The Marcus Ahlenfeld papers contain correspondence, documents, notes, and other material related to Ahlenfeld's medical education in Germany and to his medical practice in the United States.
The earliest letters in the Correspondence series date to Ahlenfeld's time in Germany, though the series spans most of his time in the United States. Material in this series is written primarily in German, but also includes items in Hebrew and in English. The correspondence series contains incoming correspondence relating to Ahlenfeld's 1832 journey to America and contains many letters of recommendation from various acquaintances, as well as a letter certifying his graduation from the University of Maryland (April 6, 1835). Later items in the series include several personal letters and a certificate of Ahlenfeld's citizenship (June 13, 1845). Items in the series postdating Ahlenfeld's death are addressed to his wife Esther.
The Documents and Receipts series consists of documents related to Ahlenfeld's education in Germany, as well as several receipts related to his life before emigrating to the United States.
The Manuscript prescriptions series contains 8 undated items.
The Medical notes series includes items in English, German, and Hebrew (much of the German and Hebrew writing is written with Yiddish script). The English language notes consist of 34 pages discussing "...Salubrity, Longevity, Mortality and prevalence of diseases in the principal Countries and cities of the civilized world" (undated).
The Notes, fragments, and miscellaneous series includes material written in both German and Hebrew (again, the German and Hebrew texts are written largely with Yiddish script).
Printed items (7 items):
- Rules for official medical examinations in Berlin (December 1825)
- French pamphlet regarding cholera (1831)
- Two reprinted letters of recommendation for Marcus Ahlenfeld ([1835])
- Rules for "die Königliche Bibliothek" in Berlin (undated)
- Pages from a German instructional book, possibly in history (undated)
- Pages from a German medical text (undated)
The German medical textbooks series has 5 items: two books on human anatomy, a medical dictionary, a chemistry encyclopedia, and a Latin dictionary and grammar.
