Health & Medicine

Iron Lung

The Museum's collections of medical science artifacts represent nearly all aspects of health and medical practice. Highlights include early X-ray apparatuses, such as one of Wilhelm Roentgen's tubes, penicillin mold from Alexander Fleming’s experiments, and Jonas Salk's original polio vaccine. More recent acquisitions include the first artificial heart implanted in a human, the earliest genetically engineered drugs, and materials related to David, the "Bubble Boy." Other artifacts range from artificial limbs and implant devices to bloodletting and dental instruments, beauty products, and veterinary equipment. The contents of a medieval apothecary shop and an 1890s drugstore form part of the collections, along with patent and alternative medicines. The collections also document the many differing perspectives on health and medical issues, from patients, family members, doctors, nurses, medical students, and out-of-the-mainstream health practitioners.

Place: Massachusetts

Pro-phy-lac-tic Tooth Powder

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
maker
Pro-phy-lac-tic Brush Company
ID Number
1985.0481.408
accession number
1985.0481
catalog number
1985.0481.408

Hoyt's German Cologne

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
maker
E. W. Hoyt & Company
ID Number
MG.293320.0904
catalog number
293320.0904
accession number
293320

Gillette Blue Blades

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
inventor
Gillette, King C.
maker
Gillette Safety Razor Company
ID Number
1985.0475.774
catalog number
1985.0475.774
accession number
1985.0475

Breck Beautiful Hair Creme Rinse

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
maker
John H. Breck, Inc.
ID Number
1985.0481.253
catalog number
1985.0481.253
accession number
1985.0481

Lantern Slide Related to the Work of Dr. Frederick C. Robbins and Colleagues on the Polio Virus - Normal Kidney Tissue

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1948
ID Number
2003.0031.03
accession number
2003.0031
catalog number
2003.0031.03

MediSense Sof-Tact Diabetes Management System

Blood glucose monitoring kit with packaging, carrying case, bag of thin lancets, "Getting Started" pamphlet, User's Guide, Warranty Registration mailer, and blood glucose test strips.White and gray glucose monitor with blue button, LCD display panel, and blue and black print.
Description
Blood glucose monitoring kit with packaging, carrying case, bag of thin lancets, "Getting Started" pamphlet, User's Guide, Warranty Registration mailer, and blood glucose test strips.
White and gray glucose monitor with blue button, LCD display panel, and blue and black print. Box is blue and white with images of the glucose monitor, pictorial instructions, and pictures of people as well as a contents list. The carrying case is a zippered black fabric case with plastic compartments inside for blood glucose monitor and testing strips. Carrying case has blue print on the outside. The package of ultraTLC Thin Lancets contains an information sheet and 9 thin lancets. Lancets are clear plastic with needle inside and expiration date of December 2005. "Getting Started" pamphlet is white and blue with black print and includes pictorial instructions. User's Guide is a booklet with pink and black print and illustrations on the inside. Blood Glucose test strips box is blue and white with pictures of people and the test strips. Contains 40 test strips, booklet, and one calibrator. Test strips expire March 31, 2002. Test strips were not part of the original kit.
Printed on box: The new MediSense Sof-Tact system obtains and applies a blood drop in one easy, virtually painless step; Confident Testing / Convenient automated testing at a single button press. / Comfortable virtually pain-free sampling sparing fingertips. / Consistently accurate lab-like results.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
about 2000
maker
Abbott Laboratories
ID Number
2014.0140.01
accession number
2014.0140
catalog number
2014.0140.01

Forest Violet Toilet Water

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
MG.293320.0886
catalog number
293320.0886
accession number
293320

Hood's Saponaceous Tooth Powder

Glass jar with paper label that reads “HOOD’S / SAPONACEOUS / TOOTH POWDER / A PRESERVER AND BEAUTIFIER OF / THE TEETH / . . . ONLY BY C. I. HOOD & CO. APOTHECARIES / LOWELL / MASS.” Charles I.
Description
Glass jar with paper label that reads “HOOD’S / SAPONACEOUS / TOOTH POWDER / A PRESERVER AND BEAUTIFIER OF / THE TEETH / . . . ONLY BY C. I. HOOD & CO. APOTHECARIES / LOWELL / MASS.” Charles I. Hood (1845-1922) was born in Chelsea, Vt., apprenticed with a pharmacist in Lowell, Ma., and established C. I. Hood & Co. in 1870.
Location
Currently not on view
maker
C. I. Hood & Co.
ID Number
MG.293320.0983
catalog number
293320.0983
accession number
293320

LaBlache Face Powder, Cream

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
1985.0481.320
accession number
1985.0481
catalog number
1985.0481.320

Riker's Deodor

The indications or uses for this product as provided by the manufacturer are:Destroys Odor of PerspirationCurrently not on view
Description
The indications or uses for this product as provided by the manufacturer are:
Destroys Odor of Perspiration
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1908 - 1920s
maker
Riker Laboratories, Inc.
ID Number
1979.0798.215
accession number
1979.0798
catalog number
1979.0798.215

"Vim" Forsbeck Needle Rack for Group Immunization

Plastic rack with 28 steel hypodermic needles, and inscriptions that read "'VIM' FORSBECK NEEDLE RACK / FOR GROUP IMMUNIZATION" and "MACGREGOR INST. CO. / NEEDHAM, MASS. U.S.A." Filip C. Forsbeck (d.
Description
Plastic rack with 28 steel hypodermic needles, and inscriptions that read "'VIM' FORSBECK NEEDLE RACK / FOR GROUP IMMUNIZATION" and "MACGREGOR INST. CO. / NEEDHAM, MASS. U.S.A." Filip C. Forsbeck (d. 1940) was a graduate of the University of Wisconsin and the University of Chicago Medical School who spent his brief career as an epidemiologist.
Ref: Filip C. Forsbeck, “An Outfit for Group Immunization Including an Automatic Syringe and a Needle Rack,” American Journal of Public Health (19xx): 1407-1409.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
before 1980
maker
MacGregor Instrument Company
ID Number
1980.0851.06
catalog number
1980.0851.06
accession number
1980.0851

Lantern Slide Related to the Work of Dr. Frederick C. Robbins and Colleagues on the Polio Virus - Control Specimen of Embryonic Skin and Muscle

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1948
ID Number
2003.0031.05
accession number
2003.0031
catalog number
2003.0031.05

Lantern Slide Related to the Work of Dr. Frederick C. Robbins and Colleagues on the Polio Virus - Graph Showing Loss of Neurovirulence with Each Passage in Tissue Culture

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1948
ID Number
2003.0031.10
accession number
2003.0031
catalog number
2003.0031.10

Preserve, Soft - Powered by Recycled Yogurt Cups

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
2012.0165.459
catalog number
2012.0165.459
accession number
2012.0165

Rubifoam for the Teeth, Free Sample Bottle - Deliciously Flavored

Glass jar with paper label that reads in part “FREE SAMPLE BOTTLE OF / RUBIFOAM / ALCOHOL 45 PER CENT / FOR THE TEETH / . . . / Prepared by E. W. HOYT & CO. / PROPRIETORS OF / HOYT’S GERMAN COLOGNE / LOWELL, MASS.” Eli W.
Description
Glass jar with paper label that reads in part “FREE SAMPLE BOTTLE OF / RUBIFOAM / ALCOHOL 45 PER CENT / FOR THE TEETH / . . . / Prepared by E. W. HOYT & CO. / PROPRIETORS OF / HOYT’S GERMAN COLOGNE / LOWELL, MASS.” Eli W. Hoyt (1838-1887), owned a drugstore in Lowell, Mass., and began manufacturing Hoyt’s German Cologne in 1870. The firm introduced Rubifoam, a liquid dentifrice, to market in 1887.
Location
Currently not on view
maker
E. W. Hoyt & Company
ID Number
MG.293320.0987
catalog number
293320.0987
accession number
293320

Lavender Water

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1889
patent date (for bottle)
1889-04-02
maker
Will H. Lowe
manufacturer
Whitall, Tatum and Company
ID Number
MG.M-11481
catalog number
M-11481
accession number
261652

Gillete Stainless Razor Blade And Sun Up After Shave Lotion Sample Set

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
maker
Gillette Company
ID Number
MG.293320.1501
catalog number
293320.1501
accession number
293320

Harvard Transparent Toilet Soap

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
ID Number
MG.293320.1451
catalog number
293320.1451
accession number
293320

Gilette Heads Up Hair Grooming

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
maker
Gillette Company
ID Number
1985.0475.184
accession number
1985.0475
catalog number
1985.0475.184

Lantern Slide Related to the Work of Dr. Frederick C. Robbins and Colleagues on the Polio Virus - Virus Effect on Specimen of Embryonic Skin and Muscle

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1948
ID Number
2003.0031.07
accession number
2003.0031
catalog number
2003.0031.07

Atra Gillette Pivoting Head Trial Razor

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
maker
Gillette Company
ID Number
2012.0165.774
catalog number
2012.0165.774
accession number
2012.0165

Pro-phy-lac-tic Vacation Special Adult and Child Brushes Prolon Bristle

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
maker
Pro-phy-lac-tic Brush Company
ID Number
1985.0475.837
catalog number
1985.0475.837
accession number
1985.0475

Lantern Slide Related to the Work of Dr. Frederick C. Robbins and Colleagues on the Polio Virus - Specimen of Control, Uninoculated Monkey Kidney Cells

Currently not on view
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1948
ID Number
2003.0031.08
accession number
2003.0031
catalog number
2003.0031.08

Brown's Camphorated Saponaceous Dentifrice

Glass jar with paper label that reads in part “BROWN’S CAMPHORATED / SAPONACEOUS DENTIFRICE / . . . / Manufactured by JOHN I. BROWN & SONS, Boston, Mass. / CURTIS & BROWN MFG. CO. (Limited) / PROPRIETORS / New York.”“Microscopical examinations by Dr. H. I.
Description
Glass jar with paper label that reads in part “BROWN’S CAMPHORATED / SAPONACEOUS DENTIFRICE / . . . / Manufactured by JOHN I. BROWN & SONS, Boston, Mass. / CURTIS & BROWN MFG. CO. (Limited) / PROPRIETORS / New York.”
“Microscopical examinations by Dr. H. I. Bowditch, of the matter deposited on the teeth, have proved that those only who use soap as a dentifrice were free from accumulations of animal and vegetable parasites upon the teeth and gums. The addition of Camphor strengthens and relieves soreness of the gums and teeth, and maintains them constantly in a healthy state. Used daily, as a preventative for a toothache, it is invaluable.” The information appears in an ad for Brown’s Camphorated Saponaceous Dentifrice in The Strangers’ New Guide Through Boston and Vicinity [Boston, 1869]. Henry Ingersoll Bowditch (1808-1892) was a prominent Boston physician and abolitionist. His paper “On the Infusoria on the Teeth,” appeared in the Proceedings of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (Dec. 1849): 183.
Location
Currently not on view
maker
John I. Brown and Son
ID Number
MG.M-10577
catalog number
M-10577
accession number
253101

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