Search

Start Over Subject Mental health--History--19th century

Main content

Eastern State Penitentiary of Pennsylvania medical log books, 1840-1868 (inclusive)

Extent:
3 volume
Abstract:
Opened in 1829, Eastern State Penitentiary introduced a revolutionary system of incarceration, dubbed the Pennsylvania System, in which solitary confinement served as a form of rehabilitation. This collection consists of three volumes of patient information kept at the infirmary of the Eastern State Penitentiary from 1840 to 1868. The volumes present monthly summaries of cases, and provide some remarks based on post mortem examinations.

Held at: University of Delaware Library Special Collections [Contact Us]

Main content

Alfred I. Paxson family history, diary, and reflections, 1888-1894 (inclusive)

Extent:
1 volume (193 pages)
Abstract:
The Alfred I. Paxson family history, diary, and reflections consists of approximately 116 pages of handwritten commentary and reflection relating to the life of Delaware Quaker and farmer Alfred I. Paxson. The first eighty-seven pages of the volume consist of Paxson's autobiography and, later, diary entries. The final twenty-nine pages of the volume, spanning from pages 100 through 129 of the numbered journal, contain several of Paxson's "Reflections and Meditations" on topics such as death, religion, nature, the uncertainty of life, the usefulness of industry, bad and good, war, the seasons, the "wonderfulness of our maker," female tight-lacing, and the "going down" of the Friend Meeting in Stanton, Delaware.

Held at: University of Delaware Library Special Collections [Contact Us]