Indiana Medical History Museum facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Old Pathology Building
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 Location in Indianapolis
Location in Indiana
Location in the United States
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| Location | 3045 West Vermont Street, Indianapolis, Ind. 46222 |
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| Area | 1 acre (0.40 ha) |
| Built | 1895 |
| NRHP reference No. | 72000011 |
| Added to NRHP | April 25, 1972 |
The Indiana Medical History Museum is a special place in Indianapolis. It shows how doctors started to study the brain and mental health a long time ago. This museum is located where the old Central Indiana Hospital for the Insane used to be. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on April 25, 1972. It is known as the Old Pathology Building.
This building is the oldest surviving pathology laboratory in the United States. Pathology is the study of diseases and how they affect the body.
Contents
History of the Building
In 1893, George F. Edenharter became the head of Central State Hospital. He decided the hospital needed a special building for studying diseases. He hired Adolph Scherrer to design it. The building was finished in 1895 and opened as the Pathological Department of Central State Hospital.
A Modern Lab for Its Time
When it was built, this two-story brick building was very advanced. It had a large room with 150 seats for teaching students. It also had labs for studying tiny living things (bacteriology) and chemicals. The hospital's morgue, where bodies are kept, was also in this building.
Other important rooms included a museum of body parts, a room for autopsies, a library, labs for studying the mind, and a photography room. An autopsy is when doctors examine a body after death to learn more about a disease.
Teaching Future Doctors
From 1900 to 1908, medical schools like the Central College of Physicians and Surgeons and the Medical College of Indiana taught classes here. They taught about the brain and nerves (neurology) and mental health (psychiatry). Later, these schools joined to become part of the Indiana University School of Medicine.
The Indiana University School of Medicine continued to teach in the building until 1956. Students learned about how the nervous system develops. They also studied mental health conditions like 'manic-depressive psychosis' and how to group different types of mental illness. Students from other medical schools would visit to watch autopsies.
Saving a Special Place
By the 1930s, the study of mental health using science became less common. Most similar labs in the U.S. closed by the 1940s. But Central State's building was still used in 1955.
Many buildings at Central State Hospital were old and falling apart. They were torn down in the 1960s and 1970s. But the Old Pathology Building was still in great shape! A few doctors kept using it just enough so it wouldn't be closed. This helped save it. In 1969, the Indiana Medical History Museum was started, using this historic building. Since 1984, the museum has been open to the public at least once a week.
About the Museum
The Indiana Medical History Museum is a non-profit group. It collects many old items related to medical history. By 1994, it had over 15,000 items! These items are not just about studying diseases, but all kinds of medical history. In 1990, a special gallery opened to show different exhibits that change over time.
Did You Know?
The movie Eight Men Out filmed some scenes in the museum's library.
In 2006, the museum received a grant of $44,100 from the state. This money helped them fix the water pipes in the building.
In 2019, the Old Pathology Building got a state historic marker. This marker was put up to celebrate the museum's 50th birthday!
Gallery
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The Old Pathology Building.
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The building's amphitheater, where students learned.
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Another view of the amphitheater.
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The building's autopsy room.
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A pediatric iron lung. This machine helped children breathe. It was not originally at this hospital.
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A camera used to make microscope slides bigger in the photography room.
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The teaching amphitheater.
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The chemical laboratory.
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See also
- List of medical museums
- List of attractions and events in Indianapolis
