New museum exhibit traces history of substance abuse in Washtenaw County
An exhibit on the history of substance abuse in Washtenaw County opens today at the Museum on Main Street. It features everything from vintage items once found in local drug stores to Ann Arbor references like Hash Bash and John Sinclair.
photo by Lisa Carolin | for AnnArbor.com
The exhibit is called "Bad Habits: Drinks, Drags, and Drugs in Washtenaw County History," and it's a collaboration among the Unviersity of Michigan's College of Literature, Science, and the Arts, U-M's Substance Abuse Research Center and the Washtenaw County Historical Society Museum on Main Street.
"It is part of the LSA Research Theme Semester 'Hooked: Addiction, Society & Culture,'" said Maryann George, who works with LSA. "The biological, psychological, social, cultural, and spiritual components of substance use and abuse are ideal subjects for interdisciplinary examination."
U-M researchers in more than 20 departments are addressing issues including medical marijuana, prescription drug diversion and the search for medications to treat addictive disorders.
"Addiction is a brain disease," said John Traynor, organizer of the 2012 research theme semester, director of U-M's Substance Abuse Research Center, and professor of pharmacology. "More than any other disease, understanding addiction and developing methods to manage and prevent addictions require a multidisciplinary approach."
Memorable moments highlighted at the exhibit include a 1902 speech by temperance crusader Carrie Nation at the corner of State Street and North University Avenue standing on the back of a horse-drawn cab; a performance by John Lennon in support of jailed activist John Sinclair in 1971; and the opening and closing of the local Pfizer research facility.
Diane Mankowski, who has worked on the exhibit, is a board member and Exhibit Committee member at the Washtenaw County Historical Society.
"Professor Michelle McClellan, a fellow board member at WCHS, brought the exhibit to the Museum on Main Street because of her association with the U-M Substance Abuse Research Center," said Mankowski. "She thought it would be a great chance to involve the larger community in an LSA Theme Semester and attract a student population to the museum."
U-M Senior Mae Oyler, who helped with the exhibit, was at today's opening.
"I hope that it brings awareness to the community that drugs and alcohol are a big part of the campus community's history," she said.
The exhibit is open this weekend both Saturday and Sunday noon-4 p.m. and will open each weekend until Sunday, April 29. The museum is located at 500 N. Main St. For more information, see the website.
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