Mt Pleasant State Hospital
Mt Pleasant State Hospital | |
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Construction Began | 1855 |
Construction Ended | 1865 |
Opened | 1861 |
Current Status | Active |
Building Style | Kirkbride Plan |
Architect(s) | Jonathan Preston |
Peak Patient Population | 1,581 in 1946 |
Alternate Names |
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History
The Mount Pleasant Mental Health Institute is the oldest of the four Iowa Department of Human Services facilities serving persons affected by mental illness. The first patient was admitted on February 26, 1861. In the early years of its operation, the facility was a custodial facility for patients who were hospitalized for long periods of time, some for the greater part of their lives.
In 1946, the facility reached its peak occupancy of 1,581. Since 1945 however, new therapies and medications have helped decrease the facility's population, and the individual's average length of stay has been reduced from years to a matter of weeks.
The Center for Psychiatric Care (Adult Psychiatric Services and Dual Diagnosis) is accredited by the Centers for Medicaid & Medicare Services. The Iowa Residential Treatment Center is licensed by the Iowa Department of Public Health, and is currently operating on a three-year accreditation which was received in 2005.
From the "BOARD OF CONTROL OF STATE INSTITUTIONS, From Iowa Official Register 1909-1910" pages 262-269
- Superintendent-CHARLES F. APPLEGATE, M.D.
- First Assistant Physician-FRANK T. STEVENS, M.D.
- Second Assistant Physician-EDWARD L. EMRICH, M.D.
- Third Assistant Physician-JOHN F. SCHAEFER, M.D.
- Woman Physician-ANNE BURNET, M.D.
- Pathologist-FRED G. ELLIS
- Steward-RALPH HULINGS
- Matron-JANET DONALDSON
The amount allowed for the support of this hospital is $12 per month for each patient. All expenses of the hospital, except for special purposes, are paid from the sum so named, and the amount is charged to the counties from which patients are sent.
In 1936 a huge fire destroyed the main Kirkbride building and left it beyond repair. The massive infereno spared only a few kitchen buildings behind the main building. People tried to rebuild the hospital, but this proved to be too hazardous, costly, and time consuming. The Mt. Pleasant State Hospital became the only mental institution in Iowa to be closed down and it's ruins abandoned. Only pictures and a few smaller, newer buildings with no historical value remain.
Images of Mt Pleasant State Hospital
Main Image Gallery: Mt Pleasant State Hospital
Cemetery
There is a cemetery on the property, however it is now off-limits as part of the prison that currently operates the facility.