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Sometimes the best visits you make during a vacation are those unique, hidden attractions that aren't on the big maps. It's a special little cafe, a unique overlook or a remarkable museum that is full of extraordinary displays. Such was my experience when I visited the Indiana Medical History Museum off US 40, the National Highway just outside downtown Indianapolis. There I met Mary Ellen Hennessey Nottage, the passionate curator of medical history in Indiana. We conducted the interview as we strolled through what had been the pathology lab for the state's main mental health hospital for more than a century. This interview was not only a remarkable because of the historical artifacts and history of the institution but also because it traced the early efforts to hunt down a cruel disabler and often killer, mental illness. In Part 2 of our interview you will find out how death provided both a valuable resource in medical study and a compassionate benefit to the deceased's family.

By the way, we didn't even go into the paranormal studies that have been done throughout the years on the grounds of this once massive complex. It is said that the ghosts of some of the mentally ill who died here roam the grounds. Explore that at your own risk. I will be hiding behind the couch; tell me what you find. ;-D

For more information about the Indiana Medical History Museum visit this site. You'll find the hours of operation and how to arrange tours for schools and other interested groups.