Program

NYS Historic

Location

1368 Co Rd 132, Ovid, NY 14521, USA

Lat/Long

42.68152, -76.87462

Grant Recipient

Romulus Historical Society

By the mid-19th century, the New York State healthcare system had begun to shift in response to progressive attitudes about mental health care. In 1864, Doctor Sylvester D. Willard, secretary of the New York State Medical Society, set out to investigate an increasing population deemed the “chronic pauper insane” (Willard Asylum for the Insane, 1870). Willard’s report directly informed the 1865 Willard Act, authorizing New York State to construct an asylum on the grounds of the former New York State Agricultural College. The idyllic lakefront location was thought to be an ideal setting for recovering residents. “Willard Asylum for the Insane” opened to the public in 1869. Dr. Chapin, a pioneer in mental health care, served as the first superintendent of the Asylum and advocated for creating facilities to actively care for vulnerable people rather than placing them in poorhouses. The institution’s first annual report documented the monumental impact that Willard Asylum had on the lives of those deemed unable to care for themselves:

“Many of these, the most dependent, helpless, unfortunate and neglected class of our people, have been taken from cells, dens, cages, outhouses, cribs and dungeons, in some instances from chains and worse than prison confinement, from, filth, squalor and wretchedness; and are now in neat, clean, warm, well ventilated and comfortable quarters, in a home befitting the great State of New York to furnish for those of her people who have neither home or friends, and who are without the means financially or capacity intellectually to provide for themselves, with intellect shattered, minds darkened, living amid delusions a constant prey to unrest, haunted by unreal fancies and wild imaginings, they now have in their sore misfortune a safe refuge, kindly care, constant watching, and are made as comfortable as their circumstances will allow.” (Willard Asylum for the Insane, 1870)

The expansive property consisted of a central hospital building, several detached cottages for residents and staff, amusement halls, maintenance houses, and hundreds of acres of farmland. Willard Asylum was reportedly the largest institution of its kind, in the U.S., by 1879.

The State Hospital continued to expand into the 20^th century and eventually housed over 3,000 patients by 1959. The institution made a great impact on the local community by generating infrastructure and providing employment to multiple generations of community members. Due to deinstitutionalization movement of the 1960s, the hospital was renamed as the Willard Psychiatric Center in 1974. Advancements in medicine and therapeutic practices led to a dramatic decline in the Center’s resident population. In response to these changes, and severe budget constraints, Governor George Pataki decided to close the facility in 1995. Shortly after, the property was converted into the Willard Drug Treatment Campus, which operated until 2022.

Sources:

Willard Asylum for the Insane. (1870). First Annual Report of the Trustees of the Willard Asylum for the Insane. New York State.