Page 103
“…undergoing physical disembodiment.”
Reprinted from the Nantucket Enquirer.
The Edgefield Advertiser (Edgefield, SC), March 18, 1846, p. 2.
“…shattering from within.”
Reprinted from the Nantucket Enquirer.
The Edgefield Advertiser (Edgefield, SC), March 18, 1846, p. 2.
“…an arched way in the heavens…”
Royal Astronomical Society. (1846). Monthly notices: Containing papers, abstracts of papers, and reports of the proceedings of the Society. Oxford: Blackwell, Vol. 7, p. 91.
“Constantly in pain…”
This originally appeared in the paper cited below, but is quoted in the paper co-authored by Wall, Arrowsmith, Briggs, Browning, and Lassey.
L.L. Wall, S.D. Arrowsmith, N.D. Briggs, A. Browning, Anyeti Lassey, “The Obstetric Vesicovaginal Fistula in the Developing World,” Obstetrical and Gynecological Survey, Vol. 60, No. 7, 2005, p. S3.
Hamlin, R.H.J. and E.C. Nicholson (1966) “Experiences in the treatment of 600 vaginal fistulas and in the management of 80 labours which have followed the repair of these injuries” Ethiopian Medical Journal, Vol. 4, No. 5, 189-192.
“…no work for five days…”
Narrative of Sally Brown.
Rawick, G. P., Hillegas, J., & Lawrence, K. (1978). The American slave: A composite autobiography: supplement, series 1. Westport, Conn: Greenwood Pub, Vol. 3, Georgia, p. 95.
Sally Brown
“…something inside of her bursting…”
My description of Anarcha’s condition at this time—the onset of her fistula and the leak of feces and urine from her vagina—is largely speculative, but is in keeping with many accounts of fistula sufferers and with Sims’s original description of her condition.
SIMS, J. Marion, (1885). The Story of my Life, ed. by H. Marion-Sims. D. Appleton & Co: New York, p. 227.
“…old sacks or bags…”
Narratives of Charles Crawley and Minnie Davis.
Library of Congress. (2018). Slave narratives: A folk history of slavery in the U.S., Virginia Narratives, Vol. 1, p. 10; Georgia Narratives, Vol. 1, p. 256.
