Before the 18th century, doctors had little education, and hospitals were barely being built; however, as the decline of witchcraft occurred, the era of doctors started to emerge, and midwifery drastically fell. As medical education and care improved, physicians organized to solidify their status and authority. Prejudice against the intelligence and capability of women, immigrants, black people, and poor people was used to defame midwifery. Few women were literate, many could not afford schools, and the Puritan philosophy did not encourage education. Therefore, most people assumed that midwives were emotionally and intellectually incapable of learning and or being able to apply the new obstetric methods. Upper-class families soon came to believe