Profession
Museum observes anniversary of President Garfield's death
NEWS IN BRIEF — Posted Aug. 28, 2006
The National Museum of Health and Medicine in Washington, D.C., is hosting an exhibit through Sept. 19 that commemorates the 125th anniversary of President James A. Garfield's death. Garfield, the nation's 20th president, was shot on July 2, 1881, and died 80 days later on Sept. 19, 1881.
The centerpiece of the exhibit is the president's 12th thoracic and 1st and 2nd lumbar vertebrae. A red probe shows the path of the assassin's bullet. Also on display are reproductions of a drawing of Garfield's wound and deathbed, photos of two doctors who took charge of examining the injury, and a drawing by Alexander Graham Bell of his metal detector invention that was unsuccessful in locating the bullet in Garfield's body.
To mark the 80 days from when the president was shot to the day he died, the exhibit runs 80 days and ends 125 years to the day of his death.
Admission and parking are free to the museum, located at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, 6900 Georgia Ave. and Elder Street, NW. For information, call 202-782-2200 or visit the museum's Web site (link).
Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2006/08/28/prbf0828.htm.
