Harrisburg State Hospital in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, Dauphin County, on North Cameron and Maclay Streets, was Pennsylvania’s first public facility to house the mentally ill and disabled. Map Location in Pennsylvania Political Statistics Founded c. ... Dauphin County is a county located in the state of Pennsylvania and is one of four counties comprising the greater Harrisburg metropolitan area. ...

History

Legislation passed in 1845 to establish the hospital and it was opened as the Pennsylvania State Lunatic Hospital, admitting its first patient, in 1851. This was a result of the successful lobbying efforts of 19th century social reformer, Dorothea Dix. 1845 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ... 1851 (MDCCCLI) was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Friday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar). ... Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ... A reform movement is a kind of social movement that aims to make gradual change, or change in certain aspects of the society rather than rapid or fundamental changes. ... Dorothea Dix Dorothea Lynde Dix (April 4, 1802 – July 17, 1887) was a social activist who, from the early 1840s to well after the American Civil War lobbied almost every States legislature to create asylums for the insane. ...

Hospital and campus layout

It has a two hundred acre campus with stately buildings in a country setting, in Dauphin County, with a majority of its campus in Susquehanna Township. There are fifty buildings located on the campus. Twenty nine of them are under the administration of Harrisburg State Hospital. Eaton, Hilltop, Hillcrest, Petry, and Slothower buildings are resident buildings for individuals receiving services. Many buildings are vacant. State office sites and the Commonwealth’s Technology Center are located on the campus. Susquehanna Township is a township located in Dauphin County, Pennsylvania. ...

Closure of the hospital

Harrisburg State Hospital was scheduled to close in 2005-2006 as a mental health facility.^[1]

Trivia

• It was used for the hospital setting in the film, Girl, Interrupted.The film was shot at various locations in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, especially Harrisburg State Hospital in settings meant to resemble those of the grounds of McLean Hospital in Massachusetts.^[2]

Girl, Interrupted is a film that was adapted from the original memoir Girl, Interrupted by Susanna Kaysen. ... Map Location in Pennsylvania Political Statistics Founded c. ... McLean Hospital (pronounced Mc-Lain) is a psychiatric hospital in Belmont, Massachusetts, USA. It is noted for its clinical staff expertise and ground-breaking neuroscience research. ...

Notes

1. ^ Closure of the Harrisburg State Hospital - Pennsylvania Department of Social Welfare
2. ^ Information on the filming of Girl, Interrupted at Harrisburg State Hospital, including a studio press release on the building and Dorothea Dix.