[1940s and 1950s] Fernald School in Massachusetts
[back] Human Experiments

Fernald School-Young male children who were institutionalized at the Fernald School in Massachusetts were fed radioactive cereal in the 1940s and 1950s. The parents as well as the children were simply told they were being fed a diet rich in iron.  According to oral testimony given before the President's Advisory Committee on Human Radiation, they were told they belonged to the Science Club to make them feel special and then taken to the MIT Faculty Club where it was easier to control them.  One researcher said, "It would be nice to do something for them because these kids have been involved, we've had to jab them [with needles], and they had to eat a meal—every little drop of it, because you wanted to be sure they got 100 percent of the radioactivity—wouldn't it be nice to do something for them?"  [2003] Carol Rutz's Lecture at Indiana University