EXPLORE THE HISTORY! Our tours run every Thursday and one Saturday each month by appointment. Use our online form to reserve your spot. Our volunteers are here to greet you! BOOK A TOUR VOLUNTEER SPOTLIGHT  The museum is staffed entirely by our outstanding volunteers; each contributing their individual expertise and enthusiasm. Read about world traveler Phyllis Healy and how she shares her own public health journey with visitors.    READ ABOUT PHYLLIS Recognizing Penikese at the Public Health Museum  To commemorate the centennial of the closing of the Penikese Island Leprosarium in 1921, the Public Health Museum will host an exhibition at our location in Tewksbury, Massachusetts. The exhibit will focus on the lives of the patients and their caregivers, and will put this disease in a broader historical context. Additionally, stamps and leprosaria coins from around the world will be part of the exhibit. We also have two virtual components, listed below; our virtual book club and our discussion with local experts in the field. It's a chance to hear from people with diverse perspectives on the Penikese experience. Join us! WORK WITH US! Do love history? Public health? The museum is seeking a digitization intern and a museum coordinator. Help us as we grow! LEARN MORE

TUBERCULOSIS SANATORIUMS IN THE UNITED STATES Volunteer Liz Robinson shares some history In the early 19th century tuberculosis killed more people in the Boston area than any other disease. Once it was proven to be contagious, victims were treated as outcasts and sent to TB hospitals to die. Thus began the sanatorium movement. Bancroft Male Tubercular Hospital, Tewksbury State Infirmary READ HERE

Penikese Island Leprosarium and the Real Story of Hansen's Disease   From November, 1905 to March, 1921 Massachusetts administered a hospital for people with Hansen’s Disease (leprosy) on the barren 74-acre island of Penikese in Buzzards Bay, midway between Martha’s Vineyard and New Bedford. During those 16 years, the hospital cared for 36 patients at great expense. For these unfortunate souls, the hospital was also a prison from which none would be discharged. Join our distinguished panelists; José Ramirez, Jr., LCSW-S, David Scollard, MD, PhD and journalist Ken Hartnett as they discuss their personal and professional connections with this misunderstood disease as we recognize the centennial of the closure of Penikese Island leprosarium. REGISTER HERE

The Virtual Public Health Book Club Carville's Cure; Leprosy, Stigma, and the Fight for Justice We continue the discussion about Hansen's disease in our November book club. Join in or just listen to the discussion about Pam Fessler's book examining Hansen's Disease, formerly called leprosy, and the exile of patients to the only colony of its kind in rural Mississippi. Dr. Julia Benedetti, Director of the the New England Hansen's Disease Clinic will join Dr. Louis Fazen, Dr. Al DeMaria, Kathy Hursen and others to offer clinical perspective and history of the disease. REGISTER HERE

"America's first public health museum"

Public Health Museum

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