Medical Plastics

The skull represents Medical Plastics, Inc. which is now Laerdal. In 1949, two brothers just home from World War II, Dr. Elworth Lowrey and Dr. Wendell Lowrey along with dentist Dr. Tom Williams created a business that revolutionized medicine by developing a process to create replicas of bones, skeletons and anatomical structures. Their work quickly became world renowned and gave a much needed boost to the Gatesville economy. The ability to manufacture these products greatly enhanced the ability of hospitals and universities to train future nurses, medical students, and dentists. Theirs is the stuff of medical legend and is well documented in a book available in the museum by Mike Barr called The Wizards of Os (Os being latin for bone).