Westborough State Hospital, originally "Westborough Insane Hospital", was a historic hospital in
Westborough, Massachusetts
Westborough is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 21,567 at the 2020 Census, in over 7,000 households. Incorporated in 1717, the town is governed under the New England open town meeting system, headed ...
, which sat on more than . The core campus area was located between Lyman Street and Chauncy Lake, north of
Massachusetts Route 9
Route 9 is a major east–west state highway in Massachusetts. Along with U.S. Route 20 (US 20), Route 2, and Interstate 90, Route 9 is one of the major east–west routes of Massachusetts. The western terminus is near the center of the cit ...
. The hospital was added to the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
in 1994.
The hospital was established in 1884 on the grounds of the
State Reform School for Boys
The State Reform School for boys in Westborough Massachusetts was a state institution for the reformation of juvenile offenders from 1848 to 1884. Originally conceived the facility was built to house up to 300 young boys but by 1852 an addition ...
. The existing buildings were renovated to accommodate the needs of a
mental hospital
Psychiatric hospitals, also known as mental health hospitals, behavioral health hospitals, are hospitals or wards specializing in the treatment of severe mental disorders, such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, eating disorders, dissociati ...
and was opened on December 1, 1886. This was the first
homeopathic
Homeopathy or homoeopathy is a pseudoscientific system of alternative medicine. It was conceived in 1796 by the German physician Samuel Hahnemann. Its practitioners, called homeopaths, believe that a substance that causes symptoms of a dise ...
hospital for the insane established in New England; but such hospitals existed in New York, Michigan, and perhaps other states.
The pioneering African-American psychiatrist
Solomon Carter Fuller
Solomon Carter Fuller (August 1, 1872 – January 16, 1953) was a pioneering Liberian neurologist, psychiatrist, pathologist, and professor. Born in Monrovia, Liberia, he completed his college education and medical degree (MD) in the United States ...
spent the majority of his career practicing at the hospital in the early 1900s. While there, he performed his ground-breaking research on the physical changes to the brains of
Alzheimer's disease
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegeneration, neurodegenerative disease that usually starts slowly and progressively worsens. It is the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in short-term me ...
patients.
The hospital was closed in 2010, in anticipation of a new
Worcester State Hospital
Worcester State Hospital was a Massachusetts state mental hospital located in Worcester, Massachusetts. It is credited to the architectural firm of Weston & Rand. The hospital and surrounding associated historic structures are listed as Worcester ...
opening in 2012. The ten-bed Deaf Unit, the two Adolescent Units, and the Intensive Residential Treatment Program (one step below State Hospital Level) programs were closed by June 2010.
On May 9, 2015, a memorial service was held in nearby Pine Grove Cemetery for the more than 500 patients who died at Westborough State Hospital and whose remains were unclaimed and subsequently buried in a
potter's field
A potter's field, paupers' grave or common grave is a place for the burial of unknown, unclaimed or indigent people. "Potter's field" is of Biblical origin, referring to Akeldama (meaning ''field of blood'' in Aramaic), stated to have been pu ...
. The service was part of a larger effort to put names to the graves of the deceased. Despite being on the historic register, the entire hospital complex was demolished during the summer of 2019.
A senior living complex is currently being built at the same location as the state hospital was.
See also
*
References
General References
Westborough State Hospital(website dedicated to the facility)
Annual Reports of the Westborough Insane Hospital(1885-1911, 1926-1936)
Annual Reports of the State Board of Health of Massachusetts(1875-1914)
Annual Reports of the State Board of Health, Lunacy and Charity(1879-1896)
External links
Unofficial memorial site* . (Various documents).
{{authority control
Hospital buildings completed in 1848
Hospitals in Worcester County, Massachusetts
Historic districts in Worcester County, Massachusetts
National Register of Historic Places in Worcester County, Massachusetts
Buildings and structures in Westborough, Massachusetts
Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts
Hospital buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts