Main Page

Welcome to Asylum Projects, A historic asylum wiki anyone can edit. 2,405 articles and counting

We need your help! Click here to find out how to help.

Preservation Alert Click here to see current and past preservation alerts and how you can help.

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

Coös County Farm

In November 1866, Coös County purchased the Isiah Pickard farm on the banks of the Connecticut River to establish the county’s poor farm, using the existing farmhouse buildings to house the poor, insane, prisoners. In 1867, a three-story addition to the original farmhouse was completed to create the Almshouse, with the capacity for 100-120 people.

The poor farm sat on 575 acres, land that provided work and food for the inmates. The Superintendent’s residence, Almshouse, and the building used for the insane were connected and form a long row of wooden buildings. Various barns, carriage houses, and agricultural outbuildings scattered the farmland.

The Almshouse eventually grew to four-stories, with the east half being occupied by women and west by men. There were separate dining rooms for each sex, and a large women’s sitting room, which was also used as an assembly room for religious meetings. There was also a school room for children, though reports state that any orphans were eventually transferred to the Orphan’s Home at Franklin. Click here for more...

Archive, Future Featured Articles.

Featured Image Of The Week

In 1849, the townspeople of Hillsborough County, New Hampshire purchased farmland in Goffstown from a successful farmer named Noyes Poor. Poor’s Farm literally became the county’s poor farm, complete with an almshouse and a house of correction. Existing buildings on the farm were refit to house the county’s poor. Additional buildings were eventually erected to house the growing population at the poor farm, including a larger almshouse and insane asylum.

Archive, Future Featured Images.

Featured Video

The following is a documentary on both Laconia State School and also the people who had been sent there. This film was directed, produced, edited, and uploaded to YouTube by 1L Media.

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.