Occasional Paper 56 - A Pauper Lunatic in Macclesfield Asylum: The Terrifying Experience of Alice Petschler by Joanna M Williams

Description

This is the story of an articulate Victorian businesswoman, Alice Petschler of Altrincham and Manchester, and her family, and her frightening experience of Parkside Asylum, Macclesfield in the 1870s. Her story was made public by her friends and led to a campaign to change the law of lunacy. In 1873 the Lunacy Commission issued a damning report on the actions of Altrincham Board of Guardians. There was an inquiry by the Parliamentary Select Committee in 1877, which led to changes in the treatment of the mentally insane.

Download Specific Description

OP56_Petschler_colour.pdf