The Hutchings Collection largely owes its existence to Lida Hutchings (pictured left) and Elisabeth Kelemen (pictured right). 

Lida Hutchings, born in 1878, was the daughter of Dr. William and Matilda Hutchings. She was an extremely talented photographer and documented both life in Madison and her travels. After her father died in 1903, she took extensive photographs of his office.

Elisabeth Zulauf Kelemen was born in 1898 to Agnes Matilda Hutchings (another daughter of Dr. and Matilda) and John C. Zulauf. She and her family moved from New York City to Europe after the tragic death of her only sister Agnes. Elisabeth was an accomplished singer, performing in over 100 concerts in many languages around the world. In 1932 she married art historian and archeologist Pál Kelemen, and together they documented pre-Columbian art in the Americas on survey trips. Together they wrote The Kelemen Journals: Incidents of Discovery of Art in the Americas, 1932-1964, with her photographs adding visual examples of their findings.

In the late 1960s, Elisabeth and Lida had collected and filled the Doctor's Office with all their family belongings and prepared to disperse them to institutions that would be interested in their collections.  Sadly, Lida passed away in the process, leaving Elizabeth to finish the work as the last descendant of the Hutchings family. It was announced in May of 1969 that Elizabeth and her husband Pál had donated the building and its contents to HMI. The items donated, including Lida's photographs, helped restore the office to how it had been when the doctor last practiced medicine there. Elisabeth continued to be a supporter of HMI until her death in 1997. The dedication of these two women to the preservation of the office and their family stories remains invaluable.