Anna Marsh (birth year unknown, died 1834) established the Vermont Asylum of the Insane in 1834.
Marsh was born and raised in Hinsdale, New Hampshire. She was the widow of physician Perley Marsh.
She is responsible for the creation of the Brattleboro Retreat, originally known as the Vermont Asylum for the Insane. She was the first woman credited with starting a hospital for the mentally ill. She was responsible for selecting the trustees before her death.
A bad healing experience leading to the death of a member of her family has been suggested as an impetus to her idea of creating a humane care option. Her vision was a facility patterned on a Quaker concept called moral treatment.
She didn't have much to do with Brattleboro until she died, but her influence is enormous.
Upon her death, her will instructed heirs to build a mental hospital in Brattleboro. This was founded in 1834 with her $10,000 bequest.
The Brattleboro Retreat grew in popularity and had success treating people with a combination of fresh air, exercise, good food, and other treatments for the "insane". Large porches on the buildings allowed patients to sit and read, relax, and recover.
As of 2006, the Brattleboro Retreat, now named Retreat Healthcare, is still in operation serving a wide variety of mental conditions. It is a 1000-acre (4 km²) campus of many large buildings, a working farm, and lots of land to explore.