Sterilization versus segregation: control of the 'feebleminded', 1900-1938

Abstract

This paper presents a model designed to contextualize studies of the specialized custodial mental handicap institutions which evolved in Britain and North America during the early decades of this century. The frame of reference adopted is the eugenics movement, and particularly the debate over sterilization vs segregation as the preferred means of controlling the breeding of the 'unfit'. The rise of farm colonies is seen as epitomizing the expression of eugenic ideologies in the social and physical landscapes. The geographical manifestation of eugenically-driven policy is illustrated in a case study of the Langdon colony, an extension of the Royal Western Counties Institution at Starcross near Exeter, as it developed between 1931 and 1938.