The Crawford Long Museum was suggested by a dear friend of mine from church. It's located in the historic town of Jefferson, Georgia and is named after the man who is credited with the discovery of anesthesia. I live only 15 minutes from this museum, and I was surprised to find a 'celebrity' so close to home!
So before I go into my museum experience, let's talk about the man behind it all.
Crawford Williamson Long was born on November 1st, 1815 in Danielsville, Georgia. He was born into a wealthy family, and his father was a merchant and planter. He was obviously very smart, because by the time he was 14 he had already exhausted all the resources he could find in the local academy. He then applied to the University of Georgia and received an A.M degree, or a Masters in Science, in 1835.
After he received his Masters he began his medical training at Transylvania College in Lexington, Kentucky. He had many opportunities to participate in several surgeries, but as you can imagine, there was no sedation to any of the patients and they experienced horrible pain during the procedure. Doctors tried to help by giving the patients alcohol or even hypnotism, but these methods only resulted in affecting the mental states of the patients and hardly did anything for the pain. After one year at Transylvania College, Long transferred to The University of Pennsylvania and received his medical degree in 1839. After an internship in New York, he returned to Georgia and took over a medical practice in Jefferson, which is now where the museum resides.
So I'm sure all of you have heard of nitrous oxide or 'laughing gas' right? Well did you know that people actually used to have laughing gas parties? Yep. They would also use sulfuric ether and have 'ether frolics.' Just picture in your mind people inhaling nitrous oxide or sulfuric ether, falling and bumping into things without feeling any pain, and basically making fools of themselves (These must have been the frat parties of the age!) This is what Crawford Long witnessed many times while he was at school, and even participated in at times.
Long began to use and experiment with ether in his medical practice, and he performed his first surgical procedure using ether on March 30, 1842. A young man named James Venable had a neck tumor, and insisted that Long take it out. Venable agreed to the experiment and, from the account of three witnesses, the surgery was successful, and Venable felt no pain throughout the procedure.
Now although Long did use ether in many other procedures, he did not publish his findings. This later became a problem in what is now known as the Ether Controversy. Who was the first one to discover surgical anesthesia? There were a few doctors who came forward making the claim that they were the first ones, with motives of fame and fortune. But Long only wanted the recognition from his peers, and to alleviate pain from his patients. Long eventually did publish his findings, with written letters from patients and witnesses, but he would never receive full recognition in his lifetime.
Long later on married, had 12 children and served as a surgeon during the Civil War, helping on both sides. He died on June 16, 1878, but on June 18, 1879 he finally received the recognition that he deserved; he was declared the discoverer of anesthesia.
The Crawford Long Museum is the site where Crawford Long first discovered this medical miracle. As my brother and I went through the museum, we were very impressed with how it was structured and with the number of artifacts it had. The first half is the medical museum, where you can find tools that were used in the early days before anesthesia, and tools that were used after the discovery. There is furniture and paintings from his home, as well as a what a hospital room may have looked like back in the 1800's.
Towards the end of the museum, you will have find a general store. And this one is very impressive! As I walked through I felt like I was back in the 19th century, and I have to say that this was my favorite part of the tour.
I hope that you put this museum on your list of must-see experiences!!
********************************
After an awesome time and an amazing museum experience, my brother and I were pretty hungry.
Enter The Savory Spoon!
Now I have to say, after reading some of the reviews on TripAdvisor and Yelp, I was very excited about this restaurant, and The Savory Spoon did not disappoint!
Their chefs use produce that comes in from the local farms, and because of this the prices are a little more expensive than your average local fare. However, it is worth it. Now their menu actually changes by the month, depending on what is in season. The menu includes delicious seafood, burgers, sandwiches, soups and amazing desserts. And this is not your ordinary chicken sandwich or same-old burger; they have very unique and interesting combinations...but you'll have to look at the menu and see for yourself (see what I did there ;))
After looking at the menu, I chose the Shrimp and Grits and my brother chose what is called The Fancy Burger. My Shrimp and Grits had amazing flavor to it, as it was drenched in a Cajun butter sauce (YUM!!), and the grits were cooked very well, as well as the huge shrimp!
The Fancy Burger, if it's still on the menu the next time I go, will be what I get. It is amazing! The burger is ground chuck, which was cooked to perfection, with two thick strips of bacon and a fried egg on top. Now of course this burger comes with cheese, but this cheese...is like no other cheese I've tasted. It's called Red Dragon Mustard Seed Cheddar and it is decadent, and it made that burger. I had to stop myself from just stealing this burger from my brother...it was that good, and probably the best burger I've ever had, and I don't say that lightly!
And of course, we had to have dessert...which again was amazing. Man...I need to use different adjectives. Anyway I decided to try the Peanut Butter and Nutella bars. That's right my friends. Two amazing substances put into bar form. And it was delicious!! I was sadly disappointed when it was gone. My brother got Red Velvet Cake that was put into a mason jar, and it was great too, but I'm now partial to the bars.
Now...the restaurant is literally behind a gas station, and I actually passed it on my way towards it, but don't let the location fool you. It's an awesome local restaurant with delicious grub! What more could you ask for??
*******************************
I hope you have enjoyed this second history lesson as much as I have.
On to the next!
References:
Madden, M. L.. "Crawford Long (1815-1878)." New Georgia Encyclopedia. 05 August 2015. Web. 10 March 2016.
http://www.crawfordlong.org/
The Crawford Long Museum
28 College Street
Jefferson, Ga 30549
The Savory Spoon
705 Sycamore Street
Jefferson, Ga 30549
So before I go into my museum experience, let's talk about the man behind it all.
Crawford Williamson Long was born on November 1st, 1815 in Danielsville, Georgia. He was born into a wealthy family, and his father was a merchant and planter. He was obviously very smart, because by the time he was 14 he had already exhausted all the resources he could find in the local academy. He then applied to the University of Georgia and received an A.M degree, or a Masters in Science, in 1835.After he received his Masters he began his medical training at Transylvania College in Lexington, Kentucky. He had many opportunities to participate in several surgeries, but as you can imagine, there was no sedation to any of the patients and they experienced horrible pain during the procedure. Doctors tried to help by giving the patients alcohol or even hypnotism, but these methods only resulted in affecting the mental states of the patients and hardly did anything for the pain. After one year at Transylvania College, Long transferred to The University of Pennsylvania and received his medical degree in 1839. After an internship in New York, he returned to Georgia and took over a medical practice in Jefferson, which is now where the museum resides.
So I'm sure all of you have heard of nitrous oxide or 'laughing gas' right? Well did you know that people actually used to have laughing gas parties? Yep. They would also use sulfuric ether and have 'ether frolics.' Just picture in your mind people inhaling nitrous oxide or sulfuric ether, falling and bumping into things without feeling any pain, and basically making fools of themselves (These must have been the frat parties of the age!) This is what Crawford Long witnessed many times while he was at school, and even participated in at times.
Long began to use and experiment with ether in his medical practice, and he performed his first surgical procedure using ether on March 30, 1842. A young man named James Venable had a neck tumor, and insisted that Long take it out. Venable agreed to the experiment and, from the account of three witnesses, the surgery was successful, and Venable felt no pain throughout the procedure.Now although Long did use ether in many other procedures, he did not publish his findings. This later became a problem in what is now known as the Ether Controversy. Who was the first one to discover surgical anesthesia? There were a few doctors who came forward making the claim that they were the first ones, with motives of fame and fortune. But Long only wanted the recognition from his peers, and to alleviate pain from his patients. Long eventually did publish his findings, with written letters from patients and witnesses, but he would never receive full recognition in his lifetime.
Long later on married, had 12 children and served as a surgeon during the Civil War, helping on both sides. He died on June 16, 1878, but on June 18, 1879 he finally received the recognition that he deserved; he was declared the discoverer of anesthesia.
The Crawford Long Museum is the site where Crawford Long first discovered this medical miracle. As my brother and I went through the museum, we were very impressed with how it was structured and with the number of artifacts it had. The first half is the medical museum, where you can find tools that were used in the early days before anesthesia, and tools that were used after the discovery. There is furniture and paintings from his home, as well as a what a hospital room may have looked like back in the 1800's.Towards the end of the museum, you will have find a general store. And this one is very impressive! As I walked through I felt like I was back in the 19th century, and I have to say that this was my favorite part of the tour.
I hope that you put this museum on your list of must-see experiences!!
********************************
After an awesome time and an amazing museum experience, my brother and I were pretty hungry.
Enter The Savory Spoon!
Now I have to say, after reading some of the reviews on TripAdvisor and Yelp, I was very excited about this restaurant, and The Savory Spoon did not disappoint!
Their chefs use produce that comes in from the local farms, and because of this the prices are a little more expensive than your average local fare. However, it is worth it. Now their menu actually changes by the month, depending on what is in season. The menu includes delicious seafood, burgers, sandwiches, soups and amazing desserts. And this is not your ordinary chicken sandwich or same-old burger; they have very unique and interesting combinations...but you'll have to look at the menu and see for yourself (see what I did there ;))
After looking at the menu, I chose the Shrimp and Grits and my brother chose what is called The Fancy Burger. My Shrimp and Grits had amazing flavor to it, as it was drenched in a Cajun butter sauce (YUM!!), and the grits were cooked very well, as well as the huge shrimp!The Fancy Burger, if it's still on the menu the next time I go, will be what I get. It is amazing! The burger is ground chuck, which was cooked to perfection, with two thick strips of bacon and a fried egg on top. Now of course this burger comes with cheese, but this cheese...is like no other cheese I've tasted. It's called Red Dragon Mustard Seed Cheddar and it is decadent, and it made that burger. I had to stop myself from just stealing this burger from my brother...it was that good, and probably the best burger I've ever had, and I don't say that lightly!
And of course, we had to have dessert...which again was amazing. Man...I need to use different adjectives. Anyway I decided to try the Peanut Butter and Nutella bars. That's right my friends. Two amazing substances put into bar form. And it was delicious!! I was sadly disappointed when it was gone. My brother got Red Velvet Cake that was put into a mason jar, and it was great too, but I'm now partial to the bars.Now...the restaurant is literally behind a gas station, and I actually passed it on my way towards it, but don't let the location fool you. It's an awesome local restaurant with delicious grub! What more could you ask for??
*******************************
I hope you have enjoyed this second history lesson as much as I have.
 |
| This may become a trend :) |
 |
| Just me and Crawford |
On to the next!
References:
Madden, M. L.. "Crawford Long (1815-1878)." New Georgia Encyclopedia. 05 August 2015. Web. 10 March 2016.
http://www.crawfordlong.org/
The Crawford Long Museum
28 College Street
Jefferson, Ga 30549
The Savory Spoon
705 Sycamore Street
Jefferson, Ga 30549
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