Connecting health and the museum: An exhibition initiative by the National Health Council at the Smithsonian Institution's United States National Museum, 1922–1924

Abstract

ABSTRACTConnecting health with the museum was an idea that emerged gradually in the early twentieth century, especially following World War I. In 1922, the recently founded National Health Council proposed an innovative initiative for a permanent exhibition to present a more complete picture of public health work by both government and private organisations for replication in museums nationwide. The NHC proceeded to solicit and coordinate exhibit productions and seek financial support for its implementation. This exhibition initiative was eventually brought to the Smithsonian Institution's United States National Museum which offered a permanent space for its use and opportunity for a collaborative exhibition. Understanding the interactions of health professionals and museum administrators in their efforts to communicate information on the public's health through the exhibition format is both historically important as well as currently relevant given the on-going lack of representation of this subject in museums today.