http://www.nellieblyonline.com/gallery

Library of Congress Prints

Nellie Bly faked her insanity in order to report on the conditions of insane asylums.  Her act was so convincing that journalists during that time published several stories about her lunacy.  Nellie’s undercover reporting was later published in the New York World in 1887.  This blog will delve into the different newspaper articles surrounding this event and the reactions to Nellie while faking her insanity on Blackwell’s Island.

https://4girlsandaghost.wordpress.com/2011/10/05/new-york-city-lunatic-asylum/

Background

Elizabeth Jane Cochrane born on May 5^th, 1864 was an influential investigative journalist.  It all began in 1885 when she read an editorial published in The Pittsburgh Dispatch  entitled "What Girls Are Good For".  The editorial demoralized women suggesting that women shouldn't bother pursuing education or careers, and that they should stay at home (1).  This enraged Elizabeth and wrote the paper an angry response, signing the letter with "Little Orphan Girl" (4).  The editor of the newspaper was impressed with her writing and printed an ad to meet the "Little Orphan Girl". Elizabeth was hired soon after and she began her journalism career writing articles for The Pittsburgh Dispatch. She chose to write under the pen name of Nellie Bly, which was inspired by a popular Stephen Foster song (8 & 1).  A selection of her work can be found on this website, which includes 3 articles that were published in The Pittsburgh Dispatch.

http://www.comicvine.com/nellie-bly/4005-80099/

Nellie loved writing; she published articles on topics such as divorce and poor women in factories. Readers were fascinated by her work but businesses were not impressed (4).  Businesses threatened to pull ads from the newspapers if similar stories continued (1).  The Dispatch assigned her a topic on gardening, but unhappy with this change she resigned after turning in the article (4). About a year later, she forced her way into an office to speak with Colonel John A. Cockerill who was Pulitzer’s chief editor at a newspaper called, The World (8).  Nellie brought up several ideas that she could write about for The World.  One of the suggested ideas was to fake insanity and get an inside look at the conditions of patients within insane asylums (8).  Two months prior to this meeting, abuse cases at various insane asylums had been a hot topic in the newspapers (4).  The World had also printed two columns, (on July 3^rd and 9^th), urging investigation of their abusive practices (4) so this proposal sparked Cockerill’s interest.  Four days after, medical practitioners and judges deemed Nellie insane and was thus committed to the Blackwell’s Island Lunatic Asylum (1).  To keep her identity a secret, she went by the aliases of Nellie Brown and Nellie Moreno.  Cockerill and Pulitzer made a promise to Nellie that he would get her out after surviving 10 days at the institution (1). 

Nellie Bly captures the attention of newspapers.

http://blogs.poughkeepsiejournal.com/glutenfreeinthehudsonvalley/2013/03/30/extra-extra-read-all-about-it-2/

      

“          WHO IS THIS INSANE GIRL? –  SEPTEMBER 25TH, 1887 NEW YORK SUN (10)

See original article here

Nellie Bly’s story caught the media’s attention right away (notably The Herald, Evening Telegram, and The Sun) (8).  A column titled “WHO IS THIS INSANE GIRL” was published in the New York Sun on September 25th, 1887.  This reporter was able to extract bits and pieces of Nellie’s past that further built up Nellie’s mysterious persona (10).

"I have no father. He is dead. So is my mother. I had a grandfather, but he is dead. I don’t know where I came from. I am going to New York. I want to get my trunks. I have got nice clothes in my trunk. "

The article gives insight on the events leading up to Nellie’s “involuntary” committal to the insane asylum.  The article described the contradictions within her stories she told, highlighting her disoriented state (4 & 10).  The article references Matron Irene Stanard, who was the owner of the temporary home that she was taken from.  The owner gives her perspective of Nellie Brown and shares the incidents that occurred during Nellie’s short stay at the temporary home.

What Matron Irene Stanard's Temporary Home Looked like Then and Now

What it looks like today,
 Click here to see another
modern day view.

An illustration of the building in 1887,
taken from Nellie Bly's article on
Ten Days in a Madhouse (2).

The newspaper speculated on Nellie’s mental condition with a statement from The Bellevue Hospital. The Bellevue Hospital concluded that Nellie suffered from hysterical mania, and that she was not on any drugs (10).

"The doctors say that it is the most peculiar case that

ever came into the hospital."

"IN AND ABOUT THE CITY: A MYSTERIOUS WAIF": SEPTEMBER, 26^TH 1887. (3)

 NEW YORK TIMES

The New York Times wrote an article on Nellie the following day, calling her a “mysterious waif” (3).  The beginning of the article describes her appearance, painting her as an insane patient (3).

"there was a wild, hunted look in her eyes." 

The article highlights the media’s curiosity surrounding the mysterious girl that no one knew much about.  When asked questions she often replied with "I can't remember, I can't remember."  This particular article focused on the information surrounding her appearance, behaviors, and a description of her mysterious character (3).  The article ends with a doctor’s analysis of her mental state.

"…the physician who examined her says that she is suffering from the effects  of no drug.
Her ailment seems to be melancholia. She is quiet and sullen and seems to remembering nothing."

Nellie Bly's cover was almost blown as she neared the end of her 10 days on Blackwell's Island (2).  A reporter was sent undercover to check out the infamous Nellie Brown.  He pretended to pose as an individual searching for a lost friend.  Nelly and the reporter had known each other for many years and was shocked to see her (4).  As the nurse introduced the fellow to Nelly, he kept her secret and told the nurse she was "not the young lady I came in search of" (2).

On October 7th, The Sun and The Times published articles regarding Nellie Brown's release from Blackwell's island.  The Times elaborated on her release saying she had gained "gratifying results" in regards to her mental treatment (4).

http://dlib.nyu.edu/undercover/behind-asylum-
bars-and-inside-madhouse-nellie-bly-new-york-world

Fast forward two days, and Nellie Bly's under cover investigation was revealed in The World.  Her investigation was released in two pieces.  Part one was titled "Behind Asylum Bars", and it went into great depth of how she fooled judges, reporters, and doctors. The continuation of her story was released a week later and was entitled "Inside the Madhouse".  This second installment outlined all the horrors and abuse she witnessed during her stay.

http://dlib.nyu.edu/undercover/ii-inside
-madhouse-nellie-bly-new-york-world

It was a very embarrassing time for newspapers such as The Sun and The Times (4) since they had been fooled by one of their strong industry competitors.  Both newspapers handled this event in very different ways.    The Times ultimately decided to discontinue the story, while The Sun gathered reports and beat Nelly Bly to the punch of her story's second installment (4).

"PLAYING MAD WOMAN"- THE SUN (7)

Instead of backing down like the The Times,  The Sun was determined to take advantage of the breaking news.  The Sun knew that many people were hooked on the story, and they did not want to loose out on this opportunity.  Nellie's first installment, Behind Asylum Bars, had not covered any of her experience on the island.  With the help of a reliable source, and intense research of doctor's and staff on the island, The Sun stole the spotlight back and reported on the main points of Bly's unreleased second installment.  It further talked about the different rumors at the asylum after Nellie had been released, reactions of doctor's and staff,  and also provided a background on Nellie Bly (7). After learning of the horrors of the asylum, the following quotation coming from an interview within the article almost seems comical:

"Of the whole case Dr. Dent says that he will be interested in seeing what she will have to say about the asylum, because if there is anything wrong that should be corrected he will beglad to learn of it."

"NELLIE BLY'S DOCTORS: SEVEN WELL-KNOWN PHYSICIANS DISAGREE ABOUT HER CASE" - NELLIE BLY. October 29, 1889 NEW YORK WORLD. (6)

http://digital.library.upenn.edu/women/bly/madhouse/madhouse.html

This article discusses the variety of illnesses that Nellie Brown was accused of having while faking her insanity (6).  She explains that she had described the same symptoms to multiple doctors, and each gave different diagnosis and prescriptions.  This raised many issues and concerns among the public not only because of the obvious inconsistencies within the medical field, but on top of it all - she was 100% healthy and sane.  

"We all know that in times not so very remote men and women were sent to insane asylums on the certificates of doctors who were in collusion with relatives interested in having them put out of the way" (4).

Interestingly, the population of pronounced "insane" persons was rapidly increasing during this time period (9).  New York created the office of State Commisioner in Lunacy in 1873 which was just a couple years prior to Nellie Bly's investigation.  This exemplifies the growing movement during this time period to protect the patients at insane asylums.  Statistics showed that New York had a 100% increase in mentally insane citizens, while the population had only increased 50% (9).  Immigration was thought to be a big contributor to this influx, as 26% of immigrants came to New York.  The rest of the article can be found here.  What grabbed my attention was how this related to Nellie Bly's findings.  She mentions that many patients at Blackwell's Island were immigrants.  Many of these immigrants were completely sane, but because of language barriers and differing customs, they were not able to communicate and thus deemed insane.

(1)  Belford, Barbara. Brilliant Bylines: A Biographical Anthology of Notable Newspaperwomen in America. New York: Columbia UP, 1986. 114-149. Print.

(2)  Cochrane, Elizabeth. "Ten Days in a Mad House." A Celebration of Women Writers. Web. 28 Feb. 2015. <http://digital.library.upenn.edu/women/bly/madhouse/madhouse.html>.

(3)  "In and about the City - A Mysterious Waif." The New York Times 26 Sept. 1887: n. pag. The New York Times. The New York Times. Web. 025 Feb. 201 <http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?                                     res=FA0A1FFD3E5413738DDDAF0A94D1405B8784F0D3&action=click&module=Search®ion=searchResults#0&version=&url=http://query.nytimes.com/search/sitesearch/#/Mysterious+waif/>

(4)  Kroeger, Brooke. "The World." Nellie Bly: Daredevil, Reporter, Feminist. 1st ed. New York: Times, 1994. 79-136. Print

(5) "Nellie Bly of The New York World." Undercover Reporting. Web. 27 Feb. 2015 <http://dlib.nyu.edu/undercover/nellie-bly-new-york-world-0>.

(6)   "Nellie Bly's Doctors." The World, October 27, 1889. Accessed March 1, 2015. http://dlib.nyu.edu/undercover/sites/dlib.nyu.edu.undercover/files/documents/uploads/editors/Nellie-Bly's-Doctors.pdf.

(7)  "Playing MadWoman." New York Sun 14 Oct. 1887: 1-2. Undercover Reporting. DLTS. Web. 04 Mar. 2015. <http://dlib.nyu.edu/undercover/sites/dlib.nyu.edu.undercover/files/documents/uploads/editors/Playing-Mad-Woman_NYSun_14Oct1887.pdf>.

(8)  Rittenhouse, Mignon. The Amazing Nellie Bly. 1st ed. New York: Dutton, 1956. 83-113. Print.

(9)  Stuhler, Linda. "The Care Of The Insane In New York (1736 - 1912)." Social Welfare History Project. November 18, 2013. Accessed March 5, 2015. http://www.socialwelfarehistory.com/organizations/care-insane-new-york-1736-1912/.

 (10)  "Who Is This Insane Girl?" New York Sun 25 Sept. 1887: 1-7. Undercover Reporting. DLTS. Web. 01 Mar. 2015 <http://dlib.nyu.edu/undercover/reaction-who-insane-girl-unsigned-new-york-sun>.