Historical Breastfeeding Photo: The Cornstalk Madonna

My sister sent me another historical breastfeeding image.

This photo was taken by Orin Crooker 94 years ago, on May 15th, 1916. The mother is sitting on a wooden box next to cornstalks, feeding her child on a farm in Hoopeston, Illinois.

I tried to find more info about the photographer and stumbled across this entry in the August 1922 issue of Farm Mechanics, where he described how a local farmer was using electric power on his farm. I could not find any information as to whether Orin Crooker was a farmer or reporter or something else... So I can't know who this woman was or what the circumstances surrounding this photo were. But I love that the baby is so tuckered out that he's falling asleep on the job. :) And that the mother is peacefully letting him sleep while she enjoys looking at him. So lovely! And such a contrast to the fast-paced, sterile, convenience-oriented, expensive, powder-measuring, bottle-warming culture of formula that most American mothers participate in these days. What a sad loss.

You can find this photo at the Library of Congress website at this URL: http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/cph.3c37707

Historical Breastfeeding Photo: WPA Poster

I found this image in the Library of Congress online archives recently. It was created in 1938 as part of an art project organized by the federal Work Projects Administration. I'm not a fan of this style of art, or the WPA for that matter, but I thought this would make a nice addition to my growing archive of historical breastfeeding images.

The artist was Erik Krause, who did a number of other posters in this same propaganda style. The others carry slightly more socialistic messages, but similar artwork. This one reads, "Nurse the baby: Your protection against trouble. Inform yourself through the Health Bureau publications and consult your doctor."

Before 1930 most mothers breastfed their babies. Artificial formulas were expensive and still in development. Apparently some mothers thought it was more sophisticated to feed their babies from a bottle, so they would give their babies cow's milk in glass bottles. But this would've had to have been transported and refrigerated and couldn't have been convenient or affordable for average families.

According to this article (linked below), by the late 1930s, formulas had become safer and were viewed as more scientific by mothers who could afford them. And then it became a sign of affluence, or for immigrants - assimilation, and quickly became the norm.

I found some very interesting and relevant information about the history of breastfeeding in a preview of this book: http://books.google.com/books?id=hHbTDVfWNU4C&lpg=PP1&pg=PR17#v=onepage&q=&f=false

You can see this WPA poster in the Library of Congress here:
http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/h?pp/PPALL:@field(NUMBER+@1(cph+3f05325

Historical Breastfeeding Photo: Prairie Flower

After finding the historic Dorothy Lange photo, I was intrigued to look for other historic photos of mothers breastfeeding their babies. This one isn't as beautiful as the first one I found, but it's much older.

This photo shows Cynthia Ann Parker breastfeeding her daughter, Topsanna (Prairie Flower), circa 1860-1870. In 1836, at about ten years of age, Parker was kidnapped by Comanches from her home in central Texas, along with four others. She went on to adopt Indian ways and married an Indian warrior. She bore one daughter and two sons, one of whom was future chief Quanah. Photo courtesy Denver Public Library, Western History Collection.

You can read more about Cynthia Ann Parker here: http://www.lone-star.net/mall/texasinfo/CynthiaAnnParker.htm

Historic Breastfeeding Photo: Migrant Mother

I linked to a story yesterday about the influence of formula upon breastfeeding trends. On that page, I recognized the woman in the photograph as the same woman in the iconic Great Depression photo by Dorothy Lange, entitled Migrant Mother. I went to Wikipedia to learn more, which I'm sharing here.

The pictured woman is Florence Owens Thompson, born in 1903 as Florence Leona Christie, died in September 1983. In the well-known photographs, taken in 1936, she is 32 years old.

Florence is nursing her baby, Norma. Her daughter Ruby is hiding behind her. Florence had seven children total. The family were pea pickers in Nipomo, California.

Her gravestone reads, "Migrant Mother – A Legend of the Strength of American Motherhood."

You can read more at Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Florence_Owens_Thompson

A historical look at the impact of infant formula on breastfeeding

This column was written a week ago, by Toni Parker of the Houston Examiner.

http://www.examiner.com/x-17146-Dallas-Womens-Health-Examiner~y2009m8d3-A-historical-look-at-the-impact-of-infant-formula-on-breastfeeding

"There are at least 400 nutrients in breast milk that processed milk cannot duplicate. These nutrients work in tandem, which maximizes their nutritional effectiveness. Conversely, any isolated, synthetic vitamin that is found in infant formulas offers no real nutritional value because they lack the whole food property of breast milk. Hopefully, we will correct the wrongs of our 19th century sisters and revert back to the days of yester year-the days when a human baby received it’s nourishment from another human being. If you are unable to breastfeed, you do have options, such as using a wet-nurse, patronizing a breast milk bank, or making your own healthy, homemade recipe of infant formula."