Madame Restell

Title

Madame Restell

Subject

Abortion Provider
New York City
Newspaper

Description

Anna Lohman (1812-1877) and her husband, Charles, ran a flourishing mail-order business from the 1840s to the 1870s. Under the names Madame Restell and Dr. Mauriceau, they sold contraceptives and operated an abortion clinic in New York City.


Her husband’s pseudonym is a reference to the famous obstetrician François Mauriceau (1637-1709), who introduced the reclining position during childbirth at the French court.


Madame Restell eventually became so widely known that Restellism was a synonym for abortion.

Publisher

Museum of Contraception and Abortion

Date

1847

Format

Portrait

Coverage

New York City

Files

2425_00_dl_restell.jpg

Citation

“Madame Restell,” Sovereign Body History Project , accessed April 29, 2024, https://sovereignbodyhistoryproject.omeka.net/items/show/5.