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Part of the NH Heritage Trail, which stretches from Portsmouth to Plymouth and several points north and west, the Millyard Museum recently opened a new exhibit entitled, “Doctor’s Orders: Public Health in Manchester.”

Open through June 24, the exhibit tells the story of Manchester’s longstanding commitment to the health and well-being of its citizens. “From the earliest days of the Amoskeag Manufacturing Company, this community was remarkably progressive in its efforts to foster a culture of health,” said John Clayton, executive director of the Manchester Historic Association.

Clayton said the exhibit is not just a celebration of the Queen City’s past either, but rather helps to also shed light on its current response to the opiate epidemic.

“Just as the community rises today to meet the challenge of the opiate epidemic, health care professionals have grappled with smallpox, the Spanish flu, cholera and a host of other scourges in the past,” he said. “It’s fascinating to follow the timeline.”

For NH Heritage Trail President and Executive Director of the Wright Museum of WWII in Wolfeboro, Michael Culver, the exhibit at the Millyard Museum helps to highlight a broader narrative.

“The past is not just something that exists without connection to today,” he said. “it directly correlates with much of what we experience, see and feel as Americans in the 21st century…We are all excited about this exhibit and its potential to tap into people with a wide variety of different interests.”

The 17 museums on The Trail include the Aviation Museum, Albacore Park, American Independence Museum, Canterbury Shaker Village Castle in the Clouds, Lake Winnipesaukee Museum, Libby Museum, Millyard Museum, Museum of the White Mountains, New Hampshire Boat Museum, NH Historical Society, New Hampshire Farm Museum, Portsmouth Historical Society @ Discover Portsmouth, Remick Country Doctor Museum and Farm, The Belknap Mill, Woodman Museum, and Wright Museum of WWII.

To learn more about the Millyard Museum, visit www.manchesterhistoric.org/millyard-museum.