Dorothea Dix Research Paper

Dorothea Lynde Dix Born on April the fourth, 1802 in Hampden, Main, Dorothea Lynde Dix was born into a household with a depressed mother, a father who was never around, and two brothers (history.com). Her lifetime obsession with books came from her father teaching her reading and writing as a kid (history.com). Dorothea’s education furthered when her grandmother took her in at the age of 12 in Boston (history.com). Dorothea began writing books that sold swiftly when her health kept her from a steady career in teaching (history.com). In 1836 she sadly closed down her latest school forever (history.com). When Dorothea was 14, she started a free school for girls that were poor called Dix Mansion (biography.com). Dorothea’s capacity for …show more content…
“...prisoners flogged, starved, chained, physically and sexually abused by their keepers, and left naked and without heat or sanitation...” (history.com). Dorothea also went to East Cambridge Jail and asked to see the insane prisoners (healthresearchfunding.org). There, she found an insane woman chained to the wall (healthresearchfunding.org). When she asked why the prisoner didn't have a fire, the guard responded with “These people don't need a fire. It wouldn’t be safe for them. They’d burn themselves up.” (healthresearchfunding.org). Dorothea did not believe mental illness should be a crime, and she didn't believe that it wasn't un-curable (science20). Because of this, she showed the ghastly reports of the inmates' lives, which sickened her spectators in Massachusetts and lead to funds being set aside for the state mental hospital in Worcester (history.com). Later Dorothea traveled to other states, including Europe and Canada to accomplish the same goal (history.com). After this, Dorothea tried to ask Congress to grant 12 million acres of land for the mentally ill, however in 1854 president Franklin Pierce vetoed the bill (biography.com). Dispirited by