“Prairie madness” is a documented phenomenon wherein immigrants who settled the Great Plains experienced episodes of depression and violent behavior. The cause is commonly attributed to the isolation of the households and settlements. Historical accounts and literature from the late 19th and early 20th centuries also specify the loud sound of the winds on the plain as a catalyst for prairie madness. This study uses audiometric analysis of general human-hearing patterns combined with spectral data on the soundscape of the Great Plains region to investigate the possible effect of soundscapes on historical-period plains settler populations. I propose that a number of settlers may have suffered from conditions such as misophonia and acute hyperacusis that can cause increased sensitivity to environmental sounds. Both conditions can result from high-stress environments and cause behavior consistent with descriptions of prairie madness, such as depression, insomnia, and violent or irrational behavior.
...MoreArticle Karen Bescherer Metheny (2022) Connecting Archaeological Practice with the Senses and Past Bodily Experience: Introduction to “Sensory Engagement in Historical Archaeology”. Historical Archaeology (pp. 172-183).
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