-
Dorothea Dix was born on April 4, 1802. She was born in Hampden, Maine to Joseph and Mary Bigelow.
-
When she was 12 she ran away to her grandparent's house. She was running from an alchoholic family and an abusive father.
-
In 1821 Dorothea opened her first school in Boston. Soon after that she started to teach poor children at home.
-
In 1824 Dorothea made her book "Conversations on Common Things".
-
In 1824 her health broke down causing the writing of her first book. In 1836 her health failed again and she traveled to England, seeking a cure.
-
While Dorothea was in England, she stayed wiith the Rathboe Family. There she met people who believed that government should play a direct, active role in social welfare. She was also exposed to the British lunacy reform movement. they were people who condusted thourough investigations of madhouses and asylums.
-
Once she returned to America she conducted a statewide investigation of how her home state, Massaschusettes, cared for the insane poor.
-
When the North Carolina State Medical Society was formed ,
-
In 1856 a hospital named in honor of her opened.
-
During the Civil War, Dix was appointed Superintendent of Army Nurses by the Union Army, beating out Dr. Elizabeth Blackwell.
-
After the war she resumed her crusade to improve the treatment of disbled people.
-
Dorothea Dix died on July 17, 1887. She lived to be 85 years old. Later on she was buried in Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge, Maddachusettes.
Want to make a timeline like this?
Use Timetoast to turn dates, events, milestones, and phases into a clear visual timeline you can build and share. Timetoast is a timeline maker for work, school, research, and stories.