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Born
On April 4, 1802, Dorothea Lynde Dix was born in Maine. She was the oldest out of her siblings and her father was often away from home. -
Young Child
At a young age, Dorothea was taught to read and write by her father, Joseph DIx. He was a methodist preacher and suffered depression. Joseph often was not home a lot and Dorothea, being the eldest child in the family took care of the household. -
Dorothea Moves
Dix at age fourteen, she lived with her grandmother in Boston, Massachusetts. Then, she lived with her aunt who lived in Massachusetts as well. Her wealthy grandmother helped her to get a teaching job. -
Teaching Career
Dix began teaching children at an all girls school. She was gernerous and let poor students attend the school for free. From her knowledge of reading, she began to write her own textbooks. -
Illness
Dix still continued to teach children and write books. She opened many schools in Massachussetts. Unfortunately, she found out she was mentally ill, which caused her to take breaks from teaching often. She eventually had to close down her school. -
Teaching Prisoners
Dorothea had started helping people in need after she came back from England. She focused on helping the insane. She started going to an all woman's jail with poor conditions. She went to court and demanded the prisoners to be provided with heat. -
The Civil War
Dorothea began helping soldiers shortly after the war had begun. It was hard work and required a lot of focus. She had to place bandages and use tools to help the soldiers. -
Dorothea's Job During the War
Dorothea was head of the female nurses during the Civil War. She was named the "superintendent of nurses" She was responsible for organizing supplies, recuiting nurses, etc. -
Dorothea had Enough
Dorothea was very intimidating and disliked by many of her officials and nurses. After two years of hardwork at helping the soldiers, she decided to return home. -
After the War
Dorothea continued to be a social reformer. Dix didn't enjoy how hard helping in the war was. She wrote books about the treatment of the mentally ill. She traveled throughout Europe in her later life. -
Dix Ideas Inspired People
People were inspired by Dorothea. Many people used her ideas to rebuild new hospitals. In addition, the old hospitals were redesigned. -
Death
Dorothea died on July 17, 1887 in Trenton, New Jersey. She lived to be 85 years old. She was burried in Massachusetts.