New Jersey State Hospital for the Insane

Sudden tragedies sometimes created mental problems that eventually sent victims to an insane asylum; today we would probably consider these cases examples of severe depression or PTSD. Researchers occasionally come across accounts that describe a woman driven mad by the loss of a child or husband, but not so frequently about men driven mad for the same reasons. However, a double tragedy sent one prosperous businessman to an asylum . . . to join his son.

Sometime in the mid to late 1880s, Daniel Henry’s young son got lost in the woods south of Trenton, New Jersey. Thanks to a prolonged search, the boy was eventually found a week later. Unfortunately, though, his suffering and fear had driven him insane and “he never regained his reason,” according to an article in the New York Times. The child was taken to the New Jersey State Hospital for the Insane for an indefinite stay.

1849 Asylum Report

Three years after that, Daniel’s wife was killed on the railroad (details unspecified). His wife’s death, combined with his son’s tragic circumstances, drove the widower insane. He, too, was committed to the New Jersey State Hospital for the Insane. Father and son remained there for more than twenty years. Daniel Henry died at the asylum in September, 1907 at the age of 75. His son remained, with little chance of recovery.

State Asylum at Trenton Baseball Team, courtesy New Jersey State Library

No details were given about whether or not the two were capable of recognizing and interacting with each other, but if they could, perhaps they were each able to take comfort in the other’s presence.