Amariah Brigham (December 26, 1798, in

New Marlborough, Massachusetts New Marlborough is a town in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,528 at the 2020 census. New Marlborough consists of five villages: Clayto ...

– September 8, 1849, in

Utica, New York Utica () is a Administrative divisions of New York, city in the Mohawk Valley and the county seat of Oneida County, New York, United States. The List of cities in New York, tenth-most-populous city in New York State, its population was 65,283 ...

) was an American

psychiatrist A psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in psychiatry, the branch of medicine devoted to the diagnosis, prevention, study, and treatment of mental disorders. Psychiatrists are physicians and evaluate patients to determine whether their sy ...

and, in 1844, one of the founding members of the

Association of Medical Superintendents of American Institutions for the Insane The Association of Medical Superintendents of American Institutions for the Insane, also known as The Superintendents' Association, was organized in Philadelphia in October, 1844 at a meeting of 13 superintendents, making it the first professiona ...

, which eventually became the

American Psychiatric Association The American Psychiatric Association (APA) is the main professional organization of psychiatrists and trainee psychiatrists in the United States, and the largest psychiatric organization in the world. It has more than 37,000 members are involve ...

. While serving as the first director of the

Utica Psychiatric Center The Utica Psychiatric Center, also known as Utica State Hospital, opened in Utica on January 16, 1843. It was New York's first state-run facility designed to care for the mentally ill, and one of the first such institutions in the Uni ...

, Dr. Brigham launched and became the first editor of the Association's official journal, ''The American Journal of Insanity'' (now called ''The

American Journal of Psychiatry ''The American Journal of Psychiatry'' is a monthly peer-reviewed medical journal covering all aspects of psychiatry, and is the official journal of the American Psychiatric Association. The first volume was issued in 1844, at which time it was k ...

'').

Selected works

* ''Remarks on the influence of mental cultivation and mental excitement upon health'' (2d ed., Boston, 1833) *
Observations on the Influence of Religion upon the Health and Physical Welfare of Mankind
'. Facsimile ed., 1973, 2 vols. in 1, Scholars' Facsimiles & Reprints, .
''A treatise on epidemic cholera : including an historical account of its origin and progress, to the present period'' (1832)
* ''An inquiry into diseases and functions of the brain, spinal cord and nerves'' (1840)

Sources

''The Encyclopedia Americana'', Volume 4

External links

American Psychiatric Association

American Journal of Psychiatry
* 1798 births 1849 deaths American psychiatrists The American Journal of Psychiatry editors {{US-psychiatrist-stub