Worcester Asylum and related buildings

History

Worcester State Hospital was a Massachusetts state mental hospital located in Worcester, Massachusetts. The complex is attributed to the architectural firm Weston & Rand. The hospital and surrounding associated historic structures are listed as Worcester Asylum and related buildings on the National Register of Historic Places.

It was once known as the Worcester Lunatic Asylum and the Bloomingdale Asylum. The hospital dates back to the 1830s. On January 12, 1833, the Worcester Insane Asylum opened. It was the first of its kind in the state. During the first year, 164 patients were received.

Rapid overcrowding soon prompted superintendent Merrick Bemis to advocate for the construction of a new facility. A large-scale hospital was subsequently designed according to the Kirkbride Plan and located on Belmont Street. Construction began in 1870 and the newly built Worcester State Hospital was completed in 1876 at the cost of well over a million dollars.

The wards were named after places in Massachusetts as well as numerous founders of the American Psychiatric Association, such as Howe, Appleton, Woodward, Gage, Hooper, Folsom, and Thayer.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. The official nomination form is linked under Sources.