Museum

The Dittrick Medical History Center is dedicated to the study of the medical past through a distinguished collection of rare books, museum artifacts, archives, and images. This web site includes images of exhibits and scientific instruments in the Dittrick Museum, images and annotations of samples from the 60,000 volume rare book collection, information about the archival collections and image collections. In addition, the site also hosts two virtual exhibits, "Haunting Images: Photography, Dissection and Medical Students," and "Smallpox: A City on the Edge of Disaster." Finally the site includes a section about research aids including on-line catalogues and bibliographical information.

A number of online exhibits are made including several on Yale's history with medicine, one on stem cells, and another about the hospitals of New Haven. A catalog of the library's literature is available, and includes several texts available online. The digital library also includes several collections of prints and photographs including 83 nineteenth century paintings by Lam Qua of patients with tumors. There are also images of collections of weights and measures, obstetrical instruments, and medical medals. Comprehensive lists of databases and Internet resources, as well bibliographies are compiled.

A collection of some of the displays from the above mentioned exhibition. Includes audio files of lectures which were presented, as well as several related articles and activities. Of particular note is a section devoted to the atomic bombing of Nagasaki which contains images, oral histories submitted to the site, and links for further study.

Light! presented by the Van Gogh Museum (Amsterdam) and the Carnegie Museum of Art (Pittsburgh), invites users to trace developments in lighting technology from the 1700s to the present by looking at the effects of light in several areas: science, economics, street, home, art, and entertainment. The exhibition combines images of objects and paintings with text arrayed on a background of bands of spectral colors. The home section begins with a pair of gilt candlesticks from 1807. Accompanying text points out that these golden candlesticks are not just prettier because they are shiny; they light better as well. This section concludes with an electric Tiffany lamp from 1907, and in between, includes the Van Gogh painting "The Potato Eaters," showing a peasant family eating potatoes in an interior lit by a meager kerosene lamp. Other objects of note are an Argand lamp in the economics section, the first lamp to exploit the discovery that flames burn brighter when fed by oxygen, and my favorite, a group of filament lightbulbs from the 1880s on a rack described in the caption as "various nationalities." The art section includes a live Webcam of the Statue of Liberty, and both the entertainment and science sections point out that many innovations in lighting originated in the theater.

Part of the Library of Congress American Memory Project, this site offers full-text transcriptions of 23 popular 19th-century periodicals digitized by the Cornell University Library and the Preservation Reformatting Division of the Library of Congress. Among the periodicals on this site are literary and political magazines, as well as journals like Scientific American, Manufacturer and Builder, Garden and Forest, and the North American Review. Each periodical is accompanied by very brief (10-15 word) notes on the name and location of the publisher and the years and volumes covered. With the temporary exception of Garden and Forest, each periodical's full text is searchable by keyword and phrase. A special presentation offers a roughly 750-word essay on the historical background of Garden and Forest by Sheila Connor, the Horticultural Research Archivist at the Arnold Arboretum. There are also links to related American Memory resources. The site's broad sampling of periodicals provides an easily navigated source for articles and editorials on a number of 19th-century political, cultural, and social issues.

This project, produced by the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American History, looks to expand the recent history of electric lighting and energy issues relating to lighting. An example of "participatory history," there is an attempt to record online the stories and memories of the people who have produced or dealt with electric lighting. This group includes: electricians, engineers, electrical researchers, inventors, utility workers, city planners, architects, retailers, consumers, and anyone else who has taken part in the buying, selling, installing, and designing electric lighting. Extensive input forms are available for each of these groups to add to the electronic archive the Smithsonian is building. The site also includes historical essays on commercial, industrial and residential lighting, particularly focusing on the last 30 years. An extensive bibliography, including articles and books from both professional societies and the popular press, adds to the background material on the site.

The Lone Star Flight Museum site is a basically a publicity page for the museum that gives directions, contact information and upcoming events. The most useful and interesting section for those who do not plan to visit the museum in person is the museum's Living History Group. This section contains a few records of World War II concerning veteran Henry Erwin and a link to email for other vets and family to offer their experiences. As other primary accounts are entered on the site, the usefulness of the site will improve.

A good site for an introduction to submarine history. Includes accounts of an American Revolutionary era model through to modern nuclear submarines. A QuickTime virtual tour of the Bowfin takes one inside the various compartments and holds. A history of the ship's activities during World War II beginning with its launch just a week after the attack on Pearl Harbor is also recounted. A large number of links to other submarine and naval sites of interest are compiled.

This site relates a lot of information about the Boston museum itself. However, it also contains a FAQ which contains information of potential interest to researchers including a bibliography, chronology, specifications, and an engagement history.

This site briefly recounts a history of the USS Nautilus, including a list of the ship's Commanding Officers and Medal of Honor winners. Virtual tours of the submarine and museum are available, and feature several QuickTime Virtual Reality movies. Information concerning the Submarine Force Library and Archives, with a selected bibliography, are posted. A number of submarine-related sites are linked.