Thackray Museum of Medicine Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids
Thackray Museum of Medicine
Museum entrance
Established	March 1997
Location	Beckett Street, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England
Type	Medical museum

The Thackray Museum of Medicine in Leeds, England, is a cool place to learn about the history of medicine. It's right next to St James's University Hospital. The museum first opened its doors in March 1997. It was even named "Museum of the Year" in 1998! It has also won other awards for being an excellent tourist spot and for its education programs.

The museum temporarily closed in 2019 for a big upgrade. It got a £4 million makeover! Then, it stayed closed longer because of the COVID-19 pandemic. In October 2020, it received special funding to help it reopen safely. The museum finally welcomed visitors back on May 17, 2021. Its conference center was even used to help with COVID-19 vaccinations in December 2020. The newly improved museum was also a finalist for the "Museum of the Year" award in 2021.

What is the History of the Thackray Museum?
- How Did the Museum Start?
What Can You See at the Museum?
What Kind of Collection Does the Museum Have?
Special Exhibitions and Learning
- Lectures and Education
Images for kids
See also

What is the History of the Thackray Museum?

The museum building itself has a long and interesting past. It's a Grade II listed building, which means it's an important historical site. It first opened in 1861 as the Leeds Union Workhouse. This was a place for people who were poor and needed help. Over time, the building became more focused on medical care for those in need.

During the First World War, it was called the East Leeds War Hospital. It cared for soldiers who were injured. Later, it was known as the Ashley Wing of the hospital. By the 1990s, the old workhouse building was too old for modern medical needs. But because it was a listed building, it couldn't be torn down. So, it was decided that it would become the Thackray Medical Museum, which opened in 1997.

How Did the Museum Start?

The museum's story began with Charles Thackray. He opened a small family-run chemist shop in Leeds in 1902. A chemist shop is like a pharmacy. In less than 100 years, his small shop grew into a major medical company called Chas F Thackray Limited. This company made medicines and medical tools. They even helped create the first hip replacement surgery with Sir John Charnley.

In the 1980s, Charles Thackray's grandson, Paul Thackray, started collecting items from the company's history. This collection became the start of the museum. In 1990, a special group was formed to help develop this collection into a full museum.

What Can You See at the Museum?

Before its big renovation in 2021, the museum had many cool exhibits. One popular area was Leeds 1842: Life in Victorian Leeds. Visitors could walk through a recreated street from the 1800s. It had all the sights, sounds, and even smells of a real Victorian slum! You could follow the lives of eight Victorian characters and see how they dealt with illnesses.

Another exhibit, Pain, Pus and Blood, showed what surgery was like before doctors had anaesthesia (pain relief). It also showed how pain relief improved over time. Having a Baby focused on how childbirth became safer. There was even a video that showed a surgery from 1842, before anaesthetics. It showed doctors preparing for an amputation (removing a limb). The actual operation wasn't shown, but it gave you an idea of how tough it was.

The LifeZone! was an interactive gallery especially for kids. It taught them how the human body works. There was also a smaller room for younger children. The 'Recovery?' Gallery looked at how injured soldiers were treated, from the First World War to modern conflicts. The museum also had a special gallery for temporary exhibitions that changed every year.

What Kind of Collection Does the Museum Have?

The Thackray Museum of Medicine has a huge collection! It has over 47,000 objects from medical history. These items date from Roman times all the way to today. It also has thousands of old catalogs and books about medicine.

Some of the most interesting items include Prince Albert's personal medicine chest. Prince Albert was Queen Victoria's husband. The museum also has Hitler's blood transfusion kit. The collection is especially strong in European surgical tools from the 1600s to now. It also has a very important collection of hearing aids. Other highlights include old patent medicines and home first aid kits.

The Thackray Medical Museum was even featured on the TV show Most Haunted in 2015!

Special Exhibitions and Learning

The museum often hosts temporary exhibitions. For example, in 2016, it was one of only 15 places to show the winning images from the Wellcome Image Awards. These awards celebrate amazing photos that show different parts of biomedical science. The exhibition included a 3D image of the inside of the human eye. Other pictures showed how bones develop and how human liver tissue can be engineered.

In 2021, planned temporary exhibitions included Mothers in Lockdown and Stitch Your Story.

Lectures and Education

The museum also offers a series of public lectures about medicine and history. These talks happen on Saturday mornings from October to March each year. They focus on how health and medicine have changed over time.

About 20,000 school students visit the museum every year. The museum provides special classroom activities, educational resources, and even loan boxes for teachers. It has won the Sandford Award for Heritage Education for its great work in teaching history.