Albert Schweitzer
"The purpose of human life is to serve, and to show compassion and the will to help others."
- Albert Schweitzer
An organist, philosopher, physician and philanthropist, Schweitzer is perhaps best known for his work in Gabon, Africa in 1912, where he committed to serving as a medical doctor in the Paris Missionary Society's mission at Lambaréné on the Ogooué river. There, he and his wife established the Albert Schweitzer Hospital and proceeded to treat nearly 2,000 patients within the first nine months.
The Nobel Peace Prize of 1952 was awarded to Dr Albert Schweitzer. His "The Problem of Peace" lecture is considered one of the best speeches ever given. From 1952 until his death he worked against nuclear tests and nuclear weapons with Albert Einstein, Otto Hahn and Bertrand Russell. In 1957 and 1958 he broadcast four speeches over Radio Oslo which were published in Peace or Atomic War. In 1957, Schweitzer was one of the founders of The Committee for a Sane Nuclear Policy. On 23 April 1957, Schweitzer made his "Declaration of Conscience" speech; it was broadcast to the world over Radio Oslo, pleading for the abolition of nuclear weapons. He ended his speech, saying: "The end of further experiments with atom bombs would be like the early sunrays of hope which suffering humanity is longing for."
Boasting an impressive list of publications, musical compositions and humanitarian efforts, Schweitzer was referred to as "the greatest man in the world" in a 1947 issue of Life magazine.
After the birth of their daughter (Rhena Schweitzer Miller), Albert's wife, Helene Schweitzer was no longer able to live in Lambaréné owing to her health. In 1923 the family moved to Königsfeld im Schwarzwald, Baden-Württemberg, where he was building a house for the family. This house is now maintained as a Schweitzer museum.
Gunsbach is a small, lovely village in the Alsatian Munster valley, 20 minutes from Colmar in North-Eastern France. The house which Albert Schweitzer constructed in 1928/29 is now used to house the museum and the archives.
Our Albert Schweitzer Currated Collection boats a series of original photographs, each complete with it's negative of Schweitzer working and living in Gunsbach, France and Königsfeld, Germany, both places he called home. Each photo set is additionally accompanied by an original filing card with notations. All circa late 1940s.
Highlighting the collection is the incredibly extraordinary unpublished manuscript for “A Jungle Chronicle by Albert Schweitzer and his Associates” – heavily corrected draft plus a final draft and a publisher’s mock-up of the dust jacket – with 100 amazing captioned photographs and an archive of letters relating to the book. Including a collection of good content unpublished letters of an American nurse at Lambaréné whom he asked to accompany him back to his Alsace home on one of his visits. Circa 1949 - 1952.
All pieces are culled from the personal archive of Charles R. Joy, frequent collaborator and translator of many of Schweitzer's works.
