I am currently interning at the Montgomery County Historical Society in
Rockville, MD, where thery have an entire Civil War eras doctors office and
many of the original contents on display.  I don't know if that is of
help but if it is you may contact Karen Yaffe Lottes at 301-340-6534.

Patsy
GWU-MEP


On Thu, 21 Mar 1996, CANDY CARLSON wrote:

> I am doing a research project on the Historic Medicines & Instruments of
> the Oakland Museum of California, with the goal of archival storage and
> preservation.  If you have such a collection at your institution, I would
> appreciate a few minutes of your time responding to this survey.  You may
> reply off-list to me at:  [log in to unmask]
>
> Did you, or do you, have any medications, drugs or instruments in any
> form in your collection, especially from the 19th century?
>
> Are there reference materials available containing period terminology of
> what was then the common name of substances, giving 20th century chemical
> names?
>
> Are there any standards for storage of medical collections?  What type of
> containers are used?  Are the contents as historically significant as the
> containers?
>
> Are there guidelines/resources for visible signs in recognizing toxic
> dangers to prioritize materials before doing chemical testing?
>
> What criteria was used for retaining and/or disposing of medicines?  If
> toxic medicines were disposed of, how was this done?
>
> How were containers cleaned that were kept?  What if the contents were not
> removable?  How were labels kept in tact during cleaning?  What was the
> procedure for handling, cleaning, sterilizing containers?  Were employees
> inoculated or otherwise protected against contaminates?
>
> Thank you for any information you may be able to share!
>