Jane's Illness: Home Life, Beginnings of Mania, and Mental Illness as a Cause of Death

Nähendes Mädchen by Hermann Lindenschmit, 1900 (rawpixel.com)

 

In my last post about my great-great-grandmother Maria Jane Darragh and her acute mania diagnosis, I wrote about some theories I've formed about what happened to her. (Catch up on previous posts about Jane here, here, and here.) In this post, I'll begin exploring my theories and discoveries.

But first, let's set the stage.

 

Jane's Home Life in St. Catharines

Jane and her husband Charles Francis Cassidy married in St. Catharines in 1883 and settled into married life there.¹ At the time, St. Catharines was the largest and most populous town on the Niagara Peninsula and a thriving port city located on the Welland Canal. During Jane's life in St. Catharines, the population hovered around 10,000 residents. The city drew manufacturing, milling, shipping, and supporting businesses.²

St. Paul Street in downtown St. Catharines in 1877, a few years before Charles and Jane married. (Photo courtesy of St. Catharines Museum and Welland Canals Centre.)

 

Jane's husband Charles was a successful blacksmith in St. Catharines. He began his career in the early 1880s. In 1895, he opened up his own shop on Mary Street in the heart of the city and maintained it until his death in 1926.³

Market Square in St. Catherines in 1890. With horse and wagon being the main method of transportation, blacksmiths such as Charles Cassidy would have been in high demand. (Photo courtesy of St. Catharines Museum and Welland Canals Centre.)

 

Charles was a busy man. He ran his blacksmith shop, which likely was a community hub and gathering place.⁴ He and the family were parishioners at the Cathedral of St. Catherine of Alexandria, where he and Jane had married.⁵ During his life, Charles was heavily involved in church, charitable, and fraternal organizations like the Knights of Columbus, the Catholic Mutual Benefit Association, the Master Horseshoers Association, the Liberal Club, the Fire Committee, and others.⁶ These affiliations allowed him to give back to his community while connecting him to fellow business owners and potential customers.

Like most wives of her time, Jane made their home, taking care of cooking, cleaning, laundry, shopping, and raising the couple's children—tending to their education and shepherding their religious faith. The family lived on Chestnut Street near Charles' blacksmith shop on Mary Street and a few blocks away from their church.⁷ It's possible that Jane was also active in her church or civic organizations, but if so, it was not recorded.

Jane's life revolved around this neighborhood in St. Catharines. Highlighted from left to right, the Cathedral of St. Catherine of Alexandria; Mary Street, where Charles had a blacksmith shop; and Chestnut Street, where the family lived before Jane's death, as shown on an 1875 St. Catharines map.⁸

 

It's unlikely that Jane had family living nearby. Her brother Daniel worked in St. Catharines just before she and Charles wed, but by 1891 he had opened a cabinetmaking business in Owen Sound, Grey County, over 150 miles away.⁹

It seems that Jane had few female relatives in her life to assist her. Her mother died when she was a small girl.¹⁰ She had three younger half-sisters, but each married and lived in other cities.¹¹ Other than her own daughters, who were Jane's friends and supports as she managed her family and household or stepped in when she was in need?

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Based on what I've learned about Jane's life, let's take a look at some research findings.

 

This episode of mania was possibly not the first Jane encountered. 

In August 1900, a short notice in the "News of the City and Vicinity" section in the St. Catharines newspaper stated, "Mrs. Charles Cassidy, of Chestnut street, is quite seriously ill." The timing is interesting: the notice came six months after her fourth child's birth.¹² Though the specific illness is not mentioned, it's possible that this was the newspaper's shorthand way of saying that Jane was close to death. As the wife of a well-known blacksmith, she was in the public eye and merited that attention. 

Could this incident have been an acute mania episode brought on by her recent childbirth? In the 19th century, it was thought that pregnancy, among other causes, could bring on mental illnesses. Medical thinking attributed several "manias" to the stages of pregnancy:

• Two were considered more melancholic or depressive: gestational insanity, which occurred during pregnancy, and lactational insanity, which occurred within six months or so of childbirth. 
• Puerperal insanity was thought to be triggered by the act of childbirth itself and usually appeared within a few weeks. This illness had similar symptoms to acute mania: excessive talking, inability to sleep, reduced appetite, feverish appearance, hallucinations and delusions, etc.¹³

It's possible that Jane fell ill after her son's birth in February 1900 and before the newspaper notice in August. If she had been sick for months, she could have been considered past recovery with an episode of acute mania mistaken for puerperal mania. Whatever the illness, Jane recovered and lived several more years.

 

It's possible that Jane suffered from infertility, miscarriages, or stillbirths during her childbearing years. 

In considering Jane's life timeline, I noted two long stretches between her children's births. Before the days of planned pregnancies, married women of childbearing age usually had a child every two years or so. Yet four years separate Jane's second and third children, and nearly eight years separate her third and fourth.¹⁴ It's possible that Jane suffered from infertility or had miscarriages and/or stillbirths in those gaps. 

If either were true, these were certainly known triggers of an acute mania attack—each would represent a "profound moral shock resulting from disappointments."¹⁵ If Jane experienced episodes of infertility or pregnancy losses followed by bouts of acute mania, that could account for these long periods between children. She may have needed time to recover from both before attempting another pregnancy. It would also be in keeping with the tendency of acute mania to be a recurring condition over time.

If Jane was frequently ill, was she pressured or expected to continue to have children? And if she was advised against it, was that advice disregarded? As it was, she was in her late 40s when she gave birth to her last son, James—any pregnancy at her age was risky.

Neither acute mania nor other mental illnesses were widely recorded cause of death in Ontario in 1903.

Mental illnesses such acute mania were rarely noted as a cause in over 32,000 deaths recorded in Ontario in 1903, the year Jane died. In fact, fewer than thirty (less than 1%), were recorded in the entire province that year. Of these, only eight, including Jane, were diagnosed as acute mania; other subtypes documented were puerperal mania, chronic mania, mania (no subtype noted), and exhaustion of mania.¹⁶

 

In the wide spectrum of human moods, mania can be characterized as the highest high and melancholia (or depression), the lowest low. Until the mid-19th century mania and melancholia were seen to be completely separate emotional states. In the 1850s, the notion of a cycle between mania and melancholia gave rise to the concept of bipolar disorder.¹⁷ However, mania and depression, both then and today, remain distinct diseases as well. By the time Jane was diagnosed in the early 1900s, the bipolar cycle would have been understood; with the diagnosis of acute mania, it's unlikely that Jane suffered from what we now know as bipolar disease.

Next week, I'll take a look at what treatments Jane might have been given and by whom, whether she was institutionalized, and about the doctor who treated her.

Until next time...

 

NOTES 

¹ Ontario, Office of Registrar General, County of Lincoln, Division of St. Catharines, Marriage Registrations 1869-1911, Unit "D," 1884, p. 537 (stamped), #25 (inked)/#6676 (stamped), marriage of Charles Cassady and Maria Jane Darah, 20 June 1883; database & images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:9Q97-Y39T-XNJ : accessed 27 January 2022); citing Archives of Ontario, Toronto, Canada. Also, 1891 Canada Census, Ontario, district 88, St. Catharines, St. Patrick's Ward, page 61, dwelling 324, Mary Jane Cassidy in Charles Cassidy household; imaged, "Canada, Census 1891," Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/1274/images/30953_148153-00215 : accessed 25 June 2025); citing Library and Archives Canada, Ottawa.

² Illustrated Historical Atlas of the Counties of Lincoln and Welland, Ontario (Toronto, Ontario: H.R. Page & Co., 1876), 17; citing McGill University Library, Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Also, Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Catharines#History : accessed 7 August 2026), "St. Catharines," last updated 3 August 2026, at 03:59 (UTC). 

³ "City and Vicinity News," The Daily Standard [St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada], 22 June 1895, p. 5, col. 2, Mr. Charles Cassidy branches out; imaged, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-standard-charles-cassidy-sets-up-sho/175505556/ : accessed 22 July 2026). 

⁴ Museum of Country Life (Turlough, Mayo, Ireland), "The Blacksmith," interpretive plaque, photo by N. Casey, 7 May 2026. 

⁵ St. Catherine of Alexandria Catholic Church, St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada, 1885 parish census, p. 100, Chs. Cassidy and family; imaged, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GYWX-69L : accessed 13 Feb. 2025); citing parish records, St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada. 

⁶ "Chas. Cassidy is Stricken," The Daily Standard [St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada], 5 April 1926, p. 1, col. 7; imaged, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/image/1018063835/ : accessed 22 July 2026). Also, "City and Vicinity," The Daily Standard [St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada], 28 June 1902, p. 3, col. 3, Charles Cassidy resigns from fire brigade committee ; imaged, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/image/1017918049/ : accessed 22 July 2026). Also, "Liberal Club Nominations," The Daily Standard [St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada], 16 Feb. 1905, p. 2, col. 4, Chas. Cassidy nominated for Liberal Club VP; imaged, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/image/1017921500/ : accessed 14 August 2026). Also, "Horse-Shoers at Banquet," The St. Catharines Standard [Ontario, Canada], 10 Feb. 1917, p. 1, col. 3, Chas. Cassidy, president; imaged, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/image/1189106254 : accessed 14 August 2026).

⁷  "City and Vicinity News," The Daily Standard, 22 June 1895, Mr. Charles Cassidy branches out. Also, "Local Happenings," The Daily Standard (St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada), 26 October 1903, p. 4, col. 4, Funeral of Mrs. Chas. Cassidy; imaged, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/image/1017923119/ : accessed 24 July 2025).

⁸ H. Brosius, Historical map showing Bird's-eye view of St. Catharines with streets and hydrological features named (n.p.: Chas. Shober & Co. prop's Chicago Lith. Co., 1875); imaged, Brock University (https://hub.arcgis.com/apps/Brock::st-catharines-1875-province-ontario-canada-1875/explore : accessed 15 Aug. 2026); citing digital reproduction, National Map Collection. Library and Archives Canada, Ottawa.

⁹ 1881 Canada Census, Ontario, Lincoln Co., Canada, population schedule, St. Catharines, p. 2, dwelling 14, family 14, line 20, Danl Darrow household; imaged, "1881 Census of Canada," FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HY-DTQQ-CTB : accessed 26 July 2025); citing Ancestry. Also, 1891 Canada Census, Ontario, Grey North., Canada, population schedule, Owen Sound Bay Ward, p. 55, dwelling W 2/7, family 263, line 15, Danuel Darrgh household; imaged, "1891 Census of Canada," Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/1274/records/2184837 : accessed 7 Aug. 2025); citing Census of Canada, 1891, Library and Archives Canada, Series RG31-C, Statistics Canada Fonds, microfilm reel T-6339, Ottawa.

¹⁰ Find a Grave, database with images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/249195133/dorah-darragh : accessed 25 June 2025), "Dorah Darragh" (1820-1856) memorial created by A.W. Bauer with headstone photo by Marilyn Hamilton Irish; citing St. Stanislaus Roman Catholic Cemetery, Chatsworth, Grey, Ontario, Canada. 

¹¹ 1871 Canada Census, Ontario, Grey Co., Canada West, population schedule, Town of Owen Sound, p. 48, dwelling 188, family 193, Jane, Cathrine, Margarett, and Hanah Darrach in John Darrach household; imaged, "1871 Census of Canada," Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/1578/images/4396339_00379 : accessed 29 June 2025); citing Library and Archives Canada, Ottawa. Also, Ontario, Canada, County of Elgin, Division of St. Thomas, Schedule B, Marriages, 1891, p. 61, No. 7, John Black and Cathrine Darragh marriage, 30 June 1891; imaged, "Ontario, Canada, Marriages, 1826-1943," Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/7921/images/ONMS932_70-1013 : accessed 14 Aug. 2026); citing Archives of Ontario, Toronto. Also, 1891 Canada Census, Ontario, district 68, N. Grey, page 53, dwelling B 2/5, Hannah Darragh in Louis Scwan household; imaged, "Canada, Census 1891," Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/1274/images/30953_148141-00026 : accessed 12 Sept. 2025); citing Library and Archives Canada, Ottawa. Also, Ontario, Canada, County of Grey, Division of Owen Sound, Schedule B, Marriages, 1895, p. 148, No. 7, John W. Hope and Margaret Allison Darragh marriage,19 August 1895; imaged, "Ontario, Canada, Marriages, 1826-1943," Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/7921/images/ONMS932_85-1023 : accessed 14 Aug. 2026); citing Archives of Ontario, Toronto.

¹² "News of the City and Vicinity," The Daily Standard (St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada), p. 3, col. 3, Mrs. Charles Cassidy is ill; imaged, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/image/1017920608/ : accessed 30 July 2025). Also, Cathedral of St. Catherine of Alexandria, St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada, Baptismal Register 1860-1906, p. 161 , James Daniel Cassidy, b. 6 Feb. 1900, bap. 11 Feb. 1900; database and images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GYWX-6L5 : accessed 25 June 2025); citing Diocese of St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada.

¹³ Nancy M. Theriot, “Diagnosing Unnatural Motherhood: Nineteenth-Century Physicians and ‘Puerperal Insanity.’” American Studies, vol. 30, no. 2, 1989, pp. 69–88; image copy, JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/40642344 : accessed 11 July 2022).

¹⁴ Cathedral of St. Catherine of Alexandria, St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada, Baptismal Register p. 129, birth/baptism of Catherine Ann Cassidy, 12 & 18 April 1886; "Canada, Ontario Roman Catholic Church Records, 1760-1923," database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GYWX-6K4?lang=en : accessed 12 September 2025); FHL film 005107195, image 129/177; Catholic Church parishes, Ontario. Also, Cathedral of St. Catherine of Alexandria, St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada, Baptismal Register 1860-1906, p. 136, Mary Jane Cassidy, b. 18 Aug. 1888, bap. 26 Aug. 1888; database and images, Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/61505/images/FS_005107195_00247 : accessed 19 Oct. 2024); citing Diocese of St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada. Also, Cathedral of St. Catherine of Alexandria, St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada, Baptismal Register 1860-1906, p. 145, Philip John Cassidy, b. 20 April 1892, bap. 1 May 1892; database and images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GYWX-62Q : accessed 25 June 2025); citing Diocese of St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada. Also, Cathedral of St. Catherine of Alexandria, St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada, Baptismal Register 1860-1906, p. 161, James Daniel Cassidy.

¹⁵ John Bassett Chapin, A Compendium of Insanity (Philadelphia: W.B. Saunders, 1898), 103; imaged, Internet Archive (https://archive.org/details/acompendiuminsa00chapgoog/page/n150/mode/2up?q=acute+mania : accessed 11 July 2026).

¹⁶ Ancestry, "Ontario, Canada, Deaths and Deaths Overseas, 1869-1953" (https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/8946 : accessed 5 August 2026), results for "mania" cause of death, 1903; citing "Registrations of Deaths, 1869-1942" (MS 935, reels 1-694) and "Division Registrar Vital Statistics Records, 1858-1930" (MS 940, reels 5-10, 16, 21, 26-27), Archives of Ontario, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

¹⁷ Brittany L. Mason, E. Sherwood Brown, Paul E. Croarkin, "Historical Underpinnings for Bipolar Disorder Diagnostic Criteria," Behavioral Sciences (Basel, Switzerland), 6, 3, 14 (15 June 2016); imaged, National Library of Medicine (https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5039514/ : accessed 15 Aug. 2026).