(1852-1915)
Dudley Peter Allen was a renowned surgeon and professor who was the principal founder of the Cleveland Medical Library Association. He was born in Kinsman, Ohio to a family with a rich history in medicine, and attended Oberlin College before going to Harvard Medical School to become an M.D. in 1879. He eventually settled in Cleveland, Ohio, where he served as a predominant voice in the medical community as a surgical professor at Western Reserve Medical College, as well as the chief surgeon at Lakeside Hospital. He published many articles on surgical history and ethics during his time at Western Reserve, and was an eminent collector of art works, specifically Chinese porcelain. In 1894, Allen founded the CMLA, and served as its president between 1903 and 1906. To support the organization, Allen donated his entire personal medical library to the CMLA, where it now still exists at the Allen Memorial Medical Library, named in honor of him.