annandale to Kamp Washington and from Springfield to Chain Bridge. Fairfax Hospital did not exist until 1963, so when Dr. Barsanti or Dr. Bunce were on call for newborn visits, one of them would start at Alexandria Hospital and then travel to hospitals in Washington D.C. and then cross back into Virginia to Arlington Hospital and then home to the practice on Gallows Road. One of them worked in the office while the other made house calls and hospital visits. The pair would see sick children, conduct well physicals and immunizations as well as minor surgery. Their laboratory services included throat cultures, blood counts, and urine analysis.

In 1963, Barsanti and Bunce moved to the newly constructed Annandale Doctors Building at 7501 Little River Turnpike, where the practice continues today known as Annandale Pediatrics. The pair continued practicing into the early 1990s.

Acquisition information:
Donated by Helen Virginia (Whited) Sexton, former nurse with Drs. Barsanti and Bunce