Infant Incubators! Baby in a box!
How one man saved thousands of premature babies, in Coney Island, by putting them on display.
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"Come this way, ladies and gentlemen! See the tiniest little bits of humanity in the world warmed, nourished and fed, given a good fair start to become strong and able-bodied citizens. May be the future President is inside! May be there's another J. Pierpont Morgan breathing the pure tar scented air! All done by the baby incubator! First appearance since the exposition at Buffalo! Step right in and watch the babies grow well and strong before your eyes."
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One of the most unique, fascinating, and humanity-improving attractions in old, weird Coney Island were the premature babies on display in the "Infant Incubators". Dr. Martin A. Couney was a Doctor and an Inventor "of instruments" who was a pioneer in neonatology - the care and treatment of newborn infants, especially the ill or premature. Dr. Couney was born in Germany and later lived in France before coming to the United States in 1903, and although neonatology had existed before him, he was the first to have the genius idea to put the infants on display and use the money made from it to fund further life-saving and research. Sometimes his name is mispelled as "Coney", which makes for a humorous coincidence, except that even his siblings used to sometimes spell their last names that way.
The original technology for the incubators was born in France, where Dr. Couney would later encounter it and learn its use. It was based on a heated incubation box that was used for poultry - Dr. E. S. Tarnier asked the creator of the box (M. Odile Martin of the Paris Zoo) if he could make a larger version for human babies. Dr. Couney would later study under Dr. Tarnier and learn the use of the incubators. |
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The Infant Incubator was essentially a box that the baby would live in temporarily, while it gained strength and was nursed to health. The box was heated, the temperature controlled automatically with a thermometer, with fresh air being cycled through the unit constantly. The air was filtered through an antiseptic liquid, and then through cotton, and the air was heated before entering the box in order to keep the infant at a specific temperature.
When the babies arrived, they were immediately "given a bath in water and mustard. Then two drops of brandy are placed in its mouth, which acts as a stimulant. Its body is rubbed with specially prepared lotions, and into the incubator it goes. For four days it is kept at a temperature from 90 to 105 degrees, being removed regularly day and night every two hours to be fed fifteen grams of nourishment." A "nasal spoon" is used to feed the babies, who do not have the strength to breastfeed themselves just yet.
Dr. Couney first exhibited infant incubators in 1896 at the World Exposition in Berlin, Germany. The exhibit was named "Kinderbrutanstalt" or "Child Hatchery" and it was an enormous success. The exhibit had over 100,000 visitors in only two months, and Dr. Couney brought his incubators to London soon afterwards where they were also met with great success. Unfortunately, because of the fame and notoriety they were getting, the previously supportive medical community began to worry whether this was less about medicine and more about exploitation.
As is a common theme with many of the exhibits that would end up at Coney Island, there grew a concern that the babies in the incubators might be being exploited and not properly cared for or even potentially abused. But people that actually visited the exhibit, including nurses and other medical professionals, said that the babies were well taken care of, and received excellent treatment.
Nevertheless, when Dr. Couney brought his exhibit to London, local officials would not allow any local babies to appear in the exhibit. Dr. Couney, desperate, appealed to another of his mentors, Dr. Pierre Budin in Paris, and Dr. Couney was given three wicker baskets full of babies for his incubators. The London exhibition was saved, and went on to be another enormous success!
Although it may appear controversial that Dr. Couney was "given" babies for his exhibits, without his help many of these babies were not expected to live. And so it was thought that this was in fact, their only chance at survival. Parents of children who had been born prematurely were desperate to save their poor babies, and were willing to entrust the care of their children to this caring and knowledgeable man who was becoming famous for saving these babies.
When the babies arrived, they were immediately "given a bath in water and mustard. Then two drops of brandy are placed in its mouth, which acts as a stimulant. Its body is rubbed with specially prepared lotions, and into the incubator it goes. For four days it is kept at a temperature from 90 to 105 degrees, being removed regularly day and night every two hours to be fed fifteen grams of nourishment." A "nasal spoon" is used to feed the babies, who do not have the strength to breastfeed themselves just yet.
Dr. Couney first exhibited infant incubators in 1896 at the World Exposition in Berlin, Germany. The exhibit was named "Kinderbrutanstalt" or "Child Hatchery" and it was an enormous success. The exhibit had over 100,000 visitors in only two months, and Dr. Couney brought his incubators to London soon afterwards where they were also met with great success. Unfortunately, because of the fame and notoriety they were getting, the previously supportive medical community began to worry whether this was less about medicine and more about exploitation.
As is a common theme with many of the exhibits that would end up at Coney Island, there grew a concern that the babies in the incubators might be being exploited and not properly cared for or even potentially abused. But people that actually visited the exhibit, including nurses and other medical professionals, said that the babies were well taken care of, and received excellent treatment.
Nevertheless, when Dr. Couney brought his exhibit to London, local officials would not allow any local babies to appear in the exhibit. Dr. Couney, desperate, appealed to another of his mentors, Dr. Pierre Budin in Paris, and Dr. Couney was given three wicker baskets full of babies for his incubators. The London exhibition was saved, and went on to be another enormous success!
Although it may appear controversial that Dr. Couney was "given" babies for his exhibits, without his help many of these babies were not expected to live. And so it was thought that this was in fact, their only chance at survival. Parents of children who had been born prematurely were desperate to save their poor babies, and were willing to entrust the care of their children to this caring and knowledgeable man who was becoming famous for saving these babies.
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In 1898, Dr. Couney asked to display his infant incubators and babies at the Trans-Mississippi Exposition in Kountze Park, Omaha. And strangely, although it could have been to raise funds for the exhibits, he was quoted in many local newspaper articles extolling the virtues of giving "Krug"-brand beer to the nursing mothers to help in their milk production.
Whether or not this is actually true, Dr. Couney did indeed control the milk that was used in his infant incubators very carefully. The wet nurses that provided the milk for the babies were supplied with food and meals from a special kitchen and if any of them were spotted having a hot dog or "orange drink" out in the amusement park, they were immediately fired. |
When the babies in the incubators have grown to normal size, or at the end of the season, babies were returned to their parents. But since caring for a baby is hard work, some parents were reluctant to take their children back right away. In these cases, Dr. Couney would drive the baby to it's parents' home and leave it. In some cases, the babies that lived in the incubators had no other place to go - not only would they be nursed back to health thanks to the technology used by Dr. Couney, but sometimes if a baby did not have a family to go home to, being on display could result in the child getting adopted by some couple looking to expand their family.
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In 1903, Dr. Couney emigrated to the United States and soon after, brought his infant incubators to Luna Park in Coney Island, Brooklyn. The entrance to the infant incubators in Coney Island was marked with a sign that said "All The World Loves A Baby" and the building was decorated liberally with artist Andrea della Robbia "bambino" symbols. The Infant Incubators were a hit in Coney Island and were displayed there for the next 40 years, although Dr. Couney displayed them both at Luna Park and also at Dreamland in Coney Island. Additional Infant Incubators were also displayed on the Atlantic City Boardwalk where Dr. Couney had a second location, and he would occasionally display his exhibit at other expositions and fairs throughout the United States. When Dreamland burned to the ground in 1911, Dr. Couney was lucky to have his other incubator setup over at Luna Park, and workers quickly transferred the babies over there - however, false rumors abounded that the poor babies in Dreamland had burned in the fire.
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In July 1904, the first annual reunion of Incubator Infant survivors was held at Dreamland in Coney Island on July 31st, where 40 "graduates" of the Infant Incubators took part, ranging in age from 3 months to 3 years old. In the incubators, babies are given a necklace with their personal information on it to identify them, and sometimes when "graduates" of the incubators return years later, they wear the necklaces or show them and are allowed into the park for free.
Unfortunately, although Dr. Couney had great success with his incubators, saving an average of 90% or greater of the infants in his care, others were not as skilled. The immense success of Dr. Couney and his incubators led to many imitators and copycats, except not as knowledgeable or well-trained. "The Imperial Concession Company" was formed by some St. Louis entrepreneurs to try to display infants in incubators at the Louisiana Purchase Exposition of 1904, but their success rate only ever reached around 50% and led to required changes and corrections, which were very costly and resulted in no one else really copying Dr. Couney for many years to come.
In 1907, Dr. Couney's life-saving technology would come in handy after the premature birth of his own daughter, Hildegarde. Frantic, he called a friend to drive (illegally fast) to go pick up an incubator from Coney Island to bring it to his home, worked quickly to get a mechanic to set up the machine, and sent another friend to gather the tools and things necessary for the installation. Hildegarde would indeed survive and thrive, becoming a nurse and working alongside her father for many years.
Unfortunately, although Dr. Couney had great success with his incubators, saving an average of 90% or greater of the infants in his care, others were not as skilled. The immense success of Dr. Couney and his incubators led to many imitators and copycats, except not as knowledgeable or well-trained. "The Imperial Concession Company" was formed by some St. Louis entrepreneurs to try to display infants in incubators at the Louisiana Purchase Exposition of 1904, but their success rate only ever reached around 50% and led to required changes and corrections, which were very costly and resulted in no one else really copying Dr. Couney for many years to come.
In 1907, Dr. Couney's life-saving technology would come in handy after the premature birth of his own daughter, Hildegarde. Frantic, he called a friend to drive (illegally fast) to go pick up an incubator from Coney Island to bring it to his home, worked quickly to get a mechanic to set up the machine, and sent another friend to gather the tools and things necessary for the installation. Hildegarde would indeed survive and thrive, becoming a nurse and working alongside her father for many years.