- Cleveland State Hospital -
Cuyahoga County, Ohio
The "History of Cuyahoga County" shows that on April 30th, 1852, the legislature appropriated one hundred and forty thousand dollars for the erection of two "lunatic asylums" in Ohio.
Until that time the asylum at Columbus was the only one in the state and was seriously overcrowded. By a vote of four to site of the new asylum
was located at Newburgh on land donated by the family of James A. Garfield for that sole purpose. John Gill, of Cleveland, was awarded the building contract at a
price of $69,800. On March 5th, 1855, the 100 bed institution was opened for business. The building was enlarged by adding east and west wings in
1860-'61, with more additions added in 1870 so that it was 900 feet in length and increased the capacity to 500 patients. It was originally known as
the Northern Ohio Lunatic Asylum. In later years it was variously known as the Northern Ohio Hospital for the Insane, Cleveland Hospital for the Insane,
Cleveland Asylum for the Insane, Newburgh State Hospital and Cleveland Developmental Center.
On Wednesday, September 25, 1872, a disastrous fire occurred that destroyed the majority of the building. The newest addition had
recently been completed at a cost of $300,000 and the building was already at the maximum patient capacity. One hundred-fifty of the patients were
from Columbus awaiting the erection of a new asylum there to replace the one destroyed by fire in 1868. A new facility was quickly erected with a capacity
for 640 patients. Even so, reports of overcrowding followed soon after it opened and would continue to be a problem for the rest of its existence. In 1972 the
state began to phase out the institution and, in 1975, it became the Cleveland Developmental Center. The old main building on Turney Road was torn down in 1977.
The remaining buildings have since been demolished to make way for a housing development.
