The Gilded Invalids: Living with Illness in the late 19th and Turn of the Century

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“People didn’t do that a hundred years ago. They were just fine without it.”

I hear people say a version of this a lot like when referring to their reasoning behind not wearing sunscreen or going to the doctors or taking precautions against heart disease.

It’s funny how people don’t think about what really happened to people who got sick one hundred years ago. This was a time period when the word “invalid” was a common word. One of two things happened to people who fell victim to a serious health condition during the Gilded Age. Either they died or they kept on living as a sick person.

The definition of an invalid is someone who has been rendered incapacitated by an illness and there were thousands of invalids during this time period: people with depression, scoliosis, hepatitis, and a variety of other afflictions that don’t leave people incapacitated today.

Invalids were common and a variety of families had to support a sick person who couldn't care for themselves, marry, or seek a profession.There was an entire subculture for invalids and people who cared for them. I find invalids a subject of extreme interest and plan to have an invalid main character in my third novel because I am a person who would have been an invalid if I lived at the turn of the century. 

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I have scoliosis and myofascial pain syndrome, which I manage with physical therapy, dance exercise and pain medication. However, if I lived one hundred years ago I would be forced to spend much of my time in bed trying to reduce the pain and fighting off depression.

So if you ever here someone say "People didn't do that a hundred years ago," you can enjoy watching their faces when you reply “Sure, but the average age of death was 50."

Here is some research on invalids from the Victorian time period and The Gilded Age:

Some popular invalids from turn of the century fiction include Beth from Little Women and the cousin and uncle from The Secret Garden.

An invalid cup with a spout so it could drank while lying down. 

Invalid Cookery - special recipes specifically for the ill and incapacitated. 

A variety of images and different invalid situations on The Victorian Times Blog.

Scoliosis Treatment at the Turn of the Century - this is a PDF article you will have to download but I highly recommend you do because it's quite a find from a medical journal.

Invalid Women Figuring Feminie Illness into American Fiction and Culture 1840-1940. By Diane P. Herndl.  This is a book but this link is for Google Books which lets you read sections.\

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Invalidism and Identity in 19th Century Britain.  I know this is a blog about American history but this book about how being an invalid effects the identity is a really interesting perspective. Again on Google Books so you can read sections.

Primary Sources about Invalids  Ok there are two primary sources from an invalid's perspective on this site but I couldn't provide direct links because they are downloads so easiest way to find them is to use your "find" feature on your browser and search for "invalid." Anyone unclear how to do that, press "Ctrl F" and that will bring up the search bar. Then search "invalid."