Photo: Professional staff of the West Virginia Hospital for the Insane, circa 1894-1900. Lorilla Bullard, front row left. W.E. Stathers, possibly the bearded man in front row. Others pictured: C.S. Topping, Clerk; T.B. Miskimom, Druggist; Miss Hall, Sup.; William Mick, Sup.; J.W. Curtis, Ush.; R.H. Fetty, M.D.; Mamie McIntyre, Mat.; Mark Perry M.D.
Born in 1870 in West Virginia, Dr. Tower (and her sister Rachel) attended Women’s Medical College of Pennsylvania and practiced medicine from 1896 – 1901 at what was then known as West Virginia Hospital for the Insane.
Her bid for reappointment after the first term of service sparked some controversy over whether women were fit to serve in such a position. Many professionals rose to her defense. A.B. White, President and Editor of The State Journal wrote: “A physician of her own sex is no longer denied in many progressive states to the unfortunates whose mental conditions require treatment at the asylum and no one better than a skillful woman could treat a woman thus afflicted. The very nature and condition of patients in many cases implies the need for women attendants of skillful hands and through medical training. Dr. Bullard meets these requirements admirably and I commend her to your most favorable consideration.”
Second photo: Professional staff of the West Virginia Hospital for the Insane, circa 1894-1900. Lorilla Bullard, front row left. W.E. Stathers, possibly the bearded man in front row. Others pictured: C.S. Topping, Clerk; T.B. Miskimom, Druggist; Miss Hall, Sup.; William Mick, Sup.; J.W. Curtis, Ush.; R.H. Fetty, M.D.; Mamie McIntyre, Mat.; Mark Perry M.D.
About this time, Dr. Tower married Edward Zealous Tower and moved to Maryland. Although it seems that she didn’t practice medicine per se in her new home, her life was marked by life-long civic and community work.
Local stories abound about her work to empower women for social reform and suffrage. She held many executive positions in community organizations. Lorilla was a founding sponsor of the first free public library in the county, chairman of the earliest Garrett County Health Association, executive secretary of the Children’s Aid Society, trustee of the public schools, and the original president of the Parent Teacher Association. For forty-one years she was chairman of the Garrett County Chapter of the American Red Cross and was named a permanent member of the Board of Directors of the Garrett County Memorial Hospital when it opened.
Dr. Tower was president of the Oakland Women’s Civic Club in 1914 at the time of the Garrett County Suffrage Hike. and was president of the Oakland Women’s Civic Club in 1914 when the JGL hiked through Garrett County. After the 19th amendment ratification, Dr. Tower worked with Madeleine Ellicott, founder of the Maryland League of Women Voters, and was active in the Maryland State Federation of Republican Women.
Dr. Bullard’s papers at West Virginia University contain photos, correspondence and remembrances of the conditions at the West Virginia Hospital for the Insane.
Resources and more reading:
Lorilla Bullard: Doctor to Insane Women, January 8, 2024, West Virginia University Library, by Linda Blake, accessed 8/25/26
Lorilla Frances Bullard Tower papers, https://archives.lib.wvu.edu/repositories/2/resources/6957, accessed 8/25/2026