Central Islip Psychiatric Center
Encyclopedia
The Central Islip Psychiatric Center was a psychiatric hospital
in Central Islip, New York
, USA from 1889 until 1996.
The center was one of the four major hospital "farms" in central Long Island
to house the sick from New York City
; the others were Kings Park
, Pilgrim State Hospital
, and Edgewood State Hospital
. In 1955 it housed 10,000 patients, making it the USA's second biggest psychiatric hospital to Pilgrim State Hospital, which was the largest psychiatric institution ever to exist in the United States.
. It opened in 1889 to house the sick from Manhattan
in what was called at the time the New Colony. Kings County Farm Colony opened in 1890 to house those from Brooklyn
. Pilgrim opened in 1930 and Edgewood in 1965.
The state bought the land for US$25 per acre
.
49 male and 40 female patients were admitted in 1889 for "O&O" (Occupation and Oxygen) and "R&R" (Rest and Relaxation) at a working farm. Patients cleared the land, constructed buildings, made the furniture and mattresses, sewed their clothing, grew crops and raised dairy cattle, pigs and chickens.
After New York State bought it, it was renamed the Manhattan State Hospital for the Insane (although the "for Insane" portion was frequently not included in articles).
The initial buildings grew to be a nearly mile-long interconnected series of buildings called the "chain of pearls."
Until the Great Depression
patients would arrive by a special hospital train with bars on the windows on a siding
off the Long Island Railroad.
More modern buildings were arranged closer together in the Sunburst building.
The hospital was renamed the Central Islip State Hospital and finally the Central Islip Psychiatric Center.
It closed in 1996 when the last patients were transferred to the Pilgrim Psychiatric Center
.
As the hospital was being phased out, part of its grounds were used for Suffolk County, New York
to locate its offices in the Cohalen County Court Complex in 1992.
The New York Institute of Technology
has the biggest collection of buildings in the Sunburst Building. The Town Center at Central Islip shopping center covers much of it. Citibank Park
, home of the Long Island Ducks
is on it as the Alfonse M. D'Amato United States Courthouse which is the second largest federal courthouse in the U.S.
Psychiatric hospital
Psychiatric hospitals, also known as mental hospitals, are hospitals specializing in the treatment of serious mental disorders. Psychiatric hospitals vary widely in their size and grading. Some hospitals may specialise only in short-term or outpatient therapy for low-risk patients...
in Central Islip, New York
Central Islip, New York
Central Islip is a hamlet and census-designated place in Suffolk County, New York, U.S.. The population was 31,950 at the 2000 census.-History and overview:...
, USA from 1889 until 1996.
The center was one of the four major hospital "farms" in central Long Island
Long Island
Long Island is an island located in the southeast part of the U.S. state of New York, just east of Manhattan. Stretching northeast into the Atlantic Ocean, Long Island contains four counties, two of which are boroughs of New York City , and two of which are mainly suburban...
to house the sick from New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
; the others were Kings Park
Kings Park Psychiatric Center
The Kings Park Psychiatric Center, known by Kings Park locals simply as 'The Psych Center', is a former state-run psychiatric hospital located in Kings Park, New York...
, Pilgrim State Hospital
Pilgrim Psychiatric Center
Pilgrim Psychiatric Center, formerly known as Pilgrim State Hospital, is a state-run psychiatric hospital located in Brentwood, New York. At the time it opened, it was the largest hospital of any kind in the world...
, and Edgewood State Hospital
Edgewood State Hospital
Edgewood State Hospital was a tubercular/psychiatric hospital complex that formerly stood in Deer Park, New York, on Long Island, New York, USA. It was one of four state mental asylums built on Long Island , and was the last one of the four to be built.The hospital was built in the...
. In 1955 it housed 10,000 patients, making it the USA's second biggest psychiatric hospital to Pilgrim State Hospital, which was the largest psychiatric institution ever to exist in the United States.
History
The hospital was the first of the farms that would house 33,000 and have 15,000 employees at its peak in rural Suffolk County, New YorkSuffolk County, New York
Suffolk County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York on the eastern portion of Long Island. As of the 2010 census, the population was 1,493,350. It was named for the county of Suffolk in England, from which its earliest settlers came...
. It opened in 1889 to house the sick from Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
in what was called at the time the New Colony. Kings County Farm Colony opened in 1890 to house those from Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
. Pilgrim opened in 1930 and Edgewood in 1965.
The state bought the land for US$25 per acre
Acre
The acre is a unit of area in a number of different systems, including the imperial and U.S. customary systems. The most commonly used acres today are the international acre and, in the United States, the survey acre. The most common use of the acre is to measure tracts of land.The acre is related...
.
49 male and 40 female patients were admitted in 1889 for "O&O" (Occupation and Oxygen) and "R&R" (Rest and Relaxation) at a working farm. Patients cleared the land, constructed buildings, made the furniture and mattresses, sewed their clothing, grew crops and raised dairy cattle, pigs and chickens.
After New York State bought it, it was renamed the Manhattan State Hospital for the Insane (although the "for Insane" portion was frequently not included in articles).
The initial buildings grew to be a nearly mile-long interconnected series of buildings called the "chain of pearls."
Until the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
patients would arrive by a special hospital train with bars on the windows on a siding
Siding
Siding is the outer covering or cladding of a house meant to shed water and protect from the effects of weather. On a building that uses siding, it may act as a key element in the aesthetic beauty of the structure and directly influence its property value....
off the Long Island Railroad.
More modern buildings were arranged closer together in the Sunburst building.
The hospital was renamed the Central Islip State Hospital and finally the Central Islip Psychiatric Center.
It closed in 1996 when the last patients were transferred to the Pilgrim Psychiatric Center
Pilgrim Psychiatric Center
Pilgrim Psychiatric Center, formerly known as Pilgrim State Hospital, is a state-run psychiatric hospital located in Brentwood, New York. At the time it opened, it was the largest hospital of any kind in the world...
.
Current use
Most of the buildings, including the String of Pearls, have been demolished. The 1953 power plant was torn down in 2006, the Corcoran treatment building was torn down in 2008.As the hospital was being phased out, part of its grounds were used for Suffolk County, New York
Suffolk County, New York
Suffolk County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York on the eastern portion of Long Island. As of the 2010 census, the population was 1,493,350. It was named for the county of Suffolk in England, from which its earliest settlers came...
to locate its offices in the Cohalen County Court Complex in 1992.
The New York Institute of Technology
New York Institute of Technology
New York Institute of Technology is a private, non-sectarian, co-educational research university in New York City. NYIT has five schools and two colleges, all with a strong emphasis on technology and applied scientific research...
has the biggest collection of buildings in the Sunburst Building. The Town Center at Central Islip shopping center covers much of it. Citibank Park
Citibank Park
Bethpage Ballpark is a 6,002-seat baseball park in Central Islip, New York that serves as the home of the Long Island Ducks, an independent minor league baseball team that is a member of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. Its first regular season game took place on May 14, 2000, when...
, home of the Long Island Ducks
Long Island Ducks
The Long Island Ducks is an American professional baseball team based in Central Islip, New York. They are a member of the Liberty Division of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball...
is on it as the Alfonse M. D'Amato United States Courthouse which is the second largest federal courthouse in the U.S.
External links
- History of Central Islip Psychiatric Center, LIOddities.com.
- Asylum Projects info