Here you'll find examples of books, journals, and other periodicals that will be useful in your research.
Keep in mind that this is just a place to start and there is more to discover! For example, many of the authors and organizations included here published multiple works on eugenics.
Eugenics: A Journal of Race Betterment: publication of the American Eugenics Society, library has issue from 1929
Eugenical News: publication of the American Eugenics Society, library has issues from 1916 to 1942.
Eugenics Quarterly: publication of the American Eugenics Society, library has issues from 1950s and 1960s.
Memoir and Bulletin: publications of the Eugenics Record Office, library has issues from the 1910s.
Annals of Eugenics: publication of the Galton Laboratory, library has issues 1920s-1950s.
The Humanitarian: pro-eugenics magazine published by Victoria Woodhull, library has issues from 1892 to 1893.
Lucifer, the light-bearer: pro-eugenics newspaper published in Topeka, Kansas, library has issues from 1890 to 1907.
Here are a few related topics that were often influenced by or influenced the eugenics movement.
Criminology: study of criminal behavior, often viewed as a symptom of feeble-mindedness and a hereditary trait.
Example: L'homme criminel. Cesare Lombroso (1888).
Craniometry: study of skull size, often viewed as a measurement of intelligence and used to classify types of people.
Example: Crania Americana. Samuel Morton (1839).
Phrenology: using the shape and size of the skull to predict mental traits.
Example: New Illustrated Self-instructor in Phrenology and Physiology. O.S. Fowler (1884).
On the Origin of the Species by Means of Natural Selection; or The Preservation of the Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life. Charles Darwin (1859): Darwin's theories of evolution and natural selection influenced the eugenics movement and were often used to justify it.
Hereditary Genius: An Inquiry into its Laws and Consequences. Francis Galton (1869): Galton, cousin of Darwin, coined the term "eugenics" and is often considered the movement's father. In this influential work, he argues that traits like intelligence are inherited. The library has other works by Galton.
Heredity in Relation to Eugenics. Charles Davenport (1911): Book by prominent American eugenicist that was widely read and often used as a textbook. The library has additional works by Davenport.
The Kallikak Family: A Study in the Heredity of Feeble-mindedness. Henry Goddard (1912): An influential book that used the study of a single family to demonstrate that certain traits, like feeblemindedness, were hereditary. This is one of many "family studies" produced at the time that also include The Nam Family and The Hill Folk.
The Jukes in 1915. Arthur Estabrook (1916): A family study, similar to the Kallikak study, that focused on criminal behavior as a hereditary trait. The study was later used as evidence in the Buck v. Bell case.
Nature's Secrets Revealed. Thomas W. Shannon (1917): Intended for a general audience, this book explains eugenics and offers advice on how to produce children with desired hereditary traits.
Eugenical Sterilization in the United States. Harry Laughlin (1922): Book by a prominent American eugenicist providing information on state sterilization laws and statistical information as well as guidelines for making a "eugenical diagnosis" and a model eugenics law that was the basis for many future state laws.
The Pivot of Civilization. Margaret Sanger (1922): Pro-birth control work that includes a discussion of eugenics and a chapter on the "fertility of the feeble-minded."
Eugenics in Relation to the New Family and the Law on Racial Integrity. Virginia Bureau of Vital Statistics (1925): Writings on the relationship between eugenics and Virginia's 1924 law aimed at preserving the white race.
Applied Eugenics. Paul Popenoe & Roswell Hill Johnson (1933): Popular college textbook authored by Paul Popenoe, a supporter of compulsory sterilzation in the U.S.
Tomorrow's Children; the Goal of Eugenics. Ellsworth Huntington (1935): publication of the American Eugenics Society that attempts to explain eugenics in simple terms using a question-and-answer format.
Publications of the Eugenics Board of North Carolina:
Biennial Report of the Eugenics Board of North Carolina: library has reports from 1936 to 1968.
Manual of the Eugenics Board of North Carolina: library has 1948 manual.
A study relating to mental illness, mental deficiency and epilepsy in a selected rural county: a 1948 study intended to understand the extent of mental illness in N.C. and supply statistical information to the Eugenics Board.
Eugenical Sterilization in North Carolina: a report on Eugenics Board's work through 1935 combined with a report on the national growth of sterilization.
Other Publications:
Speaking of Sterilization: pamphlet distributed by the pro-sterilization Human Betterment League of North Carolina in the 1950s.
The Case for Sterilization: Quality versus Quantity: 1948 special edition of the Winston-Salem Journal Sentinel focused on sterilization.
Sterilization in North Carolina: A Sociological and Psychological Study: 1950 study of the North Carolina program containing information, including statistics, from the program's beginning through 1950.
Report of the Committee on Caswell Training School: 1926 report from the Caswell Training School, a school for the state's "feebleminded" in Kinston, N.C.
The Undesirable: a speech given in 1914 by the superintendent of Caswell Training School.
