Editing Madison State Hospital

From Asylum Projects
Jump to: navigation, search

Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.

The edit can be undone. Please check the comparison below to verify that this is what you want to do, and then save the changes below to finish undoing the edit.
Latest revision Your text
Line 29: Line 29:
 
The name of the new institution was changed to Madison State Hospital in 1927. But from its earliest days, the institution came to be known locally as “Cragmont,” a nickname that died out only in recent years. Brains of long-deceased patients, which were studied after the patients’ deaths as part of the research into the disease, are preserved at the museum. Other studies were done of criminal sexual psychopaths, and of the results of the abuse of drugs and alcohol. Involved in the various studies were such physicians as Dr. George Zirkle, Dr. Peter King and Dr. Ott B. McAtee, who was the superintendent for many years. Among the buildings that pre-date the establishment of the state hospital, the gatehouse is one of the very few that have survived. The stone portion in front dates to the 1840s; the rear part, to 1926.
 
The name of the new institution was changed to Madison State Hospital in 1927. But from its earliest days, the institution came to be known locally as “Cragmont,” a nickname that died out only in recent years. Brains of long-deceased patients, which were studied after the patients’ deaths as part of the research into the disease, are preserved at the museum. Other studies were done of criminal sexual psychopaths, and of the results of the abuse of drugs and alcohol. Involved in the various studies were such physicians as Dr. George Zirkle, Dr. Peter King and Dr. Ott B. McAtee, who was the superintendent for many years. Among the buildings that pre-date the establishment of the state hospital, the gatehouse is one of the very few that have survived. The stone portion in front dates to the 1840s; the rear part, to 1926.
  
Shortages of money became a problem in the 1930s during the Great Depression. The staff-to-patient ratio suffered a tremendous imbalance, with 110 attendants caring for 1,585 patients. As a result, some treatments, such as shock and hydro therapy, could not be given because of high costs. Many patients were staying at the hospital longer than necessary as a way of keeping it operating to meet state funding requirements. Administrative changes also had an impact on the facility. During the 1940s, the hospital saw five different superintendents. By the late 1950s, the patient population began to decline rapidly, partly due to new medications & treatments. Today, there are approximately 100 patients, divided into 8 different units.
+
Shortages of money became a problem in the 1930s during the Great Depression. The staff-to-patient ratio suffered a tremendous imbalance, with 110 attendants caring for 1,585 patients. As a result, some treatments, such as shock and hydro therapy, could not be given because of high costs. Many patients were staying at the hospital longer than necessary as a way of keeping it operating to meet state funding requirements. Administrative changes also had an impact on the facility. During the 1940s, the hospital saw five different superintendents. By the late 1950s, the patient population began to decline rapidly, partly due to new medications & treatments. Today, there is approximately 100 patients.
 +
 
 +
In the late 1990s a men’s correctional facility was housed there and in 2004 a women’s correctional group was created. The women have integrated into the community through work and educational programs.
  
 
== Images of Madison State Hospital ==
 
== Images of Madison State Hospital ==

Please note that all contributions to Asylum Projects may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here.
You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see Asylum Projects:Copyrights for details). Do not submit copyrighted work without permission!

To edit this page, please answer the question that appears below (more info):

Cancel | Editing help (opens in new window)