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October 26, 2011
Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine to Host the
NLM Traveling Exhibit “The Henkel Physicians:
A Family’s Life in Letters”
“The Henkel Physicians: A Family’s Life in Letters” National Library of Medicine traveling exhibit is now on display at Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine (VCOM). The exhibit features letters that document the daily life of doctors in 19th century Virginia. Covering more than a century of life in the Shenandoah Valley, this exhibition features a selection of writings that describe local events, professional jealousies, the national crisis of the Civil War and the dramatic testimony of the Henkel physicians in a murder trial.
VCOM Library and the International & Appalachian Outreach Department are pleased to sponsor an event that expands upon the themes of the exhibit. An upcoming program is planned for Saturday, November 19, 2011 from 6:00 to 10:00 PM in Classroom 2 at VCOM and will include visiting speakers Elsie Renalds Newcomer, Janet Renalds Ramsey and Stephen Renalds, descendants of the Henkel physicians and authors of 1861-Life in the Shenandoah Valley; Rod Graves from the Luray Valley Museum who will share with us medical artifacts from the Shenandoah Valley and Henkel family documents;Ellen Brown, related to the Black family for whom Blacksburg is named, who will discuss Dr. Harvey Black; and Dr. Damian Sooklal who established the Abingdon Medical Museum. The Henkel descendants’ talk is titled: The Henkel Family of the Shenandoah Valley. Copies of the sisters’ book will be available for purchase in the lobby.
Ellen Brown’s presentation is: From Field Hospitals to Lunatic Asylums: the Varied Medical Careers of Harvey Black and John Apperson.
“The Henkel Physicians: A Family’s Life in Letters” exhibit was developed and produced by the National Library of Medicine (NLM), National Institutes of Health (NIH) and curated by Jim Labosier. It will be on display outside the VCOM Library on the 2nd Floor at 2265 Kraft Dr., Blacksburg, until December 17, 2011.
For more information, please contact Elaine Powers, VCOM Library Director, at (540) 231-3763, epowers@vcom.vt.edu or Jessica Muller, Appalachian Outreach, at (540) 231-4112, jmuller@vcom.vt.edu.