APPALACHIAN BIRTH CONTROL
At the turn of the 20th century the state of Kentucky had six major cities that had over 10,000 residents. Louisville being the major manufacturing center and thrived with multiple different cultures. At this point in time Louisville stood as the largest producer of cast iron pipes in the nation, the banking capital of the south, a major alcohol distillery center, and was the chief leaf tobacco market in the world. While Louisville was growing rapidly, the eastern part of the state was also experiencing a rapidly growing population and economy. The population spiked and towns begin to multiple in the mountain counties because the richest coal deposits in the nation were found in this region. In order to keep the current workers and create a attractive working environment for future workers and their families, coal companies recruited yough physicians. Due to the high level of risk and dangers that surrounded the coal industry it was important for the workers to maintain proper health, or else production would lessen (Myers, 88).
The Great Depression (1929) started to affect Kentucky in more ways than one. The US Bureau of the Census taken in 1943 reported KY as small and relatively poor rural state (Myers, 90) . 2.8% of farms had tractors and 4.3% of homes had electricity. At this time 23% of the US population had telephones and 25% of KY’s population was linked with telephone service. The 1930’s also hit family farms. Taxes, debt, and farm mortgages remained at the high levels from the 1920’s but the Boardman reported that the net farm income in Kentucky dropped by one third between 1929 and 1932 (Myers,91).
AMERICAN BIRTH CONTROL MOVEMENT
Background information on the movement in America.
The movement of Birth Control has come a long way from its origins that began during the eighteenth century. During this time, France openly discussed the fertility restricting methods and came to the conclusion that they should be regarded as a topic of social justice. It was not until the 1870’s when the issue became known in the United States as a topic referred to as “voluntary motherhood” that people began to show true interest in it. Soon after the introduction of the movement to the United States appeared Margaret Sanger, one of the most significant figures in the history of Birth Control. Sanger introduced the formal term “birth control” in 1914 to “describe the spacing of children in keeping with a family's financial and health resources” (Myers 62). During the 1870’s to 1934, all forms of communication about birth control were prohibited across the entire United States. This, in turn, led Sanger to organize the formation of the the social movement of birth control during the early twentieth century (Myers 62-63). The movement faced harsh adversity through the commonly known Comstock Laws which restricted communication of birth control nationwide. Despite the popularity in the contraceptive market while the laws were still enforced, Sanger was finally able to have the laws repealed by the 1960’s (Myers 63). The focus of the movement was then directed toward the uplifting of the working classes and the overall improvement of public health. Today, birth control is accepted on a global scale but still faces adversity in some regards, specifically in certain religious beliefs.
HISTORY OF BIRTH CONTROL IN KENTUCKY
Various methods of birth control have been tried and tested throughout history. Here's just a few of the methods women in Kentucky used before the widespread application of contraceptives.
Native Americans before modern medicine would use the flower, touch-me-not, to speed the labor process and lessen the pains. 400 families in Leslie County (1930) revealed that remedies such as Epsom salts, Black Draught, turpentine, and many others were obtained by mail order throughout Kentucky (Myers 61).
Before 1933, the state of Kentucky did not have public or private birth control clinics or specific state laws banning contraceptives. Kentucky operated under the Federal Comstock Laws of 1873. Physicians were permitted to provide information to men regarding the use of condoms due to a loop whole in the Comstock Laws. Physicians were not permitted to offer birth control services to any, unless the woman was able to afford private physicians. The Institute of Public Opinions conducted a poll in November of 1973 and found that 69% of the Kentucky population was in favor of legal distribution of contraceptive information. The poll also reported that 71% of women favored this concept (Myers 101-103).
The Kentucky Birth Control League (KBCL) began at the first Kentucky Birth Control Conference that was held at the Brown Hotel, February 25, 1933 in Louisville, KY (Myers,108). The main topics that were discussed were early organization of the Kentucky League and maternal health. The Comstock Laws made publicity of the first clinic illegal and the clinic was not permitted to provide information to women without medical reasoning. Between the year of July 1933 and 1934, the first clinic was able to provide care to 87 patients during a total 251 visits (Myers 111-113). The women visiting the clinic at this time were about 30 years old, the average income was $13 per week, and the average number of pregnancies prior to visiting the clinic was 5.7 (Myers 116).