>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. ## Introduction - From 1919 to 1933, **Dr. Ada E. Schweitzer**, appointed director of the newly created **Division of Infant and Child Hygiene** (DICH), assembled one of the most vibrant public health agencies in the nation. - Indiana's infant mortality dropped from 8.2% in 1920 to 5.7% in 1930. - This article explores Schweitzer's better baby crusade and the circumstances that gave rise to such a dynamic child welfare project in Indiana from 1919 to 1933, flourishing because of the state's concern with public health and eugenics. - Many Indiana health reformers were frightened by the escalating "feeble-minded." - "Through legal and educational means, Indiana Progressives sought to control procreation and endorsed only the birth of the 'best' and healthiest babies." - The federal **Shepard-Towner Act**, passed in 1921, multiplied the activities of the DICH by providing matching funds. ## The Indiana Child Creed - "The Indiana Child Creed entered the Hoosier vernacular in 1915 when it debuted as the epigraph of the _Indiana Mother's Baby Book._" >INDIANA CHILD CREED >Every child has the inalienable right to be born free from disease, free from deformity and with pure blood in its veins and arteries. > >Every child has the inalienable right to be loved; to have its individuality respected; to be trained wisely in mind, body, and soul; to be protected from disease, from evil influences and evil persons; and to have a fair chance. In a word, to be brought up in the fear and admonition of the Lord. > >That state is delinquent which does not ceaselessly strive to secure these inalienable rights to its children. - **Progressive maternalism** was a sociopolitical movement in the late 19th and early 20th centuries that framed motherhood as a public duty and justification for women's suffrage, and involvement in social reform and governance. - Bridged traditional and feminist ideals: women's maternal instincts endowed them with heightened moral sense beneficial to both family and nation. - Promoted "scientific motherhood," advocating for state-supported maternal education. - **U.S. Children's Bureau** (USCB) created in 1912, was the first federal agency focused on child welfare. - Exemplified the national ethos of progressive maternalism. - In 1916, sends Dr. Florence Sherbon (later a eugenics advocate) and Mary Mills West to Indiana. - Organizes "babies' health conferences" in rural areas, emphasizing hygiene, nutrition, and scientific motherhood. ## Establishing the Division of Infant and Child Hygiene - Indiana's **Division of Infant and Child Hygiene** created in 1919 and dedicated to maternal and child health. - Dr. Schweitzer appointed directed. - After a decade, examined health of 77,584 children, enrolled 55,171 mothers in instructional classes, screened health films to 606,364 viewers, and distributed over a million pamphlets. ## The Better Babies Contests - Schweitzer's **better babies contest** was inaugurated in 1920 and discontinued in 1932. - One of the most popular events at the state fair. - Acquainted people with child specialists, reinforcing emergent pediatric norms and bolstering authority of professionalized child medicine. - African American children were excluded, promoting idea that only white babies could achieve perfection. - Schweitzer reportedly ordained the contest " a school of education in eugenics." - Schweitzer: "...neither can we make a citizen out of an idiot or any person who is not well born." >While Schweitzer certainly viewed the contests as a facet of a more extensive race betterment project, she alleged that the “gates of heredity” were closed after the baby left the womb. It was essential to first restrict birth to only the most fit, through marriage and sterilization laws, and then create only the most desirable children through scientific child rearing and motherhood. ## Making Indiana A Good Parent - The contest procedure was well honed. Registered infants were divided into groups based on age, sex, and place of residence. - From a starting score of 1000, deductions were calculated according to physical defects and reactions to mental tests. - Deductions were very small, likely to maintain high results for every baby and diluting the rivalrous nature of the contests. - Schweitzer was a widely trusted expert and shaped child welfare. - Public health and eugenics were seen as complementary aspects of improving society. - Schweitzer promoted both public health reforms (vaccination, hygiene, nutrition) and eugenic policies (marriage laws, sterilization) under the same framework of "race betterment." ## Epilogue: A New Deal for Hoosier Babies - In 1933, the Great Depression, election of new Democratic admin, and opposition from male pediatricians led to the disbandment of the Division of Infant and Child Hygiene. - The last better babies contest was held in 1932. - Women were sidelined and male medical care became focus rather than maternal education and public outreach. - In early 20th century Indiana, public health and eugenics were mutually reinforcing, not opposed. - Better babies contests and maternal health programs blended both movements, using public health initiatives (hygiene, nutrition, infant care) to support eugenic goals. - Female reformers played a central role in shaping these policies. - Race betterment was an expensive and flexible concept that encompassed both health promotion and reproductive control.