Anna Nery Museum

Anna Nery Museum in Cachoeira occupies a preserved colonial townhouse and keeps alive the story of Anna Nery (Ana Justina Ferreira Nery, 1814–80), long regarded as a founder figure of Brazilian nursing. When the Paraguayan War (1864–70) sent her sons to the front, she volunteered to care for the wounded and returned home with orphaned children—an act remembered as private courage becoming public duty. In a town shaped by empire and slavery, the museum links everyday streetscape to the rise of modern humanitarian care in Brazil.