The Grokoest papers contain correspondence; medical notes, articles and notebooks; photographs; certificates; several works of art on paper; and artifacts. Though the medical notes document his medical interests, the papers largely focus on Grokoest’s personal rather than professional life.
Most of the correspondence is with friends, former students, musicians, and artists from whom Grokoest purchased works. Included are letters from the poet, Jean Pedrick Kefferstan; artists Alfred M. Doane, Joe Henry, Jan Lebenstein, John Loftus, Edwin and Mary Scheier, and Jennings Tofel; critics John Canaday, Andrew Porter, and Harold C. Schoenberg; and the musician Frederick Zimmermann. The Lebenstein correspondence includes many letters from the Polish-born writer and literary critic, Olga Scherer-Virski, who served as an intermediary between Grokoest and Lebenstein, who was not fluent in English. There are also five folders of correspondence received by him from patients reacting to the closing of his medical practice in 1988.
The only family correspondence is Grokoest's letters to his mother in 1935 when he was visiting New York City; and in 1940 during his first year as a student at the College of Physicians and Surgeons.
In addition, there are records relating to the sale of Grokoest’s Schiele painting in 1983, including the Sotheby’s auction catalog, newsclippings, and a video excerpt from NBC’s Today show. Grokoest’s role as physician to the New York Philharmonic 1974 tour to New Zealand, Australia and Japan is also documented in the papers and include correspondence, financial records, concert programs, and newsclippings.
The medical notes and articles are arranged by topic, though there are two folders of uncategorized notes. Even those notes arranged by topic are in no discernible order and are often difficult to read. Reprints of scientific articles on the topic are sometimes interspersed with the notes; however, few of these are Grokoest’s own articles.
There are also drafts of and correspondence about two popular articles Grokoest wrote outlining his ideas on the connection between illness and the mind, entitled “Nature’s Cure” and “The Prevention of Dis-Ease;” both appear to date from the late 1980s.
The photographs include many images of Grokoest, both formal studio shots and casual snapshots, and images of his art collection. Of particular interest is a photo essay, c. 1970s, documenting the examination of patients in the arthritis clinic of either Presbyterian or Roosevelt Hospital.
The works of art on paper (found in Series VII: Oversize Materials) consist of two pieces by “J.H.” (Joe Henry?); one by C. Reyes; and a caricature of Grokoest by “Z.A.”