Hervey Backus Wilbur

Background

Hervey Backus Wilbur was born on August 18, 1820 in Wendell, Franklin County, Massachussets, the son of Hervey Wilbur, a Congregational clergyman, and Ann (Toppan) Wilbur and a descendant of Samuel Wilbur.

Education

He was graduated from Newburyport High School, attended Dartmouth College from 1834 to 1836, and then Amherst College, where he received the degree of B. A. in 1838 and that of A. M. in 1841. After a trial of school teaching and civil engineering he took up the study of medicine at the Berkshire Medical Institution, Pittsfield, Massachussets, where he was graduated in 1843.

Career

He began to practise in Lowell, later moving to Dana and thence to Barre. He early became impressed by the reported accounts of the work of Dr. Edouard Seguin in the instruction of feeble-minded children. Following the lead of Dr. Seguin he took into his home in Barre in 1848 a group of children of defective mentality, and thus organized the first school for this class of unfortunates in the United States. Except for the published accounts of the Seguin experiment there was no literature in any language dealing with the education of the feeble-minded, and Wilbur was compelled to develop a system of teaching out of his experience with this limited material. In his early work he was at the same time physician, teacher, and gymnastic trainer for his little group. His success was remarkable. He was able to develop marked improvement in intellects so feeble as to seem beyond any aid. The "Institute for Idiots, " thus established at Barre, drew the attention of Dr. Frederick F. Backus, of Rochester, N. Y. , a member of the state legislature who in 1851 prevailed upon that body to establish an experimental school for the feeble-minded at Albany, N. Y. , with Wilbur in charge. This institution was transferred to Syracuse in 1854 and became the New York State Asylum for Idiots. For the remainder of his life Wilbur devoted himself to the welfare of this institution, and his system of training and instruction became the basis for that adopted by every similar institution not only in the United States but also in Canada and in many European countries. His interest in the feeble-minded led to a similar interest in the insane, in whose behalf he was a constant advocate before the state legislature. He visited various asylums in the United States, studied British asylums and became an authority on the care of the insane. He was a caustic critic of prevailing methods. The greater part of his professional career was marked by controversy over asylum management and the care of inmates. His writings consist mainly of journal articles and pamphlets dealing with the welfare of the feeble-minded and the insane. Notable are a pamphlet on Aphasia (1867) and the Report on the Management of the Insane in Great Britain (1876). He died suddenly at Syracuse.

Achievements

• He participated in the founding of Syracuse University, and served as lecturer on mental diseases. He was an active member and one-time president of the National Association for the Protection of the Insane and the Prevention of Insanity.

Works

More photos

• book

  • Report On The Management Of The Insane In Great Britain...

    (This is a reproduction of a book published before 1923. T...)

Personality

The qualities which made possible the success of his great work were an indomitable will, unlimited patience, and a genuine pity for his unfortunate charges. In their interest and for a cause that was unpopular he was the best of fighters. He was assisted by an attractive personality and rich social qualities.

Connections

He was married on May 12, 1847, to Harriet Holden of Barre, Massachussets, who died in 1870. On August 13, 1874, he was married to Emily Petheram of Skaneateles, N. Y. , who, with the two sons of his earlier marriage, and two sons of the later.

Father:

Hervey Wilbur

A Congregational clergyman

Mother:

Ann (Toppan) Wilbur

Spouse:

Harriet Holden

Spouse:

Emily Petheram