Psychiatry Before 1900

This is not an exhaustive treatment, but interesting.

The National Library of Medicine's History of Medicine site has plumbed the various corners of American medicine for years, and this latest offering takes a look at the history of early American psychiatry through primary documents including photographs, biographies, and other items. The sections offered on the site cover early psychiatric hospitals and asylums, 19th century psychiatrists of note, and Benjamin Rush, who is known as "the father of American Psychiatry." The section on hospitals and asylums provides a timeline of important dates and activities, including the creation of the first asylum in America by Quakers in 1752. Visitors should also not miss the section on 19th century psychiatric debates as it covers debates about patient restraint and European influences on American psychiatry.