A Private Tour of The Dittrick Museum

Hanging out with the skeleton in the doctor's office, circa 1900, at the Dittrick. — Hanging out with the skeleton in the early 1900’s doctor’s office at the Dittrick.

In December, I embarked on a two and a half hour road trip from Pittsburgh to Cleveland with my friend Marilyn. Our destination was the Dittrick Medical History Center at Case Western University. We were met there by co-curators Catherine Osborn and Brandy Schillace. Catherine was kind enough to give us a private tour of the museum.

The two major collections we viewed were the childbirth collection, Re-conceiving Birth: Our Shared Entrance to the World Stage and the contraception collection, Percy Skuy Collection on the History of Contraception.

1950's Diaphragm fitting rings. The box is Bakelite, the rings are rubber. Top photo is part of the collection at The Dittrick. Bottom photo is in my personal collection. — 1950’s Diaphragm fitting rings. The box is Bakelite, the rings are rubber. Top photo is part of the collection at The Dittrick. Bottom photo is in my personal collection.

I could have spent days there. The depth and breadth of the collection is inspiring. I will make a return trip once the weather is a bit warmer.

Do you want the rest of the details? I wrote a piece for Science & Sensibility, Lamaze’s professional blog, regarding my trip to The Dittrick. Read on!

Visiting The Dittrick Museum: A Fascinating Peek into the History of Childbirth & Contraception