Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum Upsets Mental Health Advocates
According to The Charleston Gazette article Groups protest ‘lunatic asylum’ name, a pre-Civil War mental hospital in Weston, West Virginia has - after undergoing several name changes spanning the 19th and 20th centuries including “West Virginia Hospital for the Insane,” “Weston State Hospital,” and then simply “Weston Hospital” - gone back to using its maiden name of “Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum.”
Unsurprisingly, many mental health groups in West Virginia are outraged. Folks from the Mountain State Direct Action Center, the West Virginia Mental Health Consumers Association, the West Virginia Mental Health Planning Council, and the West Virginia Americans with Disabilities Act Coalition have either already spoken out or are expected to in the near future.
What may be more surprising is that I - both a consumer, an advocate, and a ninja against stigma - am not at all outraged. I’m actually intrigued.
Lots of people are fascinated with mental health-related subjects. I’m one of them. Terribly fascinated. I don’t know why, really. Our brains, our thoughts, what makes our brains work the way they do, what makes us think the thoughts we think…all of it. I’m just terribly fascinated. It’s probably sick, really. So, when I read the article in its entirety and learned that the hospital’s new owner, Joe Jordan, and the facility’s historical consultant, Edward Gleason, have plans to develop “educational exhibits showcasing the ‘renaissance in psychiatry,’” I was, well, fascinated.
I want to learn more about the history of mental health. I want to be exposed to how mental illness used to be treated. I want to view the time line and appreciate how far we’ve come. Is that so wrong? No, I don’t think so.
Although Gleason stated -
“In America, we strive to present our history as it really was, blemishes and all,” Gleason wrote. “We are not the Soviet Union, which invented the past by altering names, places and events, to support what had been judged politically correct by contemporary powers.”
- Scott Miller, the director of the Mountain State Direct Action Center, says Gleason and Jordan are trying to “glorify” what was once a “living Hell.”
With what I know thus far, I certainly don’t think they’re trying to glorify anything. I think they’re trying to present history as it happened. (What’s the old saying? “Those who don’t learn from history are doomed to repeat it”?) Isn’t that why the Willard Suitcase Exhibit was created? To not only remember the patients for the people they were, but to also illustrate the “living Hell” mental health treatment used to be and help us appreciate how far it’s come?
Those of us with an ounce of class and intelligence don’t use words like “crazy,” “lunatic,” or “nut case” regarding mental health anymore; however, the class and intelligence we have now doesn’t erase history, and I’m all for any preserved relic of history that teaches us about the past and helps us learn and make better decisions in the future. (Of course, this isn’t to say that I’m for “Psycho Path,” the dirt bike race event held on hospital grounds. That’s just ignorant and I’ll of course be awarding an A.S.S. Award to whomever created it.)
Constant vigilance, my friends. We can keep sight in the fight against stigma without losing sight of what we’re fighting against.
For more information about the hospital, visit The Weston State Hospital and Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum.
POSTED IN: Current Affairs & News, Rants & Raves, Resources, Sites of Interest, stigma
5 opinions for Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum Upsets Mental Health Advocates
Ethan
Mar 26, 2008 at 11:08 pm
Great points on why this particular use of the word “lunatic” isn’t all bad. I agree with you completely and am myself fascinated with the subject. There are a lot of overly simplistic views on the history of asylums which often focus on the negative aspects. More even-handed, and respectable educational resources are needed, and hopefully this will somehow work out into one.
I’m a bit skeptical though when I hear about the “Psycho Path” races and “Hospital of Horror” tours…
Alicia Sparks, NAMI Affiliation Leader
Mar 26, 2008 at 11:20 pm
“Hospital of Horror” tours? Oh, man, I missed that. That’s just ignorant, too. I’m considering sending a letter to the owners, letting them know that I’m completely in favor of their educational intentions, but appalled by their poor name choices.
You know, I spent a good amount of time yesterday researching this hospital and landed at http://www.kirkbridebuildings.com (I see you’ve listed it! Are you the owner?), which led to me learning even more about Kirkbride and the Moral Treatment - something I wasn’t very familiar with. Now, I’m even more fascinated.
I’m only about 3 1/2 hours from Weston. (I’m in southern West Virginia.) I may start seriously thinking about making a trip up there this summer.
Ethan
Mar 26, 2008 at 11:30 pm
Check out the calendar on their site for a full list of activities (and activity names): http://www.trans-alleghenylunaticasylum.com/Calendar.html
To be fair, they’ve taken on a huge risk and are trying all they can to generate some interest and revenue to help save a beautiful historic building. I’m on the fence about a lot of their ideas and activities. I really want to see them succeed, but I do think they cross the line with some of these provocative titles.
(Yeah, that is my web site.)
Deacon
Apr 8, 2008 at 3:48 pm
They’ve canceled the bike races and the “hospital of horrors” isn’t a tour but an event for halloween. Surely you see what a chance this would be for gathering funds for the repairs that are so badly needed on that asylum.
Alicia Sparks, NAMI Affiliation Leader
Apr 8, 2008 at 11:11 pm
Ethan: Great Web site, and thanks for the link! I’d also like to see them succeed in raising the funds to properly preserve the place in non-stigmatizing ways.
Deacon: I think I make it pretty clear in the post that “I’m all for any preserved relic of history that teaches us about the past and helps us learn and make better decisions in the future.” (<- yep!) So yes, on that part, I wholeheartedly agree.
However, if the only way to obtain the resources (money) to preserve such a relic is by hosting events as disgustingly and ignorantly titled as “Psycho Path,” then, no, I’m not for that. I’m glad they’ve canceled the bike races - no, I take that back. I’m glad there is no longer the name of “Psycho Path” associated with bike races on the property. I think the bike races themselves would have generated money to help them. I truly hope the owners succeed in generating revenue. They may get a bit of help from me this summer, as I’d love to drive up and tour the place.
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