Description: Photograph book titled, "Picturesque Athens Asylum: Views In and About Athens Asylum for the Insane." In April 1867, the Athens State Hospital was created by an act of the Ohio General Assembly, which appointed three trustees to purchase land and erect a building for the care and treatment of at least 40 patients. Serving the surrounding counties, the Athens hospital supplemented the three existing asylums for the insane at Columbus, Newburgh (Cleveland) and Dayton. Designed by Cleveland architect Levi Scofield and opened in 1874, the hospital was located about one mile west of the city of Athens. The institution has had several name changes: Athens Lunatic Asylum (January- April 1874), South Eastern Ohio Hospital for the Insane (1874-1876), Athens Hospital for the Insane (1876-1878), Athens Asylum for the Insane (1878-1894), Athens State Hospital, Southeastern Ohio Mental Health Center, Athens Mental Health and Developmental Center, and Athens Mental Health Center. Originally, the hospital's grounds consisted of a park-like setting, creating a calming environment which doctors hoped would assist patients in recovering their mental health. Patients worked in the gardens, the greenhouse, the orchards, or the dairy, helped to tend livestock, or found employment in the asylum's carriage shop. The asylum also boasted a physical plant that heated the various buildings with steam heat. Many of the patients were never released from the hospital. Most of these people were buried in the asylum's cemetery. The asylum closed as a mental hospital in 1993. Ohio University eventually purchased the grounds, renaming the site "The Ridges" and renovating buildings for classroom and administrative use, including the Kennedy Museum of Art. The hospital is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Page1
Subjects: Mental illness--Treatment--Ohio; Asylums--Ohio; Psychiatric hospitals--Ohio; National Register of Historic Places; Architecture--Ohio;
Places: Athens (Ohio); Athens County (Ohio)
 

Description: Print showing the buildings and grounds of Longview State Hospital, located in Cincinnati, Ohio. The Longview State Hospital, originally called the Cincinnati Commercial Hospital and Lunatic Asylum, was established by the professors and administrators of the Cincinnati Medical College as a treatment and residence center for the mentally ill. The hospital underwent several name changes over the years. From 1822 to 1851 it was known as the Commercial Hospital and Lunatic Asylum. Beginning in 1859 it was called the Longview Asylum and later the Longview State Hospital. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AV61_B1F1_003
Subjects: Longview Hospital (Cincinnati, Ohio); Mental illness--Treatment--Ohio; Psychiatric hospitals--Ohio--Cincinnati; Asylums--Ohio
Places: Cincinnati (Ohio); Hamilton County (Ohio)
 

Description: Photograph showing the pool and recreation area at Longview State Hospital, located in Cincinnati, Ohio. The Longview State Hospital, originally called the Cincinnati Commercial Hospital and Lunatic Asylum, was established by the professors and administrators of the Cincinnati Medical College as a treatment and residence center for the mentally ill. The hospital underwent several name changes over the years. From 1822 to 1851 it was known as the Commercial Hospital and Lunatic Asylum. Beginning in 1859 it was called the Longview Asylum and later the Longview State Hospital. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AV61_B1F2_008
Subjects: Longview Hospital (Cincinnati, Ohio); Mental illness--Treatment--Ohio; Psychiatric hospitals--Ohio--Cincinnati; Asylums--Ohio; Swimming;
Places: Cincinnati (Ohio); Hamilton County (Ohio)
 

Description: Photograph taken on the grounds of Longview State Hospital, located in Cincinnati, Ohio. Two men are seen with a truck reading "Longview Occupational Therapy" and a riding lawnmower. One or both men may be patients at Longview participating in groundskeeping as occupational therapy. The Longview State Hospital, originally called the Cincinnati Commercial Hospital and Lunatic Asylum, was established by the professors and administrators of the Cincinnati Medical College as a treatment and residence center for the mentally ill. The hospital underwent several name changes over the years. From 1822 to 1851 it was known as the Commercial Hospital and Lunatic Asylum. Beginning in 1859 it was called the Longview Asylum and later the Longview State Hospital. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AV61_B1F4_039
Subjects: Longview Hospital (Cincinnati, Ohio); Mental illness--Treatment--Ohio; Psychiatric hospitals--Ohio--Cincinnati; Asylums--Ohio
Places: Cincinnati (Ohio); Hamilton County (Ohio)