Today’s Deranged Yet Truly Morbid Fact!
The mental conditions attributed to those admitted to the Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum in Weston, West Virginia from its opening in 1864 until it was completed in 1881 bordered on the bizarre, to say the least. A great number of the original reasons for admission were due to sex related issues such as, Immoral Life, and Nymphomania. Of particular concern was sex with one’s self, or onanism. In the nineteenth century, masturbation, in all of its forms, was commonly thought to be a cause of insanity. There were patients admitted for Self Abuse, Excessive Sexual Abuse, Masturbation & Syphilis, and the especially odd combination of Tobacco and Masturbation. There were also those who had “Suppressed Masturbation” or engaged in “Deranged Masturbation.” All were outdone however by the truly dedicated inmate who performed an epic “Masturbation for 30 years.”
“Year 31 Booting!”
Between 1850 and 1880 the majority of medical literature advocated the use of surgery for curing “the curse” as it was then termed. The so called cures were brutal. Male abusers had their genitals cauterized and, in severe cases, were even castrated. The most common method to treat women was the use of caustic chemicals to sear the genitals, hot irons for cauterization of the clitoris, or its complete removal called a clitoridectomy. These procedures were done at the Asylum.
By the end of the century Doctors turned more towards physical restraint, such as having hands tied or locked in metal mittens. They used psychological terror as well. Adolescents were threatened with genital mutilation if caught masturbating.
Culled from: Lunatic: The Rise and Fall of an American Asylum
Post-Mortem Portrait Du Jour!
Postmortem photograph of unknown child with doll.
Mrs. H. Latourrette, Artist, 214 E Fifth St. Dayton, Ohio, ca. 1860-1880.
Albumen print on cardboard mount, carte de visite.
Culled from: Secure the Shadow: Death and Photography in America