The Bursum Bill

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Holm. O. Bursum, courtesy Holm O. Bursum Papers, Center for Southwest Research, University Libraries, University of New Mexico

Holm. O. Bursum, courtesy Holm O. Bursum Papers, Center for Southwest Research, University Libraries, University of New Mexico

Native Americans faced significant challenges at the beginning of the 20th century. White men still wanted their land, and were willing to go to court to take it. In 1921, Secretary of the Interior, Albert Fall, asked New Mexico senator Holm O. Bursum, to draft a bill to settle a land dispute between Pueblos and whites who had been squatting on their land.

The Bursum Bill that the senator devised, allowed non-Indians to retain any land they had squatted on before 1902. It further gave the state court the right to settle any future land disputes. Since state courts were in the hands of whites who were generally adversarial to Indian rights, unscrupulous non-Indians would have promptly brought valuable land into dispute.

A group of artists and writers heard about the bill and alerted the Pueblos to it–they hadn’t even been notified that Congress was working on a land bill. Amid a lot of public attention drummed up by their supporters, Pueblos leaders testified before Congress on their own behalf. The bill was defeated.

Indian Children, Mescalero Reservation, N.M., circa 1936, courtesty Library of Congress

Indian Children, Mescalero Reservation, N.M., circa 1936, courtesty Library of Congress

Hopi Pueblo girls Weaving Baskets, 1906, courtesy Library of Congress

Hopi Pueblo girls Weaving Baskets, 1906, courtesy Library of Congress

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What a Day

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Canton Asylum

Canton Asylum

Life in most insane asylums was highly regimented, and the Canton Asylum for Insane Indians was no exception.

During the day, patients had a number of chores: They performed labor in the gardens, cleaned their rooms, helped in the kitchen or dining room, or assisted in the general maintenance of the asylum. For leisure, those who were able walked outside, played ball, fished, or even went into town if an attendant could go with them. Since attendants were also very busy, outdoor activities and town visits were not as prevalent  as reports made it sound–many patients spent most of their time indoors, doing nothing.

The asylum eventually got a moving picture machine that played (preferably) 7-reel comedies in the dining room once a week. Dr. Hummer also purchased playground equipment, such as swings and a see-saw, which were very popular; the swing set is visible in most pictures of Canton Asylum. On Sundays, those who desired sang hymns and recited the Lord’s Prayer–again, in the dining room–if there were no visiting clergy to give a more formal service.

Canton Main Street

Canton Main Street

Staff at Athens Lunatic Asylum

Staff at Athens Lunatic Asylum

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Defective People

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Sir Francis Galton

Sir Francis Galton

Around the turn of the 20th century, the United States was heavily involved in a new science called eugenics, a word coined in 1883 by Charles Darwin’s cousin, Sir Francis Galton. Galton thought the human race could be improved by better breeding practices, which were considered positive eugenics. Preventing the reproduction of undesirables was termed negative eugenics.

In the United States, many people agreed with the idea behind eugenics. Biologist Charles Davenport was director of the Cold Springs Harbor Laboratory in New York, where he founded the Eugenics Record Office. This office kept pedigree records on thousands of families in the U.S. Money for the laboratory came from the Rockefeller Foundation and other philanthropic institutes. Eugenics enthusiasts formed organizations like the American Eugenics Society, the American Breeders Association, and the Race Betterment Foundation.

Americans supported the  sterilization of “unfit” people, and in 1907, Indiana became the first state to enact a sterilization law. By 1941, over 60,000 people (mostly women) had been sterilized, some against their will. Eugenics fell out of favor as science began to show that many of the undesirable traits eugenicists studied weren’t inherited at all. Hitler’s eugenics programs horrified Americans when they came to light, and the American eugenics movement fell from favor.

Average Family Winner, Fitter Family Contest in Eastern States Exposition, courtesy American Philosophical Society

Average Family Winner, Fitter Family Contest in Eastern States Exposition, courtesy American Philosophical Society

Eugenics Exhibit

Eugenics Exhibit

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Cherokee State Hospital for the Insane

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Cherokee State Hospital for the Insane

Cherokee State Hospital for the Insane

The Cherokee State Hospital for the Insane in Cherokee, Iowa was not founded by, or for, Indians. However, like the Canton Asylum for Insane Indians, it was a deeply desired institution. The towns of  Sheldon, LeMars, Fort Dodge, and Storm Lake in northwestern Iowa lobbied hard to bring the asylum to their area, since it meant jobs and economic growth. Unlike Canton Asylum, this hospital is still in operation,

In 1911, Iowa began to pass sterilization laws to prevent the procreation of undesirable or defective people. Morons, idiots, drunks, epileptics, and moral perverts were all fair targets, and if they were institutionalized, the managing staff made the determination for sterilization. Later, staff recommended candidates for sterilization to the state eugenics board, who made the final decision. By the early 1960s, nearly 2,000 people in Iowa (the majority female) were sterilized under a variety of these laws.

Dr. Walter Freeman, who had perfected the lobotomy technique, enjoyed the fame he received for his work. He was performing a public lobotomy on a patient at the Cherokee State Hospital and stepped back so a reporter could take his picture. As he did this, Freeman’s ice pick-like instrument went too deep into the patient’s brain and killed him.

In 1924, Dr. Freeman directed St. Elizabeths’ labs. He pioneered his transorbital lobotomy procedure there, but the hospital’s superintended would not allow him to use it any wide scale way.

Dr. Freeman Working

Dr. Freeman Working

Feeble-minded Subjects for Sterilization, courtesy Truman State University

Feeble-minded Subjects for Sterilization, courtesy Truman State University

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Livestock Problems at the Canton Asylum

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Hog Cholera Pamphlet

Hog Cholera Pamphlet

Dr. Hummer had one advantage at the Canton Asylum for Insane Indians that his counterpart at St. Elizabeths didn’t: acreage to raise livestock. Hummer walked into his job knowing nothing about agriculture or animal husbandry, but he soon learned the advantages of growing his own supplies.

When Hummer took over the facility in 1908, he had three dairy cows and no bull. He wanted to build up his herd so that it could supply all the facility’s milk. By 1923, he increased his holdings of dairy cattle to 17; he routinely sold or slaughtered extra calves. Hummer continually asked for more grazing land so he could increase his herd.

Hogs were a little easier to manage than cattle, and when his herd of hogs increased sufficiently, Hummer was able to cut his beef consumption in half. In the fall of 1923, however, hog cholera struck. Hummer immediately shipped four healthy hogs to the Sioux Falls market, and braced himself to lose the rest. He typically used 200 pounds of fresh pork each week, so it was a blow to lose his  home-grown supply of meat. Hummer asked for funds to buy 12-15 brood sows the next spring, to start a new herd.

Hog Buyer in the Middle of a Hog Pen, 1921, courtesy Library of Congress

Hog Buyer in the Middle of a Hog Pen, 1921, courtesy Library of Congress

USDA Scientists Examine a Pig

USDA Scientists Examine a Pig

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Saving Money at the Insane Asylum, Part Two

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Army Surplus Tents From the Spanish-American War

Army Surplus Tents From the Spanish-American War

Dr. Hummer did not rely on patient labor alone to hold down his costs at the Canton Asylum for Insane Indians. Like many others in the federal service, he took advantage of government surplus products to stretch his supply dollar. At least in this area, he had an advantage over his fellow asylum  superintendents, since only one other insane asylum (St. Elizabeths) was within the federal system.

Items held by Indian schools, Army posts and the like, sometimes became surplus. The items would be listed and passed along to other federal agencies, who could then pick out any useful items for their own facilities. In March, 1923, Dr. Hummer was able to snag (among other items) 22 pairs of men’s winter drawers, size 44; 60 pairs of men’s winter drawers, size 42; and over 200 undershirts of various sizes.

The pictures here represent the types of items available through the surplus system. Dr. Hummer did pick up 48 surplus Army cots for 30 cents each in August, 1923, though no pictures exist of the supplies he actually used.

Soldiers Packing Cots in Crates, 1917, courtesy Library of Congress

Soldiers Packing Cots in Crates, 1917, courtesy Library of Congress

Soldiers Folding Blankets, 1917, courtesy Library of Congress

Soldiers Folding Blankets, 1917, courtesy Library of Congress

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Saving Money at the Insane Asylum

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Patients Working in Laundry Room at Texas State Lunatic Asylum, 1898

Patients Working in Laundry Room at Texas State Lunatic Asylum, 1898

Most insane asylums tried to use patient labor as a way of holding down costs, or as a sort of occupational therapy. At the Canton Asylum for Insane Indians, Dr. Harry Hummer had a real mission to hold down expenses, since he knew that his small facility didn’t have the economies of scale that larger institutions did.

Female patients generally worked on household tasks, like sewing and laundry. Susan Wishecoby, an epileptic patient, wrote about scrubbing the floors, and other women complained about the amount of work they had to do. Men usually worked in the gardens or helped with livestock. Dr. Hummer couldn’t actually force patients to work, but many did because it helped them pass the time. They may have also wanted to please the attendants or Dr. Hummer by appearing cooperative.

Patients Sewing at the Cherokee State Hospital for the Insane, early 1900s

Patients Sewing at the Cherokee State Hospital for the Insane, early 1900s

Patients Picking Cotton at Alabama Insane Hospital

Patients Picking Cotton at Alabama Insane Hospital

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The BIA Field Matron Program

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Field Matron, Arizona

Field Matron, Arizona

Between 1890 and 1938, the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) employed women as Field Matrons. Their job was to go into Native American homes to teach domestic science (sewing, cooking, hygiene, etc.) according to middle-class white standards. This was a relatively peaceful way for the BIA to continue its work of assimilating Indians into white culture; they destroyed Indians’ old habits and ways of doing things and replaced them with the white man’s way.

Matrons taught mainly on reservations, since the feeling was that Indians still living in teepees or roaming the land wouldn’t be able to take advantage of the matrons’ lessons. Besides sewing and other practical accomplishments, matrons taught Indian women to decorate their homes, care for their animals and children like whites, and teach their children sports and Anglo games. Commissioner of Indian Affairs Cato Sells urged matrons to stress the importance of legal marriage to Indians, and to try to increase their desire for material goods so that lazy Indians would work harder to provide them.

Typical Indian Home (Flathead Reservation, 1909), courtesy Library of Congress

Typical Indian Home (Flathead Reservation, 1909), courtesy Library of Congress

Interior of Teepee (1905-1907?), courtesy Library of Congress

Interior of Teepee (1905-1907?), courtesy Library of Congress

Field matrons were charged with “civilizing” Indians in their own homes. Though heavy-handed, it was preferable to tearing families apart and sending children away as the BIA’s boarding school program did. Though the BIA applauded their efforts, eventually devastating health problems among Indians prompted the agency to replace field matrons with nurses.

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A Range of Responsibilities

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Hubert Work (center), 1928, courtesy Library of Congress

Hubert Work (center), 1928, courtesy Library of Congress

The Indian Service, or later, Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) fell under the department of the Interior. The Interior department had a wide range of responsibilities, including the provision of medical services for various groups under its control.

In 1927, Secretary of the Interior, Hubert Work, tried to show the range of  just the Interior’s medical services:

— It had a floating hospital on the Yukon in Alaska (a territory at the time) and supported territorial Boards of Health in Alaska and Hawaii.

— It safeguarded the health of visitors within the National Park system.

— Trained nurses and field matrons went to remote areas of the country, teaching hygiene and sanitation.

— The department’s Geological Survey investigated ground water supplies.

— Its Bureau of Education investigated the status of physical education and hygiene in colleges and reported on the health of teachers

— Through its Bureau of Pensions, conducted physical exams and medical rating boards for veterans.

The department supported more than 100 hospitals providing over 2 million days of hospital care; the Indian Bureau maintained 91 of them. More than 30,000 Indian patients were treated in these hospitals in fiscal year 1926.

BIA Health Officer

BIA Health Officer

Tulalip Hospital, Tulalip Indian Reservation, 1910, courtesy Library of Congress

Tulalip Hospital, Tulalip Indian Reservation, 1910, courtesy Library of Congress

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Oh, To Be a Woman

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American Woman and Her Political Peers, 1893, couresty Library of Congress

American Woman and Her Political Peers, 1893, courtesy Library of Congress

Women could contract pellagra or masturbate (see last two posts) and become insane, but they were thought to have specific weaknesses that made them susceptible to insanity.

An acute illness of the uterus or ovaries could cause insanity, said Dr. Alexander J.C. Skene in 1889, as could frequent childbearing. Other physicians believed that women could become insane through mistreatment, poverty, too many household cares, grief, or fear. Even the tight-lacing of corsets could lead to insanity. Half the women brought to the Athens Lunatic Asylum in its first three years were insane because of the change of life or “menstrual derangements.”

There was a wide-held belief that women were the weaker sex–physically, emotionally, and intellectually. Because women’s brains weighed less than men’s, alienists thought that they were less developed. Women were therefore more susceptible to mental problems. Anything that might tax a woman’s brain could contribute to insanity; some experts estimated that education drained away about 20% of a woman’s “vital energy.”

Example of Tight Corset

Example of Tight Corset

Bedrest for Hysteria

Bedrest for Hysteria

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