| Exhibition Review | The Journal of American History, 92.3

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| Exhibition Review | The Journal of American History, 92.3 | The History Cooperative

Exhibition Reviews

National Hansen's Disease Museum, Carville, LA 70721.

Permanent exhibition, opened July 2000. Tu–Sa 10–4, closed federal holidays; call ahead, 225-642-1950. Free. Exhibition area 4,000 sq. ft. Elizabeth Schexnyder, curator and exhibition developer.

Internet: description of museum and grounds, overview of collections and exhibitions <http://bphc.hrsa.gov/nhdp/NHD_MUSEUM_HISTORY.htm> (Sept. 9, 2005).

The National Hansen's Disease Museum in Carville, Louisiana, portrays the history of the hospital that for over a hundred years treated and cared for patients with Hansen's disease, or leprosy, as it used to be called. Although the institution was under the control of the state of Louisiana, the Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent de Paul, a Catholic order of nuns, were given day-to-day control of the hospital from its founding in 1896. Four nuns were assigned there at the beginning. The nuns gave the patients the tender loving care that the outside world denied them.

In 1920, the federal government took over the hospital from the state, and the nuns continued to operate it. In all, sixty-eight nuns were assigned to the hospital during the years it was open. Many patients were committed by court order when the disease was thought to be contagious. It was the only leprosy hospital in the continental United States. It was closed a few years ago because of the development of sulfones, which counteract the devastating effects of the disease. Since the disease is not contagious, most of the patients were allowed to go home except for a few who were transferred to other hospitals. Research still goes on at Carville, studying how to prevent the disease and how better to cure patients. One of the nuns, Sister Hilary Ross, played a very important role in the research and had papers published in medical journals.

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