Medfield State Hospital

Medfield State Hospital
Former AIT Building at Medfield.
Location Medfield, Massachusetts
Coordinates 42°12′48″N 71°20′10″W / 42.21333°N 71.33611°WCoordinates: 42°12′48″N 71°20′10″W / 42.21333°N 71.33611°W
Built 1892
Architect Wentworth, William Pitt; Shepley, Rutan and Coolidge
Architectural style Greek Revival, Queen Anne, Beaux Arts
Governing body State
MPS Massachusetts State Hospitals And State Schools MPS
NRHP Reference #

93001481

[1]
Added to NRHP January 21, 1994

Medfield State Hospital, originally the Medfield Insane Asylum, is a historic former psychiatric hospital complex at 45 Hospital Road in Medfield, Massachusetts. The asylum was established in 1892 as the state's first facility for dealing with chronic mental patients. The college-like campus was designed by William Pitt Wentworth and developed between 1896 and 1914. After an era dominated by asylums built using the Kirkbride Plan, Medfield Insane Asylum was the first asylum built using the new Cottage Plan layout. It was formally renamed "Medfield State Hospital" in 1914.[2]

At its height the complex included 58 buildings, on a property of some 1.4 sq mi (3.6 km2), and a capacity of 2,200 patients. It raised its own livestock and produce, and generated its own heat, light and power. Added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1994, the property was closed in April 2003 and the buildings shuttered. The grounds have been reopened to the public and are open every day from 6 am to 6 pm. It has been used as a filming location for major motion pictures such as Shutter Island and The Box. As of July 2012, The Clark Building was demolished. A private security company, contracted through the commonwealth, patrols and secures the former asylum.

Starting in October of 2013 demolition of three buildings was completed; The Odyssey House, the Carriage House, and the Laundry Building.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. 2008-04-15.
  2. ↑ "MACRIS inventory record for Medfield State Hospital". Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Retrieved 2014-05-30.

External links