• Visit
  • Events
  • About
    • Visit
    • Historic Saranac Lake
    • The Museum
    • Trudeau Building
    • PRESS Room
    • History Matters Blog
  • Research
    • Collections
    • Oral History Project
    • Local Wiki
    • Resources
    • HISTORY MATTERS Blog
  • Projects
    • Trudeau Building
    • Architectural Preservation
    • Collections
    • The Bartók Cabin
    • Oral History Project
    • Cure Porch on Wheels
    • School Outreach
    • Art of the Cure
  • Store
  • Support Us
  • Contact
HISTORIC SARANAC LAKE
  • Visit
  • Events
  • About
    • Visit
    • Historic Saranac Lake
    • The Museum
    • Trudeau Building
    • PRESS Room
    • History Matters Blog
  • Research
    • Collections
    • Oral History Project
    • Local Wiki
    • Resources
    • HISTORY MATTERS Blog
  • Projects
    • Trudeau Building
    • Architectural Preservation
    • Collections
    • The Bartók Cabin
    • Oral History Project
    • Cure Porch on Wheels
    • School Outreach
    • Art of the Cure
  • Store
  • Support Us
  • Contact

Letter from the Porch: the Joy of Exercise

4/14/2020

0 Comments

 
Picture
Dear friends,

The old neighborhoods of Saranac Lake are lively these days, as people of all ages take a break from solitude to go out walking at all hours. Like the TB patients of the past, we are eager to stretch our legs, breathe some fresh air, and wave to a friendly face across the street.

Moderate exercise was a key part of the treatment in Saranac Lake. Doctors recognized that exercise could boost the immune system by strengthening the body and improving mental health. Not all TB patients were bedridden, and those who were well enough to get out of bed went walking on their doctors’ orders.

The Trudeau Sanatorium admitted people in the early stages of the disease, and so many of the patients there lived a pretty lively existence. They made crafts in the occupational therapy workshop, walked to meals in the grand dining room, and performed in plays in the auditorium. Walking provided a chance to spend time with a friend or romantic interest.

Doctors monitored their patients closely and prescribed increasing amounts of exercise as their health improved. Patients were expected to follow instructions exactly, as outlined in Dr. Brown’s “Rules for Exercise.” As we embark on ambitious long walks in these new times, we should keep in mind Dr. Brown’s sage advice such as, “remember always that you will have to return.”

As a young boy, Jim Meade lived in the superintendent’s cottage at the Trudeau San, and he remembers watching the patients taking their prescribed walks to the gate. Some wanted to go farther than the prescribed distance, and so they walked in a zigzag line to fit in extra steps before getting to the turnaround spot.
Picture
Picture
Other area sanatoria had their own walking trails. At Stonywold Sanatorium, signs on the Onchiota dirt road measured walks of 5 minutes, 10 minutes, and up to 60 minutes. At Will Rogers Hospital, walking trails wove in and out of the surrounding woods, providing cover for patients looking to grab a smoke out of the watchful eyes of the staff. Andy Rawdon tells the tale of being hired as a youngster to help police the Will Rogers trails. Andy managed to increase his income by accepting occasional tips from the smokers in exchange for keeping quiet.

One of my favorite photos is this one of Alice Gallup, shared with us by her son, Michael. Alice came from Pennsylvania to cure at the Trudeau Sanatorium in 1917. She recovered her health, but then her husband abandoned her to raise two young sons on her own. She made her home in Saranac Lake and supported her family by working as the organist in a local church and teaching piano. Alice maintained her joyful spirit in the face of adversity, a spirit you can see in this photo. Alice didn’t just walk to the sanatorium gate, she climbed it!

To sign off with a favorite phrase of one friend who lived to the ripe age of 107  --

 Keep moving!

Amy Catania
Executive Director
Historic Saranac Lake

Images: Patients at Trudeau Sanatorium, courtesy of the Saranac Lake Free Library. Alice French Gallup at the gates of Trudeau Sanatorium, courtesy of Michael Gallup.
0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    About us

    Stay up to date on all the news and happenings from Historic Saranac Lake at the Saranac Laboratory Museum!

    Archives

    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019

    Categories

    All
    12 Days Of SL Mas
    Black History
    Collections
    Cure Porch On Wheels
    Events
    History
    History Matters Column
    Image Of The Week
    Letters From The Porch
    Museum Monday
    Oral History
    Talking Points
    TB Patients
    Trudeau Building
    Tuberculosis Thursday
    Wednesday Mini Tours
    Winter Carnival
    Women's History Month

    RSS Feed

Historic Saranac Lake at the Saranac Laboratory Museum
​89 Church Street, Suite 2, Saranac Lake, New York 12983
​(518) 891-4606 - mail@historicsaranaclake.org ​
Join our mailing list
 Thanks to our business sponsors: 
© 2020 Historic Saranac Lake. All Rights Reserved. Historic photographs courtesy of the Adirondack Room, Saranac Lake Free Library, unless otherwise noted. Copy and reuse restrictions apply. Made possible, in part, by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature. Also supported by an Essex County Arts Council Cultural Assistance Program Grant supported by the Essex County Board of Supervisors.
Picture
  • Visit
  • Events
  • About
    • Visit
    • Historic Saranac Lake
    • The Museum
    • Trudeau Building
    • PRESS Room
    • History Matters Blog
  • Research
    • Collections
    • Oral History Project
    • Local Wiki
    • Resources
    • HISTORY MATTERS Blog
  • Projects
    • Trudeau Building
    • Architectural Preservation
    • Collections
    • The Bartók Cabin
    • Oral History Project
    • Cure Porch on Wheels
    • School Outreach
    • Art of the Cure
  • Store
  • Support Us
  • Contact