Open AccessMaking Better Babies: Public Health and Race Betterment in Indiana, 1920–1935
Author(s) -
Alexandra Minna Stern
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
american journal of public health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.284
H-Index - 264
eISSN - 1541-0048
pISSN - 0090-0036
DOI - 10.2105/ajph.92.5.742
Subject(s) - race (biology) , public health , environmental health , gerontology , medicine , demography , sociology , gender studies , nursing
In 1920, Indiana's Division of Infant and Child Hygiene inaugurated its first Better Babies Contest at the state fair. For the next 12 years, these contests were the centerpiece of a dynamic infant and maternal welfare program that took shape in Indiana during the decade of the federal Sheppard-Towner act. More than just a lively spectacle for fairgoers, these contests brought public health, "race betterment," and animal breeding together in a unique manner. This article describes one of the most popular expressions of public health and race betterment in rural America. It also raises questions about the intersections between hereditarian and medical conceptions of human improvement during the early 20th century, especially with respect to child breeding and rearing.