“Like Produces Like”: Popular Conceptions of Heredity in Canada, 1860-1900. by Riiko Olivia Bedford A thesis submitted in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Institute for the History and Philosophy of Science and Technology University of Toronto © Copyright by Riiko Bedford 2017 “Like Produces Like”: Popular Conceptions of Heredity in Canada, 1860-1900. Riiko Bedford Doctor of Philosophy Institute for the History and Philosophy of Science and Technology University of Toronto 2017 Abstract This dissertation examines popular conceptions of heredity in Canada between 1860- 1900. I focus on three bodies of literature in which ideas about heredity were explored, discussed, and negotiated: farmers’ and breeders’ periodicals, written by and for farmers and animal breeders; medical advice manuals aimed at wives and mothers; and the publications of the prominent reform organization, the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU). Specifically, I ask: how did these three groups understand the nature of heredity, how did this affect the ways they interacted with the world, and where did these ideas about heredity come from? In each case, I examine the particular notions of heredity they embraced, their sources, and how such notions were forged and operationalized to make sense of and order both the natural and the social worlds. I show how popular notions of heredity interacted with the interests and aspirations of the people who engaged with them. By examining the contours and sources of popular ideas about heredity, my research also helps untangle and make clear aspects of the complex circulation of scientific knowledge in late 19th century Canadian society. This dissertation demonstrate the role of these three distinct bodies of literature in the circulation of knowledge about heredity, and in the active discussion and negotiation about its broader social meanings. These media, which were themselves ii interconnected and mutually influential, exposed their readers to a range of sources and ways of knowing about heredity. They encouraged Canadians to think about the nature of heredity and its relevance to the health of their bodies and minds, their families, and the body politic. iii Acknowledgments I am grateful to many people who have helped me in writing this dissertation. In the first place, I would like to thank my supervisor, Nikolai Krementsov, for his continued support and guidance during the process of writing this thesis. His high standards helped me improve my research and writing, and his encouragement and pragmatic advice made the daunting task of writing a doctoral dissertation seem possible and even fun. I would also like to thank my co-supervisor, Marga Vicedo, for her valuable advice throughout this process. In particular, I owe her thanks for the careful assistance and guidance she gave during my preparation for the specialist exam, which laid the groundwork for this project. I thank my third committee member, Bernard Lightman, as well, for his helpful and interesting suggestions and for his positive encouragement. I owe thanks to many friends as well. Thanks to Liz Koester and Kira Lussier, who have read and heard me talk about too many versions of my third chapter, and who have provided advice, support, and comic relief throughout the process of course work and producing a dissertation. Thanks to Janaya, Bob, Sarah, Jordan, Paul, Adam, and Steve, for being my extended family the last several years, with whom I could commiserate about, and enjoy the special perks of, that unusual stage of life which is graduate school. There were times when my parents, Sue Tatemichi and David Bedford, believed in me more than I did and I can’t thank them enough for that. I treasure the many interesting conversations — sometimes on the phone, sometimes over toast and tea — that I shared with my father about my project over these last few years. I thank my parents as well for always iv being ready to jump in and help me get some work done by spending time with my increasingly mobile and busy son. My husband, Tom Cheney, has been a source of constant support and delicious food. Writing this dissertation would not have been possible — or at least, would have been much less fun — without him. He often prioritized my writing over his own, for which I am extremely grateful. Finally, I thank Owen, for being a daily source of wonder and joy, and for keeping me on my toes and motivated to keep working. v Table of Contents Abstract ........................................................................................................................................... ii Acknowledgments .......................................................................................................................... iv Table of Contents ........................................................................................................................... vi Introduction ......................................................................................................................................1 Outline of the Dissertation ........................................................................................................15 Chapter 1 — Heredity on the Farm: The Periodical Literature of Amateur Breeders and Farmers ......................................................................................................................................20 1.1 Introduction ...............................................................................................................20 th 1.2 History of Agricultural Periodicals in the 19 Century ............................................23 1.3 Discussions of Heredity in Canadian Agricultural Journals .....................................32 1.3.1 Heredity, Prepotency, and Blood ...............................................................34 1.3.2 Breeding Techniques: Breeding In-and-In .................................................43 1.3.3 On the Sexes ..............................................................................................52 1.3.4 Heredity of Disease ....................................................................................62 1.4 Sources of Knowledge about Heredity .....................................................................66 1.5 Conclusion ................................................................................................................75 Chapter 2 — Heredity in the Home: Domestic Medical Advice Manuals ....................................79 2.1 Introduction ...............................................................................................................79 2.2 Domestic Medical Manuals in 19th-Century North America ...................................82 2.3 Heredity in Domestic Medical Manuals ...................................................................91 2.3.1 Heredity and Disease .................................................................................95 2.3.2 Heredity, Prenatal Influences, and Lifestyle ............................................105 2.3.3 Heredity, Marriage, and Race ..................................................................114 vi 2.3.4 Heredity and Alcoholism .........................................................................126 2.3.5 Heredity and Domestic Medical Manuals ................................................129 2.4 Sources of Knowledge about Heredity ...................................................................133 2.5 Conclusion ..............................................................................................................146 Chapter 3 — Heredity and Morality: the Canadian WCTU and Social Reform .........................152 3.1 Introduction .............................................................................................................152 3.2 History of the WCTU in Canada ............................................................................157 3.2.1 Departments of Heredity ..........................................................................159 3.3 Ontario WCTU’s Conception of Heredity ..............................................................164 3.3.1 Alcoholism and Heredity .........................................................................166 3.3.2 Heredity as a Religious Concept ..............................................................169 3.4 The National (American) WCTU ...........................................................................173 3.4.1 Department of Heredity ...........................................................................174 3.4.2 Ambiguity of Heredity .............................................................................177 3.4.3 Heredity as Force .....................................................................................179 3.4.4 Malleability of Heredity ...........................................................................183 3.5 Sources of Knowledge about Heredity ...................................................................187 3.6 Conclusion ..............................................................................................................199 Conclusion ...................................................................................................................................203 Epilogue: Eugenics ......................................................................................................................219 Breeders, Farmers, and Agricultural Periodicals ....................................................................222