The Tragic Confinement of a Settler
A young woman is committed to the hospital for the insane after a period of profound distress.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
Hilda, aged 18 years, who has resided with her mother and brother at Miller's Ferry on the Snohomish River during the past six months, was brought to town on Saturday. Yesterday she had a hearing before Probate Judge White on a charge of insanity. The evidence was to the effect that for the past six or seven months her mind has been failing in cold weather until at last her reason became entirely destroyed. She grew morose and melancholy, and finally silent, despite the devoted attention of her mother and brother, who did all in their power to aid and comfort the poor creature. After a full hearing, Dr. O. O. Hos, the examining physician, pronounced her case one of dementia, after which Judge White ordered her transfer to the hospital for the insane at Steilacoom.
“Her reason became entirely destroyed. She grew morose and melancholy, and finally silent.”
This story highlights the rudimentary, often punitive, state of mental health care in the 1880s, where 'insanity' was treated by immediate institutionalization. It reveals the vulnerability of rural families in early Washington Territory who lacked access to any support systems beyond total commitment.
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