Deke Slayton – 1961 medical record

Donald “Deke” Slayton — Vintage Medical Record, March 15, 1961 — From the Collection of Mercury Physician W. K. Douglas

Vintage 8 x 10 inch medical record relating to Donald “Deke” Slayton, dated March 15, 1961, unsigned, originating directly from the collection of Dr. W. K. Douglas, one of the key physicians associated with the Mercury astronaut medical program.

This document dates from an exceptionally important period in the history of American human spaceflight. In March 1961, the United States was in the final stages of preparing for its first crewed Mercury missions, with the original Mercury Seven astronauts undergoing intense medical, physical, and psychological evaluation. Slayton, selected as one of NASA’s first astronauts in 1959, was then part of the small group of men at the center of America’s effort to place a human being in space during the early Space Race.

Slayton’s medical history is particularly significant. Although he was originally chosen to pilot the second U.S. orbital Mercury flight, he was later grounded due to an irregular heart rhythm, a decision that profoundly shaped both his career and NASA’s astronaut office. He went on to become one of the most influential figures in the astronaut corps, serving as Director of Flight Crew Operations and playing a central role in crew assignments throughout the Gemini, Apollo, and early Shuttle eras. After years of being medically disqualified from flight, Slayton finally flew in space on the historic Apollo-Soyuz Test Project in 1975.

Documents of this nature offer rare insight into the rigorous medical oversight surrounding the first American astronauts at the dawn of crewed spaceflight.

A historically compelling early Mercury-era medical document connected to one of NASA’s most important astronaut figures.