THE PLUM ISLAND 

 ANIMAL DISEASE CENTER 



Research on Foreign Diseases of Animals 



The Plum Island Animal Disease Center is the 

 only research facility in the United States 

 devoted to the study of contagious foreign 

 diseases of animals. It is located on an island east 

 of Long Island, N.Y., and is operated by the 

 Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department 

 of Agriculture. 1 



The Department is responsible for - 



• Developing capability of diagnosis of 

 animal diseases that do not exist in the United 

 States. 



• Conducting basic and applied research on 

 foreign animal diseases and their causative organ- 

 isms. 



• Developing adequate procedures so that 

 foreign, domesticated, and wild animals, and 

 semen, meat, and other animal products may be 

 imported safely. 



The Center conducts fundamental research to 

 develop the necessary knowledge that enables 

 the Department to carry out these responsibili- 

 ties. The main objective is to prevent the 

 introduction of diseases that could result in high 

 death tolls or serious economic losses in our 

 susceptible livestock population. 



LOCATION AND HISTORY 



Plum Island is located 110 miles from New 

 York City, about 10 miles from Connecticut, 

 and about 1-1/4 miles off the northeastern end 

 of Long Island, N.Y. The island contains about 

 800 acres and is about 3 miles long and a mile 

 wide in the western, or widest part. It is reached 

 by boats operated by the Center from Orient 



Point, Long Island, where the Center has a 

 harbor, an office building, and storage facilities 

 for incoming supplies. 



Plum Island was named by early explorers 

 who observed beach plums growing along the 

 shores. In 1659 the ruling Indian chief of Long 

 Island sold Plum Island to the first European 

 owner, Samuel Wyllis, for "a coat, a barrel of 

 biscuits, and 100 muxes 2 or fishhooks." 



The U.S. Government bought the island in the 

 1890's and established Fort Terry, a coast 

 artillery post. The island was assigned to the 

 Army Chemical Corps after World War II. On 

 July 1, 1954, all of Plum Island, except for a 

 U.S. Coast Guard lighthouse, was formally trans- 

 ferred to the U.S. Department of Agriculture for 

 the establishment of a Center for the study of 

 exotic diseases of domestic animals. 



Preliminary studies were started in 1954. 

 When additional laboratory facilities became 

 available in 1956 the Center's research was 

 expanded into a broad program covering many 

 foreign animal diseases. 



THE CENTER'S MISSION 



The mission of the Center is to perform the 

 following basic and applied research and service 

 work on the various contagious foreign diseases 

 of animals, with primary emphasis on foot-and- 

 mouth disease. 



Research 



• Basic research on viral structure, patho- 

 genesis of the disease, antigen-antibody 



1 Mailing address: P.O. Box 848, Greenport, Long 

 Island, N.Y. 11944. 



2 Muxes are small drills the Indians used to make holes 

 in wampum. 



