Towering on a hilltop near pittsburgh sat dixmont asylum for the insane, later renamed dixmont state hospital. Hospital, most haunted places, spooky places, the graveyard book. Dixmont state hospital, shown lit by strobe light, stands in cavernous ruins. Dixmont filmmaker, of hopewell, works to reclaim cemetery. Those interested in urban exploration or abandoned photography will enjoy the large library of photos detailing all of the buildings on the former campus. Small, rounded, weatherworn stones mark the graves.
Dixmont state hospital, pennsylvania images of america series by. Dixmont state hospital pa indigent patient cards, 1893. Dixmont state hospital was located on a wooded bluff overlooking the ohio river. Dixmont state hospital by mark benton overdrive rakuten. Dixmont state hospital originally the department of the insane in the western pennsylvania hospital of pittsburgh was a hospital located northwest of pittsburgh, pennsylvania. Dixmont state hospital opens up a world that was offlimits to the general public but alive with festivals, celebrations, and the successful treatment of patients. See more ideas about abandoned asylums, abandoned hospital and haunted places. This website was created as a source of information for those curious about dixmont state hospital, a former psychiatric hospital in kilbuck township, pa a few miles outside of pittsburgh.
Books that document the medical history of patients and their families. Dixmont state hospital, pennsylvania images of america. Dixmont books, book price comparison at bookstores. For those who spent time there, dixmont was a vibrant community within a community. A granite marker says the site holds the remains of 1,300 patients, including war veterans, who died from 1863 to 1937. Wqed producer david solomon and photographer paul ruggieri got unprecedented access to the dixmont property and its underground tunnels just prior. It has been a topic of curiosity, urban exploration, ghost hunts, and historical research. History and photos of the abandoned dixmont state hospital, in pittsburgh, pa. Dixmont state hospital, founded in 1848 by dorothea dix, began as the insane dept. Dixmont state hospital by mark berton arcadia publishing.
The pennsylvania state archives is located at 350 north street, harrisburg, pa 17120. Guide to the records of dixmont state hospital, 17851998. Sell dixmont state hospital pa images of america isbn 9780738545202 ship for free. Thrillseekers hunt ghosts in dixmont state hospital. Pa danville state hospital pa patient ledgers, 18721921. In march 1973, the department of public welfare made plans to move patients judged to be criminally insane from fairview state hospital to mayview. Dixmont state hospital pa female patients clothing. The origins of the department began with the 1869 creation of the board of public charities, charged with inspection of all charitable, penal, and correctional institutions in the commonwealth. Dixmont state hospital was originally founded in 1848 in pittsburgh as the western. Dixmont state hospital images of america kindle edition by benton, mark. In 1907, dixmont was legally separated from the western pennsylvania hospital and individually incorporated as dixmont hospital for the insane.
Pittsburgh natives have recognized dixmont state hospital by its towering boiler house smokestack that stood prominently along busy route. Each volume contains an index which alphabetically lists each patient by surname with record more books of personal property belonging to patients in the care of the. Dixmont state hospital pa images of america bookbyte. Pittsburgh natives have recognized dixmont state hospital by its towering boiler house smokestack that stood prominently along busy route 65. Peaking at a little over 1,000 patients, it was small compared to western pas other major state hospitals.
This hospital was the first chartered public hospital in pittsburgh and the first institution in western pennsylvania to offer treatment for the insane. The first movement was made by the citizens of philadelphia, who adopted a memorial which they presented to the legislature at the session of 183839. Dixmont hospital was a mental institution named after dorothea dix, a famous mental health rights activist. Published in 2006 in arcadia publishings images of america series, this book by mark berton uses historic photographs to open up the world of the 1859 complex named for famed mental health care reformer dorothea dix, who was instrumental in choosing the hospitals site. By the mid1970s, dixmont had reached financial crisis due to the states desire to shut down the hospital. The wide hallways of dixmont state hospital were once crowded with mentally ill patients. This is a video of dixmont state hospital and there are 3 ghost hunt trips but on the other videos. Patient records for dixmont are located at the pennsylvania state archives in harrisburg, pennsylvania within record group 23department of public welfare records, office of mental health. Explore western pennsylvania disability history collections. Also known as department of the insane in the western. Active from 1862 through 1984, dixmont state hospital was demolished in 2005, leaving a grassy field and a forgotten graveyard in its wake.
Built in 1862, dixmont was once a state oftheart institution known for its highly selfsufficient and parklike campus, but a decline in funding for state hospitals and changing philosophies in psychiatric care caused. The old dixmont hospital once went by the lengthy title of the department of the insane in the western pennsylvania hospital of pittsburgh when it was opened in 1862 with an initial population of 1 patients. Western pennsylvania hospital and dixmont hospital records, 18481918. A reader from moon township was inquiring about the history of dixmont state hospital, the former mental health hospital on ohio river boulevard in kilbuck township. This cemetery, still owned by the state, contains about 0 graves with nothing but a number on a simple stone marking each sight. In kilbuck township, pa, this cemetery, still owned by the state, contains about 0 graves with nothing but a number on a simple stone marking each sight. The purchasers of the dixmont property own the log book that identifies the markers with each patient and their number and have made the information available. In 1982, an adolescent center was transferred from woodville state hospital to mayview.
However, it was situated on 400 acres of immaculatelygroomed property, making it perhaps the most picturesque hospital in the entire pittsburgh area. Dixmont state hospital pa indigent patient cards, 18931916. Register books of the allegheny county hospital for insane patients, 19001935. Breakdown of a mental hospital this awardwinning feature, rich with archival images and compelling interviews, chronicles the rise and fall of the landmark insane asylum near pittsburgh. Brush, branches, leaves and fallen, rotting trees consume their resting place. Supported by private contributions since 1852, it was primarily state appropriations that enabled the hospital to expand its facilities and care for an increasing number of. Peter, minnesota, established in 1866 under the kirkbride plan. Dixmont state hospital by mark berton arcadia publishing books. This is a slide show highlighting photos both of recent times and eary 20th century of dixmont state hospital or better known as dixmont insane asylum.
An image of the dixmont hospital for the insane, at its kilbuck twp. I had information that one of my ancestors was buried at the dixmont cemetery, but i didnt see his name on the cemetery records. By 1859, the hospital had grown so much that plans were made to separate the department of the insane from the more general physical medicine that. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. Danville state hospital pa patient ledgers, 18721921. The heinz museum has the same list with 3 other documents about the hospital but not the patient list. A tattered sign says dixmont state hospital cemetery. A bill authorizing the erection of a state lunatic hospital was prepared and passed both houses, but did. Dixmont state hospital records and photographs pa archives polk finding aid.
With one exception, only numbers no names identify the dead. From 1859 to 1984, dixmont was a selfsufficient community of crazy people. During the closing of dixmont state hospital in 1984, the deaf unit was transferred to mayview. About 1,300 people, once patients of dixmont state hospital, are buried on a wooded hillside behind where the demolished institution stood in kilbuck. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading dixmont state hospital images of america.
This cemetery, still owned by the state, contains about 0 graves with nothing but a number on a. In 1946, the pa department of welfare had to step in and dixmont became a stateowned hospital. The dixmont hospital was legally separated from the western pennsylvania hospital in 1907 when it was individually incorporated as the dixmont hospital for the insane. Note the idyllic setting and the private train station. Dixmont state hospital by mark berton, hardcover barnes. His death certificate is in the allegheny county court house. A mental hospitals breakdown pittsburgh postgazette. See more ideas about hospital, states, abandoned asylums. Peter state hospital is a psychiatric hospital in st. Dixmont state hospital cemetery in pennsylvania find a. During this time, the hospital began using previously decried procedures such as lobotomies, electroshock therapy, and use of restraints.
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