Ebling Library is host to the thought provoking Life and Limb: The Toll of the Civil War. December 2oth through February 1, 2014.
Historiographically, the perspectives of surgeons, physicians, and nurses are richly documented in the history of Civil War medicine, which highlights the heroism and brutality of battlefield operations and the challenges of caring for the wounded during wartime. Yet the experiences of injured soldiers during the conflict and in the years afterwards are less well-known.
More than three million soldiers fought in the war from 1861-1865. More than half a million died, and almost as many were wounded but survived.
Hundreds of thousands were permanently disabled by battlefield injuries or surgery, which saved lives by sacrificing limbs. Life and Limb: The Toll of the Civil War explores the experiences of disabled Civil War veterans who served as a symbol of the fractured nation and a stark reminder of the costs of the conflict.
Life and Limb: The Toll of the Civil War is a traveling exhibit from the National Library of Medicine and the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland. Ebling will host the six free standing illustrated panels on our 2nd floor landing, just outside the Ebling Library, giving them easy access from UW Hospital, the VA Hospital, the Health Sciences Learning Center, School of Medicine & Public Health, School of Pharmacy and School of Nursing. They are viewable when the HSLC is open, essentially 7:45 am until after 11:00 pm most days.
After the first of the year, there will be a complementary installation of books and artifacts from Ebling’s Rare Books & Special Collections chronicling the medical treatment during the war in the 3rd floor Historical Reading Room. We will also provide a bibliography of primary material (from 1860-1870) and secondary (histories of the Civil War) that might be of interest to those visiting the Life & Limb exhibit. Contact Micaela Sullivan-Fowler msullivan@library.wisc.edu for more information on those accompanying projects.
For a little background on Life and Limb, here’s the link to NLM.
