Overview
āLaurie Gwen Shapiro, author of The Stowaway: A Young Manās Extraordinary Adventure to Antarctica
On a two-mile stretch of land in New Yorkās East River, a 19th-century horror story was unfolding . . .
Today we call it Roosevelt Island. Then, it was Blackwellās, site of a lunatic asylum, two prisons, an almshouse, and a number of hospitals. Conceived as the most modern, humane incarceration facility the world ever seen, Blackwellās Island quickly became, in the words of a visiting Charles Dickens, āa lounging, listless madhouse.ā
In the first contemporary investigative account of Blackwellās, Stacy Horn tells this chilling narrative through the gripping voices of the islandās inhabitants,Ā as well as the periodās officials, reformers, and journalists, including the celebrated Nellie Bly. Digging through city records, newspaper articles, and archival reports, Horn brings this forgotten history alive: there was terrible overcrowding; prisoners were enlisted to care for the insane; punishment was harsh and unfair; and treatment was nonexistent.
Throughout the book, we return to the extraordinary Reverend William Glenney French as he ministers toĀ Blackwellās residents, battles the bureaucratic mazes of the Department of Correction and a corrupt City Hall, testifies at salacious trials, and in his diary wonders about manās inhumanity to man. In Damnation Island, Stacy Horn shows us how far weāve come in caring for the least fortunate among usāand reminds us how much work still remains.
This book title, Damnation Island (Poor, Sick, Mad, and Criminal in 19th-Century New York) - 9781616209353, ISBN: 9781616209353, by Stacy Horn, published by Algonquin Books (May 14, 2019) is available in paperback. Our minimum order quantity is 25 copies. All standard bulk book orders ship FREE in the continental USA and delivered in 4-10 business days.
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