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A Methodist Response To Infant Mortality In The 19th Century: Public Health, Foundling Hospitals, And Abortion Curbs, Philip F. Hardt

The Asbury Journal

During the 1850s, infant mortality greatly increased in New York City and other large cities. One of the leading physicians to address this problem in New York City was Dr. David Meredith Reese, an active Methodist layman, who was also involved in many other issues of the day: phrenology, colonization, and Bible reading in the schools. In 1857, his Report on Infant Mortality in Large Cities was published in which he both examined its extent and sources and also suggested ways to reduce it. Strikingly, two of his recommendations for its reduction coincided with efforts already underway. For example, his …