Blooming Dale Asylum 1845

8/3/2019 Blooming Dale Asylum 1845

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# {1 9 4}ME R ICANJOU RN AL O F IN SA N ITY ,

FO R JU LY , 1 845 .

A RT iC LE LRIST OR ICAL AND DESCR IPT IVE ACCO UN T O F THE BLOO M ING -

DALE A SYL UM FOR THE INSANE . B Y PL INY EARL E , M . D .,PH YSIC IAN TO THE INST IT UT ION .

1s t . O rig in and P ro gre ssive H isto ry . In th e yea r 1 77 0 , som e of th e ph ilan th rop ic and pub lic

sp irited inh ab itan ts o f the c ity o f N ew Y o rk su bscribed ce r-ta in sum s of m oney fo r the pu rp ose o f e s tab lish ing a p ub licH osp ita l, an d a pe titio n w as p re sen ted by Pe te r M id d le ton ,Joh n Jon es , an d S am uel B ard , a ll em inen t p hy sic ians , C oL ieu tenan t G ove rno r C o ld en , then comm ande r.in -C h ie f of th ep ro v in ce o f N ew Y o rk , fo r a C h arte r o f in co rpo rat io iz , w h ichw as , in co nsequ en ce , g ran ted the fo llow ing y ea r, by th e E arlo f D unm o re, G ov ern o r and com m ande r-in -ch i o f the p rov -ince .

B y th is C ha rte r, da ted th e 13 th o f Jan e , 17 71 , th e M ay-o r, R eco rd er, A lde rm en and assis tMt o f th e c ity o f N ewY o rk , th e re cto r o f T rin ity C hurc s th e m in isters o f the sev -e ra l o th er c ity C hurche s , the p rad den to f K ing s (n ow C o lum -b ia ) co llege , and a n um be r o ld ie p rinc ipa l inh ab itan ts o f thec ity w e re n am ed as tnbers , and in co rpo rated , by th enam e, T he S oc ie ty e( th e H osp ita l in the city o f N ewY o rk , in A m eric a! T h is title , by an act o f the S ta te L eg is-la tu re , p assed M arch 9 th 1 810 , w as ch an ged to T h e So ci-e ty o f the N ew Y o rk H osp ita l. Tw en ty -six G ov ern o rs

VOL . 11.-A


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Jo urn a l o f h :an tiy . [July,.w ere nam ed in the o rig in al C h arte r, an d to th em e the m an-agem en t o f the afl irs an d bu siness o f the ins titu tion w as en -tru sted . T hey he ld the ir f irs t m ee ting on th e 25 th o f Ju ly ,.1 7 7 1 .

T hrou gh the in f luence o f I)r Joh n Fo the rg i}1 an d S irW illiam Duncan , cons ide rab le con tr ibu tio ns w ere m ade to the So c iety b y m any in hab itan ts o f the c ity o f London ando the r p laces in G rea t B ritain . The p iov inc ia l Leg islatu rep rom o ted the ob jec t by g ran tin g an annu ity from th e yea r1772 un ti l th e c ommen c emen t of hos ti} itie s be tw een G rea tB rita in and the A m erican co lo n ie s , an d sin ce th e c lose of therevo lu tion , th e G ov e rnm en t o f th e S tate o f N ew Y ork , h asfrom tim e to tim e , g rea tly a ssis ted the institu tion by its m u -in f icence.

The orig ina l bu ild in g , e rec ted on a lo t bou nded . upo n itss ou the rn ex trem ity , by B roadw ay , acc iden tally took fire be -fo re its en tire com ple tion , and w as nea rly co nsum ed . T h isw as on th e 2 8 th o f F ebu ary , 1 775 . It w as soon a fte rw ards-so fa r repa ired tha t D urin g the w ar, it w as occu p ied b y theB ritish and H essian so ld iers a s b arracks, and occasio na llya s a hosp ital.

T he effec ts o f the w ar u pon the c ircum stances o f o u r c it-izei an d th e g en era l d erangem en t o f a ffair ., p reven ted anya tten tion to the in stitu tion s an d it w as no t u n til th e 3 d of Jan ..ua ry , 1 7 , th ai the hou se w as in a con d ition to re ce ive pw -tien ts . O n that d ay , e igh teen w ere adm itted .

The ca rlie accou n t o f th e adm issio n of i n sane pa -tien ts in to this }losp i tal is foun d in th e firs t nem ber o fth e M ed ical R eposite ry , pu b lished in Ju ly , 17 97 . It the reapp ears , th a t in th e m oh th o f M ay of tha t y ea r , tw o caseso f m an ia w ere adm itted , tO cu red and one d ied ; th at inthe m on th of June fo llow in g , en cases o f m an ia w ere ad -m itted , tw o cured and tw o reJie d . S o it s eem s th at a t anea rly pe riod a portion o f the bu ild t w as se t apa rt fo r theaccomm oda tion o f the insan e.

Th e nex t no tice o f in sane p atien ts in the H osp ita l is ta -ken from a tab le cx h ib itin g the n um bers rem a in in g in the


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1845 .] B loom zn gda lc A sylum . 3house , and tho se rece ived during th e fo llow ing m on th s o fth e y ea r 17 98 .

E IL L IN 1NG FROM LLST MONTh . . RF.cEIv ThIS Mown . .A pril, 7 0May , 7 4June , 9 3Ju ly , 9 1A ugu st, 8 1S ep t ember , 9 1October , 7 0Nov ember , 5 0D ecem ber, 5 2

A s ea rly as 1 802 , a p lan w as in ag itatio n to adap t th eH o sp ita l m ore ex tensive ly to th e accomm oda tion , m anage -m en t, and cu re o f lun atic s .

F rom a B rie f A ccoun t o f the N ew Y ork H o sp ita l pu b-lish ed in 1 804 , w e learn tha t du ring the e igh t yea rs w h ichbeg an w ith the 31 st o f J an ua ry , 17 95 , and en ded w ith th e31st o f D ecem ber, 180 3 , the num ber o f p a tien ts adm itted w as4 ,922 . O f these . tw o hun dred and fifte en w ere luna tic s .

Th e rap id in crease o f ins: ic p atien ts , th eir necessa ry con -fin em en t in a lim ited sp ace , th e ev id en t ev ils re su lting fromth e im p erfec t m anne r in w h ich th ey w ere lodg ed , the ir p rox -im ity to o the r w ards, and the con sequen t an noy an ce of thesick , de te rm ined th e G ove rnors o f the H osp ita l to e rec t ad istinc t b u ild in g fo r the ir use . Th is ed ifice , ca lled the Lu -na tic A sy lum , w as com p le ted and opened fo r th e recep tio nof pa tien ts on th e 1 5 th Ju ly , 180 8 , w hen n ine teen w ere n m oved from the o the r bu ild ing . and fo rty -eig h t w ere adm it-ted ; m ak ing , in a ll, s ix ty -seven . D u ring a p eriod of th ir-teen years th is A sy lum w as dev o ted to the o b ject fo r w h ichit w as cons truc ted , and sin ce the exp ira tion o f th at tim e h asb een know n as the m arine depa rtm en t o f th e N ew Y orkH osp ita l; w h ile , h ow ev e r, it w as still occup ied by th e insane ,an d as ea rly as 18 15 , it w as deem ed neces sary to m ake stillm ore am p le arrang em en ts fo r th at c la ss o f p atien ts . T heHosp ita l, w h ich had b een bu ilt a lm os t litera lly in th e co un-


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4 Jo urna l o f In sa n ity . [July,try , w as now found , in consequ en ce o f the rap id in c rea se o finh ab itan ts , to b e in th e cen tre o f a bu stling popu la tion .- This being incom patib le w ith th e tre a tm en t o f a c la ss o f p a ..tien ts requ irin g bo th sec lu sio n an d fre e exe rc ise in th e o pena ir , som e benevo len t in d iv idu a ls am ong the G ov ern o rs (an do f th ese , th e la te T hom as E ddy , fo r h is ab ility , ze a l, an dqu iet , tho ug h e ffic ien t ex ertion s, can neve r be fo rg o tten ) co n -ce ived th e p lan o f pu rch as in g a farm at a conv en ien t d is-tan ce from th e city , and o f fo rm ing the reon a so rt o f in san eco lony . I t w as at th is pe riod tha t th e celeb ra ted inv es tig a -t ion , be fo re a com m ittee o f the B ritish H ou se o f C om m on s,in to the s ta te o f th e m ad-h ou se s , w as g o ing on , and th a t th ea lm ost w onde rfu l su ccess o f the F riend s R e treat, (nea r Y ork ,Eng land ,) w as p rom u lg ated . M r. E ddy m ad e a com m uni-ca tio n o n th e su b je ct to th e B oa rd o f G ove rno rs , and po in tedo u t th e ad van tag es tha t w ou ld flow from an en la rged andlib era l system o f m ora l trea tm en t, s im ila r to tha t p u rsued a tth e Retreat .

Part icipat ing in th e ph i l an th rop ic sp ir it w h ich su ggestedth is p ro je ct, th e G ove rno rs imm ed ia te ly to ok m easu re s fo r i tsprosecu tion and com p letio n . A tract o f land upon th eBloomingdale road , sev en m ile s from the C ity H a ll, w as p u r-cha sed , and , a p lan fo r th e edifice be ing ad op ted , th e co rn erstone w as la id o n the rith o f M ay , 18 18 . T h is , th e p rin ci-p al bu ild in g o f th e B loom ingda le A sy lum fo r th e In sane , w ascom ple ted an d open ed fo r pa tien ts on the 1 6 th o f June , 18 2L

T he expe rien ce o f a few years dem on stra ted the n ecessityo f ex tend ing the accomm odation s, and p a rticu la rly o f in -c reas in g th e fa c ilitie s fo r a jud ic io us c la ssifica tio n o f the in -mates . Accord ing ly , ano th er an d sm alle r bu ild ing , fo r aportion o f th e m ale p atien ts , was erected in 1 82 9 , an d a sim -ilar on e fo r a pa rt o f th e fem a les , in 1 837 . T he w ho le co s to f th e bu ild ing s an d im p rov em en ts , b ed d in g , fu rn itu re , & c .in c lud ed , from the comm en cem en t o f th e e s tab lishm en t to th e1st o f J anuary , 18 39 , w as ab o u t tw o hun dred thou san d do l-lars . S ince the tim e la s t m en tion ed , m any m ino r im p rove -m ea ts , requ is ite to th e pe rfectio n of th e in stitu tion , in its d e -


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1845 .] B /oom in gda le A sy lum . 5tai ls , h av e been m ad e, bu t it is u nnecessa ry to enum era teth em in th is p lace .

2 d. O rg an iza tio n.The gene ra l d irec tion and supe rv isio n o f th e A sy lum , has,

from its b eg inn in g , b een vested in a C om m ittee o f six pe r-so ns ch osen from and by th e B oard of G ov e rno rs o f the N ewY ork H o sp ita l. It is elec ted ann ua lly , an d bu t fou r o f itsm em bers a re e lig ib le to reapp o in tm en t.

T h is C omm ittee m ee ts a t th e A sy lum , fo r the transac tionof bu siness, and th e insp ec tion o f the p rem ise s, on the S a tu r-d ay nex t p reced ing the firs t T uesday o f ev e ry m on th .

A sub-comm ittee , con sisting o f tw o p erson s, m eets w eek -ly to exam in e the h ouse , and a tten d to the va rio us m a tte rso f de ta il to w h ich th eir a tten tion m ay be d irec ted . A n in -spectin g C omm ittee , com posed of tw o pe rsons from theo th er m em bers o f th e B oa rd , a lso v isits the A sy lum once am on th . Th e sam e du ty is incum ben t upo n the P resid en t andV ice P res iden t. Th ese seve ral au th o rities a re requ ired torepo rt the ir p roceed ings to th e B oa rd of G ove rnors , a t th eirm on th ly m ee ting s.

Th e off ice rs o f the A sy lum are nom ina ted b y the A sy lumComm ittee an d e lected , ann ua lly , by the B oa rd of G ov ern -o rs . T hey o rig ina lly con sisted o f a Supe rin tenden t, aM a tron , a V isiting Physic ian and a R esid en t Ph ysic ian . T heSup erin tend en t w as the p rinc ipa l o ff icer o f th e in stitu tion ,h is d u tie s in vo lv ing th e co n tro l o f eve ry depa rtm en t, excep t-in g th at o f m ed ica l trea tm en t.

F rom the o pen ing of th e institu tio n un til A ugust 2 0 , 18 31 .a pe riod of m ore than ten y ea rs the p laces o f S upe rin tend -en t an d M atron w ere occup ied by Laban G ardne r an d h isw ife . T hey w ere succeed ed by Ira Fo rd and h is w ife.-D r. Jo hn N e ilson , w ho w as e lec ted to f ill the vacan cy , a t th eo ld A sy lum , caused by th e re sig na tion of D r. W illiam H an -d y in 18 19 , w as m ade phy sician to the B loom ingd ale A sy lumin 1821 . H e con tin ued to v isit th e institu tio n , firs t as a t-tend in g and sub sequen tly as con su lting p hys ician , un til 1 831 ,w hen h e re sign ed . H e w as assis ted d uring a pa rt o f the


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6 Jo urna l o f In sa n ity . [Ju ly ,years 182 3 and 1824 , by D rs. M o tt, S tevens, C h eesem an ,C ook , H osack , W atts and R og ers . T he R esiden t P h ysi-cians d uring the tim e o f D r. N e ilson s co nnec tion w ith thein stitu tion , w ere as fo llow s:

D r. Jam es Eddy , from Jun e 1 821 to Jun e 1 822 .D r. A lbe rt Sm ith , from June 1822 to M arch 1824 .D r. Jo hn N e ilson , Jr ., f rom M arch 1824 to M ay 1824 .D r. A braham V . W illiam s, from M ay 1824 to Ju ne 1825 .D r. Jam es M cD on ald , from June 1825 to D ecem ber 18 30 .D r. G uy C . B ay ley , from D ecem ber 18 30 to O cto be r 1 832 .In 1831 th e B oard of G ove rn ors reso lved to m od ify th e

o rg an iza tion of th e in stitu tion . T he office o f A tten d ingPhys ician w as ab o lished and the R esiden t P hy sic ian w asm ade th e p rinc ipa l o ffice r. T o h im w as en trusted the p ro -cu ring of a ttendan ts fo r the pa tien ts , as w ell as th e w ho le d i-rec tion o f trea tm en t, bo th m ed ical and m ora l, o f the la tte r.T he ca re o f the fa rm and the fin an ces, the purchasing o f p ro .v is ions , and the h irin g o f a ll em plo yees , w ith the excep tionof a tten dan ts , w as v es ted in ano th er o ffice r, de sig na ted asW arden . The off ice o f M atro n w as con tinued , an d tha to f A po th eca ry add ed .

Th e G ov erno rs o f the H osp ita l en gaged D r. Jam es M c-D ona ld to v isit E urop e fo r th e purpose o f exam in ing th e hos-p ita ls fo r luna tic s , an d m ak ing h im se lf acq ua in ted w ith th eeconom y, m anagem en t, and m od e o f cu re p rac ticed in thebest in s titu tions o f the k ind the re . H e sa iled in Ju ly , 1 831 ,an d a fter an absence o f fif teen m onth s, hav in g v isited them o st celeb ra ted ho sp ita ls fo r lu na tics in F ran ce , Eng lan d ,and Ita ly , retu rned , and re sum ed the ch arge o f the B loom -ing da le A sy lum . D u ring h is absence the o ff ice o f P hy si-cian w as filled , as w ill ap pea r ab ov e, b y D r. B ay ley .

T he nam es an d tim e of re sidence in the A sy lum of th eseve ra l o ff icers since the n ew organ iza tio n , are a s fo llow s :

PHYS IC IAN .

D r. Jam es M cD on ald , from O ct. 13 , 183 2 , to S ep t. 1 , 183 7 .D r. B en jam in O gd en , from Sep t. 1 , 1 837 , to S ep t. 16 , 18 39 .


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1845 .] B io om ingd a le A sylum . 7D r. W illiam W ilson , from Sep t. 1 6 ,18 39 , to A p ril 1 , 1 844 .D r. P lin y Earle , from A pril 1 , 18 44 .

WARDEN .Ira F ord , from A ugu st 20 , 183 1 , to A ugus t 15 , 18 37 .G eorge B . Po llock , from Aug . 15 , 1 837 , to M arch 23 , 1 839 .W illiam B ogg s, from A pril 9 , 1 839 , to A pril 1 , 18 43 .G eo rg e W . End ico tt, from A p ril, 1 , 184 3 .

MATRON .M rs. F o rd , from A ugu st 20 , 18 31 , to A ugust 15 , 1 837 .M rs. B alch , from A ugust 15 , 1 837 , to Ju ne 5 , 184 0 .M rs. E liza H ew le tt, f rom June 5 , 1 840 .

APOTHECARY .Ja rv is T itu s, from Februa ry .1 7 , 18 33 .

3d . O f the A dm ission o f P a tien ts .W hen the A sy lum w as opened , fif ty - tw o pa tien ts w ere

transferred to it f rom the Lun atic A sy lum in th e c ity . Alarge m ajo rity o f th ese w ere incu rab le, an d no le ss than n ineo f th em are still liv ing , and unde r the ca re o f the in stitu tio n .

F rom June 16 th , 1 821 , to Ju ne 10 th , 184 5 , the w ho le n um -be r o f adm is sions , in clu d ing the 52 ju st m en tioned , w as tw otho usand n ine hu ndred and n ine ty .tw o .

Th e da ily av erage num ber o f p atien ts fo r each y ea r m aybe seen in the tab le sub jo ined .

YEAR . AV ERAG E . Y EA R . AV ERAG E .Omo s of 1821 . 68 .54 1 833 , 1 07 .12

1 822 , 85 .80 1834, 120.161823, 101.61 1835 , 136 .711824, 116.47 1836, 152.691825, 120.33 1837, 146.771826, 88.16 1838, 142.811827, 90.95 1839, 130.501828, 89.18 1840, 129.621829 , 8 2 .87 1841 , 13 0 .281830 , 88 .0 1 1842 , 11 6 .071831, 97.08 1843 , 104 .661832, 95.92 1844, 106.91


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8 Jo urna l o f In san ity . [Ju ly ,

T he d aily ave rage fo r th e f irs t fiv e m on th s o f th e cu rren ty ea rs (18 45) h as b een 117 .7 1 ; an d the p resen t num ber o fpa tien ts . (June 1 0 th ) is 126 .

D uring th e y ea rs in w hich the av erage num ber w as h igh -est, the re w ere from tw en ty to th ir ty paup e r pa tien ts fromth e c ity o f N ew Y ork . T hese w ere sub sequen tly rem ovedto th e A sy lum on B lackw e lls Is land .

T he de ta iled sta tis tics o f th e re su lts o f trea tm en t w ou ldoccupy m ore space than o ur lim its a llow , ev en if th ey w erecons isten t w ith the n a tu re o f th is a r ticle . H en ce they a rele f t fo r fu tu re exp ositio n .

4 th . M ora l T rea tm en t.T he B loom ingd ale A sy lum w as on e of the firs t in stitu tio ns

fo r th e insane in the U nited S ta tes , tha t w en t in to ope ratio nund er th e ausp ice s o f p erson s w hQ se av ow ed in ten tion w asto ca rry o u t, a s fa r a s p racticab le , the m ilde r sy stem of g ov-ernm en t p u rsued in som e of th e B ritish and F rench A sy lum s.

F or som e reaso n , how eve r, (and it m ay have b een tha tth ose conce rn ed in th e m anagem en t o f th e A sy lum believedtha t m itiga tion of co erc ive an d res tra in ing m easu re s w as asg rea t a s c ircum stances w ou ld allow ) m ean s w ere ad op tedw hich , at th is d ay , w ou ld , to say the lea st, be th ou gh t un -necessary .

In the ea rlie r y ears o f the institu tio n , som e pa tien ts w erech a ined , and o the rs w ere confined , b y lea the rn straps, tostap les f ixed in the floo r . A t a su bsequ en t p eriod , the socalled tran qu iliz in g -cha ir w as in trod uced , an d , fo r a se rie s o fyears , con tin ued as a m eans o f re stra in t. It is h ard ly neces -sary to rem ark tha t a ll the se m e tho ds o f confinem en t havebeen en tire ly abo lish ed . T hey a re m en tion ed he re on ly asm a tters o f h isto ry . T he sam e m ay b e sa id o f lea the rn s trapsfo r th e and es .

L ea the r w ristb an ds, m itten s an d m u fl fo r the h an ds, havea lw ay s b een u sed , bu t they have now been a lm os t en tirely su -pe rsed ed by the cam i sok , a ga rm en t w h ich , w h ile it e ffec tsthe o b ject desired , im po ses no uncom fo rtab le re stra in t up on


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1845 .] B lo om ingd a le A sy lum . 9e ithe r the bo dy or th e lim bs , an d is n o t lik ely , like lea the rnappa ratu s, to ab rad e the sk in . The ap p liance o f res tra in ingm eans is no t pe rm itted un le ss sp ec ia lly d irec ted by the phy -sic ian , an d th is o rde r is g iven in such cases a lone as seemim periou sly to d em and it. D u ring the la st s ix m on ths ne ith -e r strap , w ristb an d m uff, m itten , n o r any o the r m ean s o f con-f in in g th e lim bs has, w ith bu t a sing le ex cep tion , b een usedin the m a le d ep artm en t. In the case ex cep ted , th e cam iso lew as em plo yed th ree d ays to p reven t a p atien t from exposin gh im self , to th e co ld . In th e fem ale d ep artm en t m ote fre -quen t recou rse to the m eans un de r d is cu ssion has been ne -ces sary . Th e cam iso le , how eve r, h as a lm ost inv ariab ly beensu ffic ien t fo r the accom plishm en t o f the ob jec t in v iew .

T he v ariou s aux ilar ie s to m o ra l trea tm en t a re abu ndan tlysup p lied to th e pa tien ts . A m ong th ese a re m anu al labo r , va -r ious g am es and o the r am usem en ts , a g ood lib ra ry , an d ho r-se s an d ca rriage fo r rid ing . S in ce th e y ea r 16 32 a ch ap -la in h as b een con stan tly em plo yed to p reach o n the S abba th ,b efo re an assem bly of the pa tien ts and o th ers co nnec tedw ith th e estab lishm en t.* I t is the in ten tion o f the C omm it-tee an d the o ff ice rs to m ak e th e A sy lum a com fortab le h om e ,fo r th e pa tien ts o f w h at leng th soeve r m ay be th e ir term ofres idence h ere . T he atta inm en t o f th is end is u nq uestion -

# {149}Th eollow in g ex tra ct g ives an accoun t o f on e o f the ear lie st a t tem pts in th iscou ntry to in trodu ce relig io us serv ice s in to an A sylum for the insane:A d jo in ing the C ity H o sp ita l (N ew Y ork ) is a con sid erab le bu ild in g w h ich ,

o n Ju ne 15 , 180 8 , w as ap pro pria ted for the recep tio n o f lu na tic pa tien ts. A lhwyea rs a fter th is, i t w as m en tio ned to th e G ov ern ors o f the H ospita l, t ha t i f d i-v i n e s e r v i c ec o u ld b e perform ed , and an instruc tiv e , con so ling d isco urse del ive redo nce a w ee k to the m ore tran qu il o f th e p atien ts , thecompasaonate dav iou r m ightbe p lea sed to a ccom pany th e e ffor t w ith h is b le sein g . T o th is re com m end ation th eyvery cord ia lly a cceded , an d on the af tern oo n of A ugust 31 , 1819 , th e in te nd edserv ice co mm en ced .

A bout fo rty of the m ost com posed o f t he p atien ts w ere arsem bled , an d sev-e r al o f t h e G o ve r no r s, the P hy sicians of the h ou se, an d the S upe rin ten den t o f theH o spita l a tte nded on the occ asion . Th e patien ts conduc ted w ith gre at propr ie ty ,an d m any , o f the ir ow n accord , kn eeled w hile praye r w as o ffe red , an d severalexp reed th eir thank s at the close of the serv ice .- .-Memoir of IA . R ev . JoA*Sgm rf .rd , D . D .

VOL . 11.-B


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10 Jou rna l o f in sa n ity . [Ju ly ,ab ly , a g rea t, pe rhaps it m ay be sa id th e g rea t desid era tumin an institu tio n o f th is desc rip tio n .

5 th . D esc rip tion .Th e B loom ingda le A sly um , in the lang uage of D r. M ac-

don ald , is on a fin e sw e ll o f g roun d , w h ich , on the sou th an dw est, a lm o st im pe rcep tib ly declin es b y a gen tle slope toth e leve l o f the ad jacen t cou n try ; w h ile on the no rth andcas t it te rrn im ite s m ore ab ru p tly in a b o ld ridg e ex tend ingac ros s the island , an d com m and ing th e p ass o f the va lley be -low . Th is situ a tio n , tho ugh p erhaps n o t appa ren tly so , is ,a fte r F ort W ash in g ton , the h ig hest p o in t o f the island .

T he b eau ty o f the g ro und s, and v iew s. from th e m a inbu ild ing , a rc alm ost un eq ua lled . T he approach to th e A sy-lum from the so u the rn en trance, by th e s trange r w ho asso -c iate s the m ost som b re scenes w ith a luna tic h osp ita l, is h ig h - .ly p lea sing . T he sud den open ing o f the v iew , the ex ten t o fthe g rou nd s, th e va rious avenues g race fu lly w ind ing th roug hso large a law n; the ced ar hedg es, th e f ir, and o th e r o rnam en-ta l trees , ta ste fu lly d istr ibu ted or g roup ed , the va rie ty o fsh rubb ery and flow ers; in fin e, the assem b lag e o f so m anyob jec ts to p lea se the ey e, and re lieve the m e lan ch o ly m indfrom its sad m us ings, s tr ik e h im as on e of the m o st succes s..fu l an d u sefu l in stances o f land scap e g a rden in g .

T he re is , ind eed , n o p riva te re sidence , o r pub lic e stab -lishm en t in the v ic in ity o f the city , w h ich fo r beau ty o f s it-ua tion , o r exe rc ise o f ta ste in the d istr ibu tion of g rou nds , cancom pare w ith it.

Th ere a re th ree b u ild in gs w hich a re uscd as dw e llings Th e p rin cip al one is construc ted of redd ish b row n frees tonebrou gh t from N ew Je rsey . I t co nsis ts o f a cen tra l ed if icean d tw o sy rn etr ical w ing s, th e fo rm er a few inches m ore than5 7 feet, and each of the la tte r 77 fee t lo ng , m ak ing the w ho leleng th a frac tion ove r 2 11 fee t. T he d ep th o r w id th o f thecen tra l p o rtion is 6 ! feet, tha t o f each w ing 44 feet fo r abo u ttw o th ird s o f its leng th , and 53 fre t the rem a in in g th ird .T he w ho le struc tu re is th ree sto r ies in he igh t, exc lusiv e o fth e a ttic an d a h igh basem en t. It f ro n ts a little to th e w est-


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1845 .3 B loom ing da le A .cy lum . 11w ard of so u th . A ha lt 1 4 fee t w ide passe s th rou gh eachof the sto rie s o f the cen tra l po rtion , a ll c ros sed b y transep tha lls 1 0 fee t 6 inch es w id e, a t th e rem o te ex trem ities o f w h ichd oors o pen in to the w ings . T he re a re 4 la rg e ro om s oneach floo r; th ose o f th e low er sto ry be ing sev era lly occup iedas G ov erno rs R oom , D in ing R oom , Phy sic ian s o ff ice , andW ard ens o ff ice. Tho se o f the sto rie s abo ve a re devo tedto the use o f the o ff icers . T h e w ing s a re ve ry n ea rly un i-fo rm in the ir arch itectu ra l a rrang em en t. O n each floo r o fe ithe r o f them , a H a ll 10 fee t 6 inches w ide , co rre spo nd in gw ith th e tran sep t o f the H ail in th e C en tre B u ild ing . pass-e s the w ho le leng th , the apa rtm en ts occup ied by the pa tien tsbe ing upon bo th its side s. These ap artm en ts a re o f va rio usd im ensio ns. T he w est w ing is occup ied by m a le s, an d th eeast by fem a le s. A bou t 150 fee t in the rear o f th e fo rm er,and fo rm in g a rig h t ang le w ith the p rinc ipa l ed if ice , th e re isan o the r bu ild ing o ccup ied b y m a le s. T h is is 57 fee t lo ng ,3 2 fee t 8 inches w ide , an d th ree sto r ies h ig h . T he gene ralarran gem en t o f th e H a ll and ap a rtm en ts is sim ila r to th at o fthe w ing s o f th e m ain bu ild ing a lread y desc ribed . Th eH a lls a re 10 fee t w id e, an d th e ro om s a re m o stly o f un ifo rms ize , be ing 0 feet 2 inches in leng th b y 7 fee t 2 inches inw id th . In th e rea r o f the easte rn ex trem ity o f th e p rinc ipa led ifice , an d pa ra lle l w ith the bu ild ing just d escr ibed , s tan dsa th ird , th e basem en t o f w h ich is a laund ry , w h ile the upp e rtw o sto rie s a re o ccup ied by fem a le pa tien ts . It is 66 fee t 6inches lo ng by 38 fee t w id e . T he ha lls a re 9 feet 6 in ch esw ide , an d the pa tien ts room s 9 fee t 6 inches lo ng by 6 fee t6 inches w ide .

T he bu ild ings un de r con side ra tion , says D r. M e D on a ld ,w h ich w ere con stru cted w ith re ference ch ie f ly to u tility , arew ithou t th ose o rnam nen ts th at d is ting u ish th e o rd ers o f arch i-tec tu re . Th e ex te rio r o f the m a in b u ild in g presen ts an ap-pearance o f sim p lic ity , beau ty , and streng th , happ ily com -b ined . O ne of the ru ling ob jec ts o f the arch itect, be sidescon stru ctin g it in a m anne r sim p le, neat, and secu re , w as toav o id g iv ing it th e sem blance of a p lace o f confinem en t. In


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12 Jour ita l o f In sa n ity . [Ju ly ,acco rdance w ith th is v iew , cas t iron w ind ow sashes h av e b eenu sed in p lace of g rate s in m o st o f the rooms , and the in te rio rhas b een fin ish ed and fu rn ish e d like a p riv a te dw ellin g .S om e o f the r o oms a re equa l to an y found in the best ho te lsan d boa rd ing hous e s , and th e lo ng corr ido rs run n ing thelength o f the w in gs, a re ligh t, airy , an d uncomm only b eau-t i ful . I t is w orthy of rem ark , th at th e ce ilings a re h igh er ,an d v en tilatio n be tte r than in m ost o f o u r p ub lic bu ild ings.

T he re are s ix ba th ing ro om s in th e estab lishm en t, 2 in eachwing of th e pr inc ipa l ed if ice and 1 in each o f the sm alle rb u ild ing s. Th e w a ter u sed in the A sy lum is ob ta in ed fromw ells an d s p r ings , tog e the r w ith w ha t is co llec ted from theroo fs . Seve ra l sub teranean c iste rns an d six tanks in th eattic o f th e m ain b u ild ing , each ho ld ing 13 hog sheads, a rethe re se rvo irs fo r tha t w h ich is co llected from the sou rce la stm en tio ned . E ve ry depa rtm en t devo ted to pa tien ts is hea t-ed by a ir fu rnaces, w ith th e excep tion of the six day room sin the p rinc ipa l bu ild ing , in each of w h ich the re is a coa l firein ei ther a g ra te or a s tove . C o al is the p rinc ipa l fu el co n-sum ed in the estab lishm e#{252 }t. T he re is indeed n o w oodfire. M ost o f the wate r u sed in dom estic pu rp oses, and a lltha t se rves fo r th e w ash ing of c lo thes is hea ted by steam .The re a re tw o k itchens , o ne fo r th e o ff icers , the o the r fo r theres t o f the h ouseho ld . Th irteen tab le s are set a t each m ea l,o ne fo r the o ff icers , ten fo r the pa tien ts , an d tw o fo r th e d o-mest ics .

T he princ ipa l ou t bu ild ing s on th e p rem ise s a re a ba rn ,i nc lud ing s tab les and ca rr iag e ho use , an ice hou se , and agreen house , or conserva to ry . T he ba rn is la rge and bu iltof s to ne in th e m ost sub stan tia l m anne r. T he g reen -hou secon tain s abou t sev en hundred p lan ts , m any of them ra re andb eau tifu l exo tic s .

Th e fa rm consis ts o f tw o d istin ct trac ts , on e o f ab ou t th ir-ty ac re s, the o the r o f abo u t fou rteen . T he fo rm er a lon e iscult ivated. T he A sy lum bu ild ings stand upon it, a t a p lacea little n o rthw ard o f its centre . I t is app ro pria te ly sub d iv id -ed , so tha t b y a ro ta tion of c ro ps, a ll th e ga rd en vege tab le s


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1845 .] B loom ing da le A sylum . 13and h ay tog eth er w ith a con side rab le quan tity o f po tato es ,co rn , o ats , and o th er g ra in , ar e produ ced upon it. I t is alsow e ll p lan ted w ith cho ice frui t tree s , m any of them now at theage o f m os t p ro lif ic bearing .

A m ong the dom estic an im a ls a re on e yok e of o xen , eig h tcows, and fiv e h orses .

NorE.-In the preparatio n of th e fo rego ing ac cou nt of t he B lo om in gd al eAsylum, the lang uage of others has been us ed whe rever it c ou ld b e i nt ro du ce dconsist ently wit h the brevity of the article . The quotat ions are chiefly f romtw o wo rk s ; o ne of th em an ey on the Statist ics o f the institutio n in quest ion ,wr i t ten by James M acdonald, M. D., and publi shed in the fi rst v o lum e of th eNew York Journal of M ed icin e an d Su rge ry , an d the other a small booke nt it le d C ha rt er o f the New York H ospital, and the laws relating thereto, w ithth e Bye-laws an d R eg ul at io ns o f t he i ns ti tu ti on , an d t ho se o f t he B lo oo mi ng da leA sylum for the Insane.

A RTICLE II .

MODERN IM PROVEM ENTS IN THE CONST RUCT ION , V ENT IL AT ION ,AND W ARM ING O F B UILD INGS FOR THE INSANE .

With a Design f or the Butler Hospital for the Insane, at Providence,R hod e Isla nd . By L tr rata V. B E L L , P hy sic ian and S upe rin tend en t o f

t he M cL ean A sylum for th e In sane, Som e rv ille , M asa .[It is pe rhaps kn ow n to m os t of th ose in te res ted in th e insane asy lum s, an d

insane of t hi s c o un tr y, that a n amoun t of funds excee ding one hund red and thi rtyt ho us an d d ol la rs w as s ec ur ed l as t season , f or t he purpose o f e s ta b li s h in g ftn in -stit ution at Provid ence, R. I. A por tion of this $ 30.000 wa s th e legacy of adistinguib hed philanthr opist Mr. Brown.-Cyrus Butler Esq. gave $40.000, inview of which l iberal c on tr ib ut io n t he i ns ti tu ti on w a . a t o nc e d ec id ed t o b ea r hi sn ame, and the r emaining portion was deri ved from smaller subs criptions of pub-lic b odies and p rivate individuals. After the organ ization of a Board of Ti ns-tees, a nd u nd er a v er y l ib er al a nd a pp ro pr ia te l eg is la ti ve c ha rt er , a t ra ct o f l an dconsist ing o f a b ou t 120 ac res, tw o o r th ree m ile s from the ci ty o f P ro v id enc e w aspurchased . This wa s formerly known a s t he Gr ot to Fa rm , from a beau tifu ja nd r om an ti c r av in e w hi ch e ro as es i t, an d s ur pa sa es i n c ap ab il it ie s o f i m pr ov em en ta s re ga rd s i ts l a nd sc a pe b ea ut ie s, an y similar p o si t io n w h ic h the w ri te r h a s s e en .It com pris es an e lev ate d p la in , c ove red w ith fore st tree s and f low er ing p lan ts , p ro-

Blooming Dale Asylum 1845

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