a brief history of birth control in the us
Birth control in the United States
Although contraceptives were relatively common in middle - class and upper - class society , the topic was rarely discussed in public . The first book published in the United States which ventured to discuss contraception was Moral Physiology ; or , A Brief and Plain Treatise on the Population Question , published by Robert Dale Owen in 1831 . The book suggested that family planning was a laudable effort , and that sexual gratification -- without the goal of reproduction -- was not immoral . Owen recommended withdrawal , but he also discussed sponges and condoms . That book was followed by Fruits of Philosophy : The Private Companion of Young Married People , written in 1832 by Charles Knowlton , which recommended douching . Knowlton was prosecuted in Massachusetts on obscenity charges , and served three months in prison .
Although contraceptives were relatively common in middle - class and upper - class society , the topic was rarely discussed in public . The first book published in the United States which ventured to discuss contraception was Moral Physiology ; or , A Brief and Plain Treatise on the Population Question , published by Robert Dale Owen in 1831 . The book suggested that family planning was a laudable effort , and that sexual gratification -- without the goal of reproduction -- was not immoral . Owen recommended withdrawal , but he also discussed sponges and condoms . That book was followed by Fruits of Philosophy : The Private Companion of Young Married People , written in 1832 by Charles Knowlton , which recommended douching . Knowlton was prosecuted in Massachusetts on obscenity charges , and served three months in prison .