Vineland in Cumberland County, New Jersey — The American Northeast (Mid-Atlantic)
Mary J. Dunlap
Women's Heritage Trail
Born in 1853 in Philadelphia, Mary J. Dunlap was awarded her medical degree in 1886 from the Woman's Medical College of Pennsylvania. Dr. Dunlap was the first female Superintendent and Medical Director for the newly established Home for the Feeble-Minded in Vineland (now the Vineland Developmental Center), a public school and residential facility for girls and women. As Director, her aim was to promote physical development through "close supervision and moral persuasion." She presided over the facility at Main and Landis Avenues in Vineland from 1889 to 1909.
A leader in many fields, Dr. Dunlap was President of the National Association of Medical Officers of American Institutions for the Study of the Feeble-Minded (presently AAMR), Director of the New Jersey Legal Aid Association for Women, Charter President of the Vineland Women's Club, President of the Cumberland County Medical Society (she was also the first woman to be elected as a member) and life member of the Vineland Historical and Antiquarian Society.
"… in making others self-helpful, useful and happy, we find our own lives so bright and so busy that we envy not those who look on coldly."
— Dr. Mary Dunlap
Erected by Department of Community Affairs, New Jersey
this page online
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Charity & Public Work • Education • Science & Medicine • Women. In addition, it is included in the New Jersey Women’s Heritage Trail series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1853.
Location. 39° 29.076′ N, 75° 1.282′ W. Marker is in Vineland, New Jersey, in Cumberland County. Marker is on South 7th Street just south of East Elmer Street, on the right when traveling south. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 108 S 7th St, Vineland NJ 08360, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Baggage Cart (a few steps from this marker); City of Vineland Operation Desert Storm Victory Mini-Park (about 600 feet away, measured in a direct line); Vice Admiral Wallace M. Beakley Square (approx. ¼ mile away); Civil War Memorial (approx. ¼ mile away); Freedom Is Not Free (approx. 0.3 miles away); National Holiness Association Memorial (approx. 0.6 miles away); Roll of Honor (approx. 0.6 miles away); Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Circle (approx. 0.6 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Vineland.
Photographed By Devry Becker Jones (CC0), July 26, 2020
2. Vineland Historical and Antiquarian Society
Credits. This page was last revised on July 28, 2020. It was originally submitted on July 28, 2020, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia. This page has been viewed 178 times since then and 41 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on July 28, 2020, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia.
