23 October in the History of Psychology

On October 23:

1247 — The priory of St. Mary of Bethlehem, later to become Bethlehem Hospital, was founded on land donated by Simon FitzMary at Bishopsgate Without, London. This original site is now located under the Liverpool Street railway station. Bethlehem Hospital, or "Bedlam," later became notorious for its neglectful care of people with mental illness. The priory was first used to house "distracted persons" in around the year 1377.

1883 — The first state mental hospital in Oregon, the Oregon State Hospital in Salem, was opened with the admission of 320 patients. The first legislative authorization for the construction of the hospital was passed on October 25, 1880. Before construction of the state mental hospital, Oregonians with mental illness were cared for in a private mental hospital in Portland at state expense.

1885 — Albert T. Poffenberger was born. His interests were in applied and physiological psychology, with specialization in studies of gustation, fatigue, transfer of training, drug effects, and the speed of nervous conduction. He was the last president of the American Association for Applied Psychology and urged its unification with the APA to form the modern APA in 1945. APA President, 1935.

1886 — Edwin Garrigues Boring was born. Boring worked in the areas of sensation, perception, and cognition, but he is best known as a teacher and historian of psychology. His book A History of Experimental Psychology has been a standard text and reference work since its publication in 1929. APA President, 1928; American Psychological Foundation Gold Medal, 1959.

1889 — Frieda Fromm-Reichmann was born. Founder of the Psychoanalytic Institute of Southwest Germany, Fromm-Reichmann was the model for the therapist in the book I Never Promised You a Rose Garden, by a former patient, Joanne Greenberg. The first editions of the book were published under the pen name of Hannah Green.

1891 — Johann F. Herbart's Textbook in Psychology (Smith translation) was published in the United States.

1897 — Harold H. Anderson was born. Anderson conducted early studies of personality style, focusing on "dominative" and "integrative" styles in children and teachers. He was a pioneer of the field of clinical child psychology. With Gladys L. Anderson, he wrote the widely used Introduction to Projective Techniques (1951).

1948 — The first regular meeting of the North Carolina Psychological Association was held. Annual dues were $1.50.

1957 — Ernest J. McCormick's landmark book Human Engineering was published. In later revisions the book was titled Human Factors in Engineering and Design.

1963 — The New England Psychological Association was incorporated. Herbert J. Hoffmann was president of the board of directors.

1972 — The Pennsylvania Board of Examiners in Psychology was appointed. The board was created by state law on March 23, 1972. The first meeting of the board was held March 9, 1973. Pennsylvania allowed the board to meet for only 2 days every other month, allowed licensure of masters degree practitioners, and set a deadline of November 23, 1973 for approval of "grandfather" applications. The board was overwhelmed by the resulting crush of applications.