Degree Type
Thesis
Date of Award
2010
Degree Name
Master of Arts
Department
History
First Advisor
Hamilton Cravens
Abstract
Excessive patient populations and limited financial resources shaped the treatment, facilities, opinion, and actions towards mental illness in Iowa. Shortly after Iowa entered the union, the state erected several charitable institutions. These facilities represented the ideologies of Iowans, professionals, and legislators toward the insane. The first, the Mt. Pleasant Insane Asylum received all the regions mentally ill. Immediately, the facility was overcrowded with increasing costs. These two factors shaped the treatment, management, and legislative actions inside and outside of the hospital. Iowa created the State Board of Control of State Institutions to oversee all institutions in an efficient manner. Within a few decades, the Board proved mismanaged, costly, and inefficient. Treatment within the hospital shifted from curing to warehousing the insane till their deaths. Iowa then began a long process of decentralization of mental care.
Copyright Owner
Bryan Riddle
Copyright Date
2010
Language
en
Date Available
2012-04-30
File Format
application/pdf
File Size
106 pages
Recommended Citation
Riddle, Bryan, "Treatment, warehousing, and dispersion: Mt. Pleasant Insane Asylum 1844-1980" (2010). Graduate Theses and Dissertations. 11564.
https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/etd/11564
