Ten Days in a Mad-House: 1887 Edition with Original Illustrations

Ten Days in a Mad-House is a book by American journalist Nellie Bly. The book was based on articles written while Bly was on an undercover assignment for the New York World, feigning insanity at a women’s boarding house, so as to be involuntarily committed to an insane asylum. She then investigated the reports of brutality and neglect at the Women’s Lunatic Asylum on Blackwell’s Island. In Ten Days in a Mad-House, Bly chronicles her harrowing experience, detailing the unsanitary conditions, the mistreatment of patients, and the shocking ways the mentally ill were often overlooked and forgotten. Through her firsthand observations and empathetic storytelling, Bly brought to light the urgent need for reform and improved care for those suffering from mental illness. This powerful and poignant book is a must-read for anyone interested in history, mental health, or the fight for social justice.