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Attics, Almshouses, and Asylums-Care for People with Mental Illnesses
In colonial America, mental illness was believed to be caused by demonic possession, witchcraft, or sinful behavior, and was considered something to be punished. The mentally ill were chained in attics, almshouses, and jails, or roamed the streets and survived as best they could. Living conditions were appalling, and medical care non-existent. [continue here]
Grave markers and tombstones from Toledo State Hospital, ca. 1900. On loan from the Wood County Historical Society.
Top shelf: Photographs, maps, and postcards of the Lucas County Infirmary and Northwestern Hospital for the Insane (1875), photos of facility and residents at Wood County Infirmary (1910); photos of poems by Wood County Infirmary residents; and a survey of prisons titled Remarks on Prison Discipline (published 1845). View selected exhibits on this shelf...
Middle shelf: An 1867 Act authorizing the creation of the Board of State Charities, two books by Elizabeth P. W. Packard (The Prisoner's Hidden Life, 1871)., and an infirmary register of admissions (on loan from the Center for Archival Collections at Bowling Green State University). View selected exhibits on this shelf...
Bottom shelf: Employee records (1913-36) at the Lucas County Infirmary; photos of Wood County Infirmary residents; postcard, scrapbook, and employee service award pamphlet from the Lucas County/Maumee Valley Hospital (1945-53). View selected exhibits on this shelf...
Referenced Canaday Center collections:
- University of Toledo, Health Science Campus Archives