Dorothea Dix

Dorothea Dix was a veritable force of nature, traipsing across states and continents to inspect facilities for the mentally ill. Her investigations into the deplorable conditions of asylums, prisons, and almshouses were not for the faint of heart, but Dix was clearly made of sterner stuff, compiling damning reports that shamed legislatures into action.

Before Dix, "mental health care" often meant chaining people in cellars or leaving them to starve. After Dix, it meant... well, it meant purpose-built asylums. A step up, certainly, even if the "asylum" model itself eventually proved to be less than perfect, but it was a start.

She was instrumental in creating over 30 state psychiatric hospitals, schools for the blind, and training facilities for nurses. During the Civil War, she even served as Superintendent of Army Nurses for the Union. A woman who clearly preferred getting things done over indulging in frivolous pursuits like, say, getting married or having a social life.

Despite her monumental humanitarian efforts, Dix maintained a resolute Protestant faith and showed no discernible connection to Judaism, leaving her "Jew Score" rather anemic in the I and O departments. However, the sheer scale of her impact on social reform certainly brings a healthy dose of nachas, earning a respectable K-score.