She Fought For Mentally Ill People To Have Rights After Spending 3 Years In An Asylum Because She Was Accused Of Being Insane

Although we still have a long way to go, mental healthcare in America has evolved tremendously since the 19th century.
There are some horrific stories of people who were put into torturous mental institutions against their will during those times for things that are part of human nature.
One of those people was Elizabeth Packard, who campaigned for the rights of the mentally ill after spending three years in an institution because she was accused of being insane for her religious beliefs.
Elizabeth was born in Massachusetts in 1816. Her father was a Calvinist minister, and she attended the Amherst Female Seminary.
Her first encounter with the troubling American medical system was when she was diagnosed with what was then known as “brain fever.” She suffered from high fevers, headaches, and delirium. When the first round of recommended treatment didn’t work immediately, Elizabeth’s father sent her to an asylum to get better.
At the asylum, Elizabeth spent six weeks receiving treatments that didn’t cure her fever and only made her feel worse. After finally recovering and getting released, Elizabeth was encouraged to marry her father’s associate, Theophilus Packard Jr., who was also a Calvinist minister. Although he was 14 years older than her, they married in 1839 and had six children together.
Throughout the 1850s, Elizabeth and Theophilus moved several times before settling in Manteno, Illinois. After moving, Elizabeth began stepping outside the Calvinist religious values and teachings and became more independent. Other than being a doting wife and mother, Elizabeth enjoyed traveling and, before long, started outwardly questioning her husband’s religious beliefs.
Before long, Elizabeth and Theophilus also began to disagree on various subjects other than religion, like how to raise their children, abolition, etc. Although they both opposed divorce, tensions grew between Elizabeth and Theophilus until he accused her of being insane and had her admitted to the Illinois Hospital for the Insane against her will in 1860. During these years, it was legal for married women to be institutionalized by their husbands without proof of mental health issues.
Elizabeth was at the Illinois Hospital for the Insane for three years despite her frequent protests to leave. She heavily resisted their treatments, and her children, who were adults by then, often called for her to be released. Finally, in 1863, the hospital said she was incurably insane and released her to make room for patients who had a better chance of being “cured.”

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When Elizabeth returned home, Theophilus trapped her and imprisoned her in their home, which was illegal. She had a friend write to Judge Charles Starr, who arranged a jury trial to determine her mental state. Her trial lasted five days in January 1864. Those who testified against her mainly focused on her religious beliefs and how she disagreed with her husband’s religion, agreeing with Theophilus that it was a sign of insanity.
Neighbors and other community members outside of Theophilus’ congregation testified that Elizabeth had never exhibited signs of insanity and defended her by mentioning there were intellectuals in Europe who agreed with her religious beliefs. Within seven minutes of deliberation, the jury found Elizabeth to be sane.
After her trial, Elizabeth dedicated her life to helping married women and defending the mentally ill, hoping that no one would have to go through what she experienced. She became especially determined to do so when Theophilus left Illinois and returned to Massachusetts with their children after the trial, leaving her homeless and on her own.
Elizabeth campaigned for legislation in Illinois and other states that would protect the rights of people in mental hospitals, asylums, and defenseless married women. She fought for official teams that routinely visited asylums and monitored their conditions in Iowa, Maine, and Massachusetts. She campaigned for laws that would protect married women’s property and children.
Elizabeth also wrote about her experience and beliefs in books during her campaigning. She finally got custody of her three younger children in 1869 and continued petitioning different states to pass laws that protected vulnerable mental patients and married women. Although she never divorced from Theophilus, they stayed separated for the rest of their lives.
Elizabeth kept fighting for human rights until passing away in 1897 at 80. The way she worked hard to help and advocate for people after the harrowing experience she had is nothing short of admirable.
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