MUSEUM BLOG
We are hiring! 2022 Summer Positions Available
The Museum of Health Care is hiring for the summer! If you are enthusiastic, creative and have an interest in working in heritage, we want to hear from you!
Teddy Bear Hospital Virtual Family Day Event
The Museum of Health Care at Kingston is encouraging all families and stuffy lovers to join in on the fun of this full day, virtual adventure to be held on Family Day, Monday February 21, 2022, 9:00am-4:00pm
Black History Month: Dr. Alexander Thomas Augusta
First African-American physician in the U.S. Army. First Black professor of medicine in the U.S. First Black hospital administrator in the U.S.
Black History Month: Dr. James McCune Smith
First African-American to hold a medical degree.
The Story of Dr. Abraham Colles and his Fracture
Dr. Abraham Colles is most famous for his description of Colles’ fracture of the wrist, for which the Museum of Health Care has many splints.Born near Kilkenny, Ireland in 1773, he first became interested in medicine when a flood destroyed the home of a nearby doctor and washed an anatomy book towards his home. He returned the book to the doctor, who allowed him to keep it.In 1802, he became president of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland when he was only twenty-eight years old. In 1804, he became a Professor of Anatomy, Physiology, and Surgery to the College of Surgeons. He held numerous other positions and worked with many charitable hospitals and health care organizations over his career.
The Story of Dr. Ralph Crawford and his Dental Collection
Did you know that the Museum of Health Care has an extensive collection of dental objects? We have over 680 catalogued on our database, and more where that came from! Much of what we have today we owe to Dr. Patrick “Ralph” Crawford, who donated well over 1500 dentistry-related objects! Dr. Crawford was an incredible source of knowledge and friend to the Museum of Health Care, and was named Museum Curator Emeritus for his extensive contributions to our dental collections and exhibits. His series of articles “The Canadian Dental Association 1902-2002 - A Century of Service" continues to be an important resource for cataloguing and researching dental artefacts
The Story of Robert Liston and his Surgical Skill
Dr. Robert Liston was a resolute gentleman, known for his incredible ability to perform surgeries at an alarmingly fast pace in order to reduce the pain and risk of shock and blood loss for the patient. Before anaesthetics were introduced into surgical practice, Liston’s speed often meant the difference between life and death for the person on the operating table. Liston was known as a skilled surgeon with an argumentative personality, due in part to his strong convictions and deep care for his patients. He had a strong sense of decency and was not afraid to call out his fellow surgeons and teachers - and even engage in physical confrontations - if he suspected they had behaved indecently.
The Story of Dudley Ward and his Dingbat Calendars
Remembered by so many for his fantastical creatures known as “Dingbats”, William Dudley Burnett Ward was an accomplished English-Canadian illustrator. His Dingbat characters, which combined cartoon art and surrealism, began appearing on advertising calendars for the Charles E. Frosst pharmaceutical company in 1915, and continued under different artists until they were discontinued in 1996 because it was decided that they represented unfair competition for other pharmaceutical brands. He also acted as an illustrator and cartoonist in England and Canada for many years. Today, in addition to the many Dingbat calendars in the collections of the Museum of Health Care, his works can be found in the National Gallery of Canada and the AGO - Art Gallery of Ontario.
The Story of Dr. Grasett and the Typhus Epidemic
Dr. G. R. Grasett practiced in Amherstburg, Upper Canada (Ontario) and was Assistant Surgeon in the Royal Essex Light Infantry during the Upper Canada Rebellion. He fell ill with typhus within two weeks of working at the Emigrant Hospital, and passed away on July 16th, 1847, at the age of thirty-six. He was remembered as a compassionate, devoted doctor, and is commemorated today at Grasett Park in Toronto, which was built on the same spot where the fever sheds were, and is managed by the Canada Ireland Foundation.
The Story of Santa Claus and his Coca-Cola connection
So why does the Museum of Health Care have bottles of Coca-Cola in its collections? When Coca-Cola was first sold in the late-nineteenth century, it was marketed as a patent medicine which could cure headache, neuralgia, melancholy, hysteria, morphine addiction, and more. This was because it contained cocaine, from the coca leaves from which it was made, and caffeine, from kola nuts. It was not until around 1903-1904 that the company removed cocaine from the popular drink due to changes in laws surrounding the drug.