Books with title Out Of The Darkness: The Story of Mary Ellen Wilson by Eric A. Shelman

IT BEGAN WITH ONE ABUSED CHILD . . . A Little Girl's Terror: By April of 1874, nine-year-old Mary Ellen Wilson had been beaten, cut, and burned by her foster mother for more than seven years. She had never once been allowed outdoors, her keeper locking her inside a tiny, dark closet while she was away. In the coldest New York winters, the child slept on a piece of carpet on the floor, only a threadbare quilt to warm her. A Caring Woman's Determination:When a concerned social worker named Etta Wheeler learned of the child's plight, she made appeals to the police, church, and the courts, but with no success. "Don't interfere between parent and child," they said. While others may have given up, Etta was determined to help little Mary Ellen. An Unlikely Hero For An Abused Child:In a desperate last resort, Etta went to Henry Bergh of the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA). Would this man who was so kind to animals help? Surely the child had the same rights as a defenseless, abused creature. Bergh heard Etta's story, and the events that followed forever changed the course of child protection in America.Forgotten for over a century, Shelman and Lazoritz bring the story of "Little Mary Ellen" to light for the first time since it appeared in the pages of the New York Times, the Brooklyn Eagle, and the New York Tribune in 1874.

In New York City, in April of 1874, a most unusual event took place. A severely abused nine-year-old girl named Mary Ellen Wilson became the first child in America to be rescued from an abusive home. She had been beaten, burned, slashed with scissors, locked in a closet, and had never been outside of her tenement home in over 7 years. Thanks to the concern and dedication of a missionary named Etta Wheeler, the child was finally saved from her cruel captors. Henry Bergh's ASPCA - yes, the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals - was instrumental in securing her rescue. When no other agencies would become involved, the ASPCA used its power and influence to not only save Mary Ellen, but to charter the first organization of its kind to prevent cruelty to children, the NYSPCC - the New York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children. This book remains the only book that tells the dramatic story of Mary Ellen's life and rescue.

In New York City back in April of 1874, a most unusual event took place. A severely abused nine-year-old girl named Mary Ellen Wilson became the first child in America to be rescued from an abusive home. She had been beaten, burned, slashed with scissors, locked in a closet, and had never been outside of her tenement home in over 7 years. Thanks to the concern and dedication of a missionary named Etta Wheeler, the child was finally saved from her cruel captors. Henry Bergh's ASPCA -- yes, the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals -- was instrumental in securing her rescue. When no other agencies would become involved, the ASPCA used its power and influence to not only save Mary Ellen, but to charter the first organization of its kind to prevent cruelty to children, the NYSPCC -- the New York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children. This book remains the ONLY book that tells the dramatic story of Mary Ellen's life and rescue.

In 1874, an amazing event took place. The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) initiated the rescue of a severely abused child named Mary Ellen Wilson. Little Mary Ellen as she became known, was beaten, burned, and slashed with scissors, her brutal adoptive mother, Mary Connolly locking her indoors for over 7 years. Her rescue initiated the beginning of true child protection in this country, and eventually, the first child protection agency in America was formed, The New York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NYSPCC) Still in existence today, it is a testement to what caring individuals can do to change the world. Written in a dramatic format, it tells the story of Mary Ellen from her birth to her eventual rescue. This remains the only book on this fascinating case.