This section of the museum turns outward, from fiction to record. Here are women whose lives were documented only as deviation, disappearance, or disorder. Some of their stories survive as narratives, while others as traces: court records, institutional files, marginal notes, photographs without names.

Confined, Silenced & Committed

Elizabeth Packard (1816–1897)
The Women of the Salpêtrière (Paris)
“Moral Imbeciles” & “Fallen Girls”
Link coming soon. 

Artists, Performers &  Eccentrics.

Liane de Pougy (1869–1950)
Valtesse de la Bigne (1848–1910).
​ Chorus Girls & Cabaret Performers
Link coming soon. ​

Criminals & Survivalists

Madeleine Pelletier (1874–1939)
Poisoners, Thieves, Baby Farmers
Link coming soon. ​

The Ones Who Knew Too Much 

Clerks, Archivists & Photo Assistants
Spiritualists & Mediums
Link coming soon. 

No Paper Trails

Orphans & Runaways
​Immigrant Girls
Link coming soon. ​

Personal Waywards

Who is your Wayward Girl?
Link coming soon. ​