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The
Main Building was one of the
earliest insane asylums in the United
States built following the
Kirkbride Plan. Construction of
the building started between July
and October of 1848 and was completed in 1851 at
a cost of $169,000. Designed by
John
Haviland, the building was
originally designed to hold 300
patients, but with the addition of
infirmaries the capacity increased
to 400 patients. The Main Building
served the hospital for only fifty years. It was considered by
many to be poorly designed and a
fire hazard. So at the turn
of the 20th century the building was
systematically demolished, starting
with the administration section, and
a short time later the patient wards.
In 1950 the land that the Main
Building once stood on was excavated
for a new
Admissions Building.
During the excavation workers
uncovered debris from the demolition that had been buried
for almost fifty years. Today
(2010), only the
cornerstone of the building
still exists. It's encased in a
brick display behind the
Administration Building.
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