Dorothea Lynde Dix, Activist
Title
Dorothea Lynde Dix, Activist
Description
Dorothea Lynde Dix (1802 – 1887) was an American activist on behalf of the indigent insane who, through a vigorous program of lobbying state legislatures and the United States Congress, created the first generation of American mental asylums. The reputation as a famous nurse was earned by her fearless fight for the right of the mentally ill in front of Massachusetts legislators and of the United States Congress. Dix found herself in this battle due to her passion for teaching. She saw with her own eyes the dismal conditions of the mentally disabled people when she entered the East Cambridge Jail to teach Sunday class for women inmates on March 1842. Dix immediately brought the matter to courts, wherein she won many battles using careful and extensive data of extreme conditions in jails and almshouses, getting these poor individuals improved states.
Creator
Library of Congress
Date
None
Source
http://cdn.loc.gov/service/pnp/cph/3a10000/3a12000/3a12200/3a12244r.jpg
Relation
For further exploration please visit http://bit.ly/QWh3iU
Link: Library of Congress http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/cph.3a12244
Link: Library of Congress http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/cph.3a12244
Rights
Portrait of Dorothea Lynde Dix, head and shoulders, facing left.
Source: Dorothea Dix. (2012, October 9). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved October 12, 2012, from http://bit.ly/RTNK09
Source: Dorothea Dix. (2012, October 9). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved October 12, 2012, from http://bit.ly/RTNK09
Publisher
Library of Congress
Contributor
Library of Congress
Format
Medium: Photograph
Language
English
Type
Figures
Identifier
Dorothea Lynde Dix, Activist, Women, Mental Health, Nursing
Coverage
Historic
Files
Collection
Reference
Library of Congress, Dorothea Lynde Dix, Activist, Library of Congress, None
Cite As
Library of Congress, “Dorothea Lynde Dix, Activist,” Virtual Museum of Public Service, accessed December 11, 2023, https://vmps.omeka.net/items/show/283.