Historic Saranac Lake announced the launch of a new project on the Cure Porch on Wheels titled, ”Pandemic Past and Present.” Funding for this project came from a 2021 Corridor of Commerce Interpretive Theme Grant from the Champlain Valley National Heritage Partnership.

Historic Saranac Lake will host programs on its mobile museum space, the Cure Porch on Wheels, to explore local history in public health with new audiences. Visitors will view short videos and participate in interactive activities that will build connections between Saranac Lake’s history as health resort and the collective experience of the current the pandemic.

The project will be led by Historic Saranac Lake’s new Public Programs Coordinator, Mahala Nyberg. Ms. Nyberg stated, “As the world grapples with the COVID-19 pandemic, Saranac Lake's sanatorium history is newly relevant. Our history as a community built on the treatment and research of a highly infectious disease helps to shed light on issues in public health today. The experience of the COVID-19 pandemic inspires us to explore untold stories in our local history and make new connections to broader themes.”

Historic Saranac Lake (HSL) will explore perspectives on pandemics, past and present within the 640 square miles of the Saranac Lake School District. The Lake Champlain Basin Program grant will support the creation of short videos about Saranac Lake’s TB history, highlighting the lives of patients whose TB experiences relate to common experiences in the present day. Four short videos will be created profiling each patient with photos and excerpts in their own words, captured in Historic Saranac Lake’s archival resources and oral histories. The videos will be installed in the Cure Porch on Wheels and online.

This project is a natural outgrowth of a new exhibit soon to be unveiled at the Saranac Laboratory Museum titled, “Pandemic Perspectives.” Following its closure through the winter due to the pandemic, the museum will reopen on May 25, 2021. The public will be asked to register for admission in order to help assure social distancing, and face coverings will be required.

Historic Saranac Lake’s mission is to preserve and present area history and architecture to build a stronger community.

This Tuberculosis Thursday, we want to share a bit about medical quackery and "consumption" (AKA tuberculosis). This flyer for the Electricity Cough and Consumption Cure advertised its ability to cure "hopeless cases of consumption, asthma, pneumonia, pleurisy, and bronchitis."

We don't know for sure what was in this particular product, but similar tonics advertised to "cure" TB would often contain high levels of alcohol, opium, heroin, cocaine, chloroform, and more. For decades, desperate health seekers would purchase these concoctions. At best, they might help relieve or mask symptoms, but were absolutely ineffective against the tubercle bacillus. At worst, these products could contain deadly ingredients such as arsenic, creosote, and so on.

Did you see our "Medical Marvels" exhibit at the Saranac Laboratory Museum in 2014-15? We shared many more examples of medical quackery across the years!

[Historic Saranac Lake Collection, TCR 680. Courtesy of Karen Lewis and Beth Glover.]

Tour the grounds of the former Trudeau Sanatorium at 1:00PM on Tuesday, May 11. This is an entirely outdoor walking tour and takes place rain or shine. $10/person, children and members of Historic Saranac Lake free.

Advance ticket purchases or RSVPs required by noon on the Monday before the tour. A maximum of 8 tickets will be available for this tour. Tickets are non-refundable. Masks are required!

If you wish to reserve a ticket but do not want to purchase one online, please call HSL at 518-891-4606 or email us to guarantee a ticket. Members of HSL should also contact us to reserve a spot. You will receive an email from us with instructions on where to meet our guide the day before the tour. Purchase tickets here.