The Eichold-Heustis Medical Museum contains the largest collection of
medical artifacts in the Southeast. Two hundred years of medical
history are reflected in this curious assortment of instruments,
equipment, machines and medications.
Historical documents and photographs from Alabama's first medical center and medical school provide a unique glimpse of the past. Papers in the collection illustrate the "modern" treatment for tuberculosis, proper blood-letting techniques, and battlefield surgical procedures from Civil War physicians.
The general public and medical professionals are intrigued by this display of the obsolete and the proven, the primative and the innovative, the bizarre and the commonplace - all which contributed to today's practive of medicine.
The photograph (left) represents just one of the interesting
items on display. In 1859, Josiah C Nott acquired this larger-than-life
anatomical model in Paris for the Medical College of Mobile. The
accurate papier-mache portrayal of the autonomic nervous system was
copied from an 1854 Hirschfeld atlas. This model and another depicting
the lymphatic system were visual aids for medical school lectures.
HOURS: 8 AM to 5 PM Monday - Friday.
ADMISSION: Free.
DIRECTIONS: Exit I-65 at Spring Hill Ave and head downtown. The museum is located in the Univ of South Alabama - Springhill Avenue Campus building on the left just past Catherine St. Parking is available one block further down on the left.