Dorothea Dix April 4, 1802- July 18, 1887

Wanted to keep children, criminally insane, and violent offenders apart from each other

Family Joseph Dix- itinerant worker as Methodist Preacher Abusive/neglectful Alcoholic Mary Bigelow- unable to perform motherly duties Mental retardation Mental illness? Abusive/ neglectful Oldest of three Two younger brothers Born in1802 in Hampden, Maine Father's family didn't take well to mother due to her mental handicap Was more of a mother than a sister to her two younger brothers 

Childhood “Broken Family” Ill-cared for Took on motherly role Poor health Learned to read and write from her father Love for learning but wasn’t able to attend much school Doesn’t speak of childhood “I never knew childhood.” A lot of upper respiratory issues and depression Girls weren't allowed to attend public school As an adult it was reported she told people she was an orphan

Off To Grandmother’s House We Go Couldn’t take home life anymore Either moved out, ran away, or kicked out by parents Moved in with Grandma Dix in 1814 at 12 years old Brothers left behind with parents Grandmother wanted her to learn how to become a proper wife and mother Grandmother wanted Dorothea to learn how to be a good wife and mother and sent her to live with her aunt

Teaching Career In 1816, started teaching elementary at age 14…thanks to Edward Bangs In 1819, founded Dix Mansion Created a charity school In 1824, published Conversations on Common Things or Guide to Knowledge: With Questions In 1831, opened a secondary school in her own home 1836 was peak of poor health ~ 1837 Grandmother died In 1841, started teaching at East Cambridge Jail…start of her pioneering journey to mental illness treatment reform Edward Bangs was Dorthea’s second cousin. He encouraged and supported her teaching career. They were engaged for a brief period. She traveled to Europe as prescribed by her physician for treatment of poor health. Copied Moral Philosophy from French psychiatrist Phillipe Pinel Her grandmother left an inheritance after she died which funded Dorthea’s reform movement.

-Beatings, moldy straw, no heat, starvation, dark, screaming or clotpeople/people talking to themselves, covered in feces and urine, chained to walls, tortured with devices, skeletal looking, water thrown at them, no blankets hing, Sunday freakshow -Women were protected from acts and images of suffering and degredation. The HORROR

Politics Involvement https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1470564/ 1843- submitted first memorial to state legislature 1848- Congress (both houses) approves 12 Million Acres bill! 1854- President Franklin Pierce vetoes bill http://www.npr.org/programs/disability/ba_shows.dir/work.dir/highlights/subject/ph00 04aa.html Headed to Europe after discouragement Met Pope Pius IX Women were not allowed in politics; Joseph S. Dodd read Dorthea’s letter to the legislator but was friends with President Milliard Fillmore Met other quaker social reformers (Elizabeth Fry, Samuel Tuke, and William Rathbone) in Europe which believed government should play active role in social welfare Pope Pius loved Dorthea’s ideas and Europe adopted them…along with Japan

“Dragon Dix” Volunteered in 1861- one week after Civil War broke out First woman to serve such a high capacity, federal role Important administrative role Intimidating to men and women; clashed with both -Impressed Simon Cameron (Secretary of War) -No nursing experience…became appointed to Superintendent of Women Army Nurses -Didn’t take orders -Got supplies through private agencies after government stopped sending supplies -Recruited over 2000 nurses; nurses had to be between 35 and 60 with a plain face to avoid attracting and distracting men -Was stripped of authority in the fall of 1863 -Convinced superiors that women were just as good as men in nursing roles (prior to Civil War only men could perform nursing role)

Advocacy Investigating No More War; Now What? Advocacy Investigating Continued advocacy Established 32 hospitals in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky, Missouri, Tennessee, Mississippi, Louisiana, North Carolina, and Maryland Number of hospitals for the insane rose from 13 to 123 under Dix’s guidance For hospitals she fostered reorganization, enlargement, and restaffing with well trained and intelligent professionals to already existing hospitals Also helped find hospitals in Canada, England, Scotland, France, Austria, Italy, Greece, Turkey, Russia, Sweden, Denmark, Holland, Belgium, Germany, and Japan Traveled over 30,000 miles Preferred not to place her name on publications or have hospitals named after her

End Of Life 1881- New Jersey State Hospital Private suite provided by state legislature -Died on July 17, 1887 in Trenton, NJ at the first hospital she initiated -Buried in Mount Auburn Cemetary in Cambridge, Massachusettes

- Dix was elected "President for Life" of the Army Nurses Association (a social club for Civil War Volunteer Nurses), but she had little to do with the organization. She opposed its efforts to get military pensions for its members.[18] - In December 1866 she was awarded two national flags for her service during the Civil War. This award was awarded for "the Care, Succor, and Relief of the Sick and wounded Soldiers of the United States on the Battle-Field, in Camps and Hospitals during the recent War."[22] -In 1983[23] the United States Postal Service honored her life of charity and service by issuing a 1¢ Dorothea Dix Great Americans series postage stamp. -A United States Navy transport ship serving in World War II was named for Dix, the USS Dorothea L. Dix. -The Bangor Mental Health Institute was renamed in August 2006 to the Dorothea Dix Psychiatric Center.[24] -In Canada, an educational boat in Nova Scotia has been named Dorothea in her honor by the Nova Scotia Sea School, inspired by her support of the Sable Island lifesaving station.[25] -A crater on Venus was named Dix in her honor.[26] -She is remembered on the Boston Women's Heritage Trail.[27] -Numerous locations are commemorated to Dix, including the Dix Ward in McLean Asylum at Somerville, Dixmont Hospital in Pennsylvania, and the Dorothea L. Dix House.[17]

Discussion Questions Wisconsin’s jail/prison system is the largest housing unit for mentally ill in WI. How would Dorothea react to this? What steps would she take? Mendota is the only mental health facility in WI for the criminally insane. There is currently 272 beds. Last year, there were 762 admissions. What would Dorothea do about this situation? Do you think this a problem/ what do you suggest for reform? Children, criminally insane, and violent offenders are still housed together in WI’s prison systems. Children as young as 10 can be tried as adults in WI. How would Dorothea react? Is this appropriate given a child’s brain development? Most of WI’s mentally ill are treated in solitary confinement/ segregation. They are stripped naked in a padded room. There is nothing but bright lights and no human interaction or mental health treatment. How does this affect mental health? What are other options?