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Welcome to Asylum Projects, A historic asylum wiki anyone can edit. 2,440 articles and counting

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Mission Statement The Mission The mission of this site is to archive both historical and current information on asylums across the United States and around the world. The Statement This site is dedicated to the history of asylums in all forms. The term of asylum is applied to not only what is commonly thought of: mental hospitals, but can also be applied to sanatoriums, state training schools, reform schools, almshouses, and orphanages. These institutions have and continue to play a major part in today's society. Everyone throughout the United States and in many other countries has in one way or another felt the touch of these institutions. These places have both directly and indirectly affected people and their families. They have shaped lives and created many popular myths about them. With all that in mind, this site was created to help in the historical research of any institutions that can be classified as an asylum. It was created for both serious researchers, those who are doing genealogical research, and people with an interest in asylums.

Featured Article Of The Week Greystone Park State Hospital Originally opened on August 17, 1876, the hospital was known as the New Jersey State Lunatic Asylum at Morristown. The asylum officially received the familiar Greystone Park name in 1924. The idea for such a facility was conceived in the early 1870s at the persistent lobbying of Dorothea Lynde Dix, a former school teacher who was an advocate for better health care for people with mental illnesses. Because of her efforts, the New Jersey Legislature appropriated $2.5 million dollars to obtain about 3.007 square kilometers (743 acres) of land for New Jersey’s second "lunatic asylum." Great care was taken to select a location central to the majority of New Jersey's population near Morristown, Parsippany, and Newark. The land Greystone was built on was purchased by the state in two installments between 1871 and 1872 for a total of $146,000. Click here for more... Archive, Future Featured Articles. Featured Image Of The Week Architect John Notman was selected to make some changes in the plans and oversee the erection of the building. The work was done by William Phillips and Joseph NVhitaker, builders of the old New Jersey State House. Construction of the new hospital commenced on November 4, 1845 but the work was delayed due to the lack of necessary appropriations. The hospital finally opened for the reception of patients on May 15, 1848. The main building which was the first erected following the plans of Dr. Thomas Kirkbride consisted of physician apartments, officer quarters, offices, a chapel, kitchens, and six wards for male, and six for female patients. Total accommodations for about 200 patients. The plan was such that additions could be made to the building for the accommodation of more patients when required. Archive, Future Featured Images.

Featured Video The following is a forty-minute video documenting the history of Camarillo State Hospital that had been created by the California Department of Developmental Services and was uploaded to YouTube by PublicResources.org Other Articles With Videos, Future Featured Videos.

Recent Message Board Posts For everyone asking genealogical questions, please read this message from the administrators. Hello, In this space you normally would see our forum. This had been a hold over from earlier days before we had a Facebook page. Just prior to our server issues regular users had been barely using the forum with the majority of new posts from anonymous users asking genealogy questions or spammers. The old forum software does not work with our new version while the new forum software does not carry over old comments to the new forum. As a result, the forum will be discontinued in favor of our Facebook page. If you have questions or comments you can ask them there. Asylum Projects Facebook Page If you have genealogical question here is an information page to help you.