Finding Lillian: The lost patients of Washington’s abandoned mental hospital
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- Опубликовано: 17 апр 2024
- He uncovered 200 headstones. She was searching for remnants about her great-grandmother’s life. This documentary follows two people's consuming quest to unearth the truth about Northern State Hospital and revive the stories of its forgotten patients.
(Produced by Lauren Frohne / The Seattle Times)
Read more: projects.seattletimes.com/202...
This video was originally published July 16, 2023.
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Watch more from Seattle Times Video: seattletimes.com/video
This amazing man is researching, finding, and marking these graves deserves help and recognition.
AGREED !!!
Being a social worker myself, I felt an immediate kinship with him. I am proud that he is a colleague of mine, even if we have never met.
Your doing blessings for them
Agree,what a Blessing ❤
@@alexandrasuperbonita2626fur those if you who truly care, may God bless you mightily. So many list souls. Just living long can result in the liss of so many friends and Family. One that never leaves you is God, never forget that.
And we can thank President Reagan for the mass closing of residential mental hospitals, and the massive increase of unhoused unemployable people that continues to this day.
Inspired by Margaret Thatcher doing the same in the UK. One of the biggest property and land grabs. Every one of our old hospitals is now £M + apartments with huge private grounds.
Rather than addressing the brutal, horrific conditions these people suffered. They just closed them and released the people. Today's problems are mostly drug related and poison in our daily food and water.
People like you who simply believe what is told are part of the problem. I am 45 autistic and agoraphobic and VERY fed up of the narrative and following questions aimed at myself. Autistic people don't suddenly become autistic through drug abuse, though vaccines are a likely candidate for what triggered a lifelong issue. If I was put away with mental or addicted folk it would sooo not end well for me, as although I struggle too much living alone, I am also deemed to 'normal' for any worthwhile assistance which leaves an unfair burden on my ex who is my unpaid carer (while also working a full time job and helping his older parents). There are so many like me, both in the USA and here in the UK and sadly we are the grey zone.
@@sarahbowman7566 There is a documentary called, Shots, Eugenics and Pandemics. You are definitely sharing truths most are ignorant to. Blessings to you.
Actually the law was signed in 1963 by Kennedy and it had a deadline of 20 years to accomplish which would be 1983 when Reagan was in office. There are many articles about the deinstitutionalization of the mentally ill. One is in the Journal of Medical Ethics.
I have done some research about this because I live near a former State School which is now a prison. I worked there for awhile.
There are alot of stories in the community about the residents because people worked there and talked about them. When I was 17 I applied for a job there and was shown a room full of naked men shrieking and playing with themselves. There was a bench crossways in the door and a teenage girl sitting there watching them. That was her job. That's what my job would be too. I went home and told my mom and she refused to sign for me to work there. I was graduated from high school but still only 17 so she would have had to sign off for me to work there. Not that I wanted the job.
My grandfather was a carpenter with his brothers. They did some work there and one of my great uncles impregnated a woman through the fence. They let her out and they got married.
When the place closed there were rumors that busloads were taken to Chicago and just let out on the streets. Of course they got into trouble and consequently are in the very place they came from only now they are in prison. I always thought a good research paper could be done comparing the release of the mentally ill in the late 70s and early 80s with the rise in crime rates. Clearly the government didn't think this through very well.
Just a few years ago they wanted to close a residence for the profoundly mentally ill in this area until the state officials came and took a tour. They saw for themselves that these people couldn't possibly live out in the community.
Women were committed to state schools for any and all reasons in the past. PMS, infidelity, any whim of her husband.
The care of the mentally ill in this country is a fascinating topic. I toured the first mental institution in Williamsburg, VA. Even back then there were mentally ill people needing an institution.
I'm glad Lillian's story got told.
My grandmother's cousin was a deaf mute child who was violent out of sheer frustration. Her parents died and her grandmother was incapable of caring for her. She was put in a place called a home for idiots. So sad that little girl. I have pictures of her but cannot find any records anywhere of her life or death. It makes my heart ache for her.
Genealogy
Quite a different reality and story than Helen Keller. Very sad.
I have been doing genealogy for over 30yrs I am happy to try and help for free if you wish
I'm also happy to help try and find whatever information i can.
Do you know if and how I can get my grandmother's records at Elgin State Hospital in Illinois?
Back then the husbands can just put them in these places to get rid of them no questions asked. Deplorable
Or spinster sisters, gays, the physically disabled, misfits. Oh, I forgot religious fanatics!
I was thinking the exact same thing.
Yes. Happened to my great grandmother in New Zealand.
@@elendilnz How awful. Hugs.
Perhaps she had mental issues, but she might just as easily have been infected by her husband.
A MAN gave her syphilis and SHE had to be the one sent away?? That's infuriating! This social worker is better than a saint. As the sister of a schizophrenic, I appreciate what he is doing, so very very much!
Untreated syphilis led/leads to mental issues, which is what probably happened in her case.
Her husband probably gave her the syphilis
That’s why our homeless population has exploded. Facilities like this all over America were closed 50 years ago.
Same in Canada. We had a big hospital like this one in Coquitlam, B.C. called Riverview. They all ended up in the Downtown Eastside in Vancouver.
And not replaced with anything meaningful or with the welfare and safety of people on mind.
Really. Not drug use ? Not pollution, energy or fiscal policy? Not war ( for oil )? And not media propaganda? No 500 homeless dudes in every town popping up every week from a lack of lobotomy and electric shocks ........ maybe your a lil nutty yourself doc .
It makes sense. Seems like there were a lot of horror stories about "institutions" but it makes sense to have the less fortunate taken care of in a safe place.
It was to save money. That is entire reason public mental health hospitals closed.
I didn’t catch the gentleman’s name uncovering the graves, but you Sir should be commended for your contribution to history, and genealogy but more importantly out of respect for those souls and for the love of family that came from them. So few people now understand the importance of this. I do. Thank you ❤
Thank you. :)
I already know this will be a sad story.
Wevtook care of an old gent for 22 years. He was 92 when he passed peacefully here at our home.
He spent around 50 years in an old timey institution thru a misdiagnosis. He told me “people disappeared from there” “they were mean down there” He was made to milk cows there for years in their dairy .Despite that horrid time in his life, he was a sweet fun gentle soul . Im soo glad we could give him a safe secure peaceful life in his latter years .
We miss him immeasurably.
Thank you for your kindness and compassion. Many were just learning disabled and people had a serious sense of hide them get rid of them back then it was shameful in a family to have someone not right. Especially in small towns. Glad he had 22 good years at the end. The staff were mean that's well documented.
I suspect sometimes the vulnerable & poor were institutionalised for cheap labour 😢 I’m glad that poor man has 22 years of happiness & freedom, but he should have had a lifetime.
@@Eve181dublinchances are the milk was used at the institution for drinking and making cheese, yogurt, baking and so on. Capable residents worked to help run the facility, which is actually a good thing ! We are meant to work, it’s good for our Mind, soul and body, it’s probably why he lived so long.
I completely agree, I just got the impression that the gentleman referred to wasn’t experiencing it as a therapeutic experience. In Ireland we had the Magdalene laundries & work was not part of of a therapeutic plan but a form of punishment. But I agree that occupation can be hugely positive, an addiction centre I’m familiar with looks after animals & it’s a wonderful experience for the residents.
Milking cows was something to be proud of, who can do that. My dad could milk by hand. Started probably as kid on the Nebraska prairie. He went every summer to help his uncle farm. Working was once a valued state to be in, accomplished…especially for boys.
It wouldnt surprise me to learn that Lillian contracted the std from her husband (whod cheated on her) who indeed DID impregnate her with his baby. Back then we women had no voice, like this lady says! The average woman would absolutely lose her damn mind if shed discovered her husband gave her tthis std and also impregnated her but accused her of running on him. Any of us would lose our damn minds over such a thing today!! ANY of us would! A bit of Lillian is in everyone of us 🎉😅( if what i think happened, happened to her)!!
Well over time whatever normal mind she had would be lost to untreated syphilis. I don't trust her husband at all. He just wanted to get rid of her. And that happened a lot in UK too. Some women got terrible post partum depression untreated and were useless as wives so were thrown into mental hospitals. Great documentary.
Tertiary syphilis causes mental debilitation. And she got TB apparently. Modern medicine could have treated both of these infections, but the treatments weren't available then.
Guess what: Thanks to the GQP, we women are losing not only our voices but our human and civil rights. Vote blue if any of this matters to you, citizens.
@@dolinaj1so out of place here and you either deliberayely or ignorantly exaggerate the actual facts, no rights exist to exempt one from the deliberate murder of a near or full term child. Stop spreading gross misinformation, show some courtesy and respect over your misplaced fanaticism.
@@vickimerritt2832there are very few abortions at a late stage unless the fetus has life threatening issues. Stop spreading lies.
I am the 'historian' for my family and what this man is doing is SO important and meaningful. What an amazing project, and an amazing perspective these folks have.
Likewise, I am going to be graduating college in a few weeks with a CJ degree but I want to do genealogy work. I’m going to save up money for some certification courses so I can help others find family history, as well as become a search angel. I was able to find my biological father by using a handful of my second-third cousins publicly available family trees, and using census records. I sent a letter in the mail to my grandparents most current address a couple of years ago, and they called me. They also got DNA tests which confirmed everything. I’m flying to see them for the second time on Saturday.
What a sick husband to have his wife committed for supposedly getting pregnant with a child that is not his! In all honesty.. I bet if they were to do a paternity test It would prove that he is the father! I wouldn’t at all be surprised if he wasn’t the one who gave her the syphilis too smh
Agreed!!
@Amanda-vi3di
It happened a lot that people got committed because they were inconvienient or "embarrassing" to their family, not actually having a mental illness.
A young woman wanted to marry the man of her choice instead of who her parents wanted, committed.
Someone was gay or lesbian, committed.
A man wanted to get rid of his wife so he could have other partners, committed.
It went on a lot.
Im with ya!! 👊💔🤷 I said the same thing almost word for word!
My Mom's father never accepted her and believed she was not his. I did my dna to find out and he was her father. Women had no rights back then. None at all. You could be locked away for cheating but only if you were a female.
Yep I agree
We need to start raising compassionate understanding people again instead of hate filled greedy ones.
Amen to this! ♥ I am so sick of the greed.
Yes
As long as our country and culture prioritizes money over anything that won't happen. Capitalism supports stepping on the people around you to gain wealth. We support our corporations putting profits above people at all costs. The bootstrap mentality pits neighbor against neighbor. We allow those that have succeeded in this environment and have the eat or be eaten mentality to make the laws and run our government.
Until we make fundamental changes that stop all the resources from being horded in the top 3% of the population we will live with greed and cruelty.
You all need to change the system or world order it has failed and the world is in chaos.
@@LaLaLonnaYou said that perfectly. I just wish more people felt the way you do and would wake up to what's going on around the world.
Lillian looks like she was quite beautiful. It’s so sad how her life turned out, but at least she has some descendants who care about her, even though they never met her. That’s beautiful, actually, when someone cares about a person they never met, never knew in real life. It looks as if some patients at this hospital were totally forgotten, not even buried properly with labels of any kind on their graves. Heartbreaking. What is so amazing, is that many people today are more sympathetic, more caring about these long-dead people, than were some of those who knew them in life, and could have helped them.
Of all the crimes committed against her b/c she was a woman, ur takeaway is that she was good looking and it’s sad her life didn’t make better use of her fukability? Yeah, great. Also, so wonderful and lovely that someone cares now that she’s long gone. I’m sure that makes up for it all.
"She was real." My heart is breaking.
My mother was institutionalized when I was six months old. Back then she was diagnosed with manic depression. Later, it was changed to schizophrenic. She was institutionalized up until her death. I wasn't made aware of her passing until about a decade later. Like I, she was lost in the system.
So glad someone is making the effort to remember those lost to history.
I wept. I wept for Lillian having contracted syphilis, and being simultaneously institutionalized and thrown away. I wept for both joy and sorrow for her heroic great-grandaughter's wonderful love that resulted in this story and Lillian's rebirth. God bless the sweet souls of this story.
My relative was self admitted to the Hudson River State Hospital near Poughkeepsie, New York in the 1950's for clinical depression. His daughters recount that he was told to "stay busy".....he was a quiet, thoughtful, talented man....wood worker, artist, master carpenter, working with his hands. This asylum was similar in that the architects were the same men. It was a "small independent city" with a working farm, with a gorgeous park like campus that we would drive through on our Sunday drives. He decided that there were residents far sicker, he left, but always lived with the spector of depression. In his case, he had a loving family that took care of him after discharge...he was able to work and do wood working. My family cherish many pieces of his work. May they RIP.
My grandmother's uncle died there in 1935 and Lemley took care of the remains and they had the records available in under 5 minutes when I called. He's buried with his wife in Evergreen Washelli. I learned from the archives he was committed twice, once when his wife died and lastly when his twin died in front of him. They were apple orchardists who had a house in Wenatchee Heights. He had "Involution melancholy" "depressive kind".
He lost his will to live. The broken hearted.💔
I’m sorry.. Depression was so misunderstood back then (at some level still is). It’s appalling to think this man suffered from a deep depression from incredible loss as many do today, and he was institutionalized in a mental hospital because of it. If this practice was common today, more than half the population would be committed. That is insane. The irony of it all.
😳♥️omG thats incredible!! So cool that u discovered all this info. Im on the east side of usa so idh loved ones that mite be in any treatment facilities there but its still so interesting to learn about generations past. We did some digging around in my family tree but we definitely didnt get to dig as deep as u did. Really interesting tho, i like this kinda thing
Btw?? Whats that diagnosis mean anyway? Like? What would we compare it to in todays illnesses?
@@khismetthats what i assumed too. Sounds like it huh? I asked her tho, ive not heard of the diagnosis provided. First thing that came to my mind tho was .. a broken heart. I watched a documentary that researched broken heartedness. They proved an increased amt of hormones flooding the area the heart sits in, when dealing with what we call 'broken heart'. Physically there are more hormones in that location. Meaning we feel it for real, its not just something we make up. It's real, not imaginary
How many women had postpartum ended up in places like this.
Since antibiotic use we don't see people dying in huge numbers of syphilis and tuberculosis anymore but back then this documentary shows it was a huge public health problem.
No but they'll soon have wards full of people with turbo cancers and other immune system problems antibiotics should fix but won't because of what they have coursing inside of their bodies due to drinking the Kool-Aid
Mental health issues were the primary reason for institutionalization. You're thinking of a sanitarium.
@@b_uppy Bacterial diseases such as TB were spreading like wildfire in institutions such as asylums. Very poor living conditions coupled with an overcrowded indoor space in an era where germ theory hadn't been established and vaccines didn't exist = perfect disaster.
Wow what a wonderful man to do this. 😢😢😢 1700 people wow .
Oh my goodness, well done, Lauren Frohne! That lady is a natural in front of the camera, she just invited us straight into her heart. Her compassion towards her grandfather, who seems to have been a terrible person, and her search for Lilian. Thank you, Seattle Times. PS anyone else thinking immediately that baby was either absolutely legitimate but her husband was angry at her and lied, or she was attacked by whoever employed her as a housekeeper...
Oh my goodness! I have a suspicion that being attacked by the owner of the house, while my great grandma was a housekeeper, was possibly how my grandma was conceived
Thank You for posting this. Blessings to the Gentleman who is cataloging the grave markers. The folks are now not forgotten. ♥️🙏♥️
I was able to confirm this year that my GG Grandfather died in a mental institution here in Michigan. My mother (age 96) refuses to believe it for sometime now. Her grandmother (her Mom's mother) was orphaned at 3. Neighbors raised her and her siblings. Her mother had passed away (age 30) and I think he had some sort of break. He lived another 14 years. This was all in the late 1800's. I have no clue how to find out what happened. He was an emigrant from Ireland that came to Michigan and I cannot even find where he came from in Ireland. I hope to one day.
Quite a lot of Irish surnames are specific to certain counties, so try putting the info you have on a genealogy site and people might help you out. I know my surname is predominantly from one county, as are most of my ancestors. Good luck with your search 💚
That poor woman, she's the only person who will weep for her great grandmother. What a sad, lonely feeling. I can relate, as my mother's side of the family was afflicted with mental illness. The stories are endless when you have mentally ill relatives... my heart goes out to her... both her and her great grandmother.
Lillian was so beautiful!😢 It’s so sad, this shouldn’t have happened.
From her photos, Lillian somehow seems unconventional for her time and that trait, in and of itself, was enough "justification" to have a woman in the 1920's committed on a husband's/man's say so. Her husband "claimed" the child was not his ~ so she gets put in a mental institution!
Unconventional, as in intelligent and strength of will.
In doing my family research, I came across a single court docket from 1910 that list "The case of ________ _____________, an imbecile" (which was the term for mental retardation at the time - not a slur). I'm assuming it was his commitment hearing. He was my grandfather's brother. One I never knew about. I found no mention of him again in any records, so I assume he was locked away and lost to history.
Very sad because I worked with many people who came out of the institutions when they were closed in Massachusetts after numerous scandals involving terrible treatment in those facilities. Placed into well appointed group homes and some, with support were able to live independently. Many, many sad stories of people with quite mild mental disability whose whole lives had been taken away and had to restart in their older ages. Even so, I wish there were congregate living situations that were not institutional settings where those who can't handle life without a great deal of support can live in peace. It is time to put the stigma of those places behind and focus on the reality of the people who fall between the cracks and find a new model for the care of the mentally disabled.
What was regan thinking when he closed these hospitals ? The thing to fix was the system and hired more staff to make to take care of the patients
This is very admirable .. giving the people in these institutions back their identity and their lives to their families .
.
My Granny was born in 1900. She knew a couple of girls who got pregnant due to r in 1915. She said they were put in the mental hospital in Louisville, KY because their parents said they were insane. She said truth was it was due to the families shame. Both girls were raped by the same man and they died within a couple years of being in the hospital. Their babies were also put up for adoption. She said their nanes but I can't remember. I'm 67 now. I was a young girl when she told us girls the cautionary tale. Don't take a ride from anyone even if you know them and stay together.
Awful
My grandmother was admitted to Northern State Hospital in 1933. She was there until 1963 when she was transferred to a nursing home on Whidbey Island. She had been misdiagnosed by Naval doctors and thirty years later a correct diagnosis did not free her bc she had become institutionalized.
I have a similar story. My grandmother was institutionalized after the accidental death of her second son at two years old falling down cement steps. My father came home to his mother in distraught and blood everywhere. She did get out and was able to meet her grandchildren . she got re.married and passed away a year or two later.
My grandmother was at Western Washington Hospital from about 1928-1950. Her name was Andorra “Annie” Gates. How I would cherish being able to investigate her life!
When we began shutting all these facilities down, these folks with mental health landed on streets with minimal health care. Even when they do get held it's for 1 week, given meds that are quickly stolen on street and no way to follow up with care. It's a shame.
Yes why so many mentally ill are homeless now
It's a crime plain and simple
Thank Ronald Reagan.
A wonderful, compassionate man.
This was very educational. My Mom worked at an institution in the 1950’s . She worked with children most with Down syndrome. She is going to soon be 87 and has never forgotten a little boy who she cared for . She left after working there for several months. She often talks about Craig and wonders what happened to him . I wish there was some way I could see if he is still alive and well .
what a wonderful man he is, such hard work, just to help others
Wow. What a heartbreak this was. So much loss of human potential. So many human lives erased from our collective history. It's almost unbearably sad. The man's journey, to find them and honour them, is a testament to heroism - theirs and his. This video brings new meaning to "lest we forget."
Thank you for your heartfelt story I bet it never even crossed her mind that her great grand daughter would come looking for her to honor her memory I have no doubt she would’ve been so proud of you your amazing
Knowing what we know now about how to help people, it seems like these places if restored and recreated would be a great benefit to many people with mental heath issues and challenges.
No! Warehousing the mentally ill away from their loved ones is bad. Little oversight, inaccessibility, abuses, misdiagnoses were all much worse with these centralized systems.
Communities need to step up. We have much of what we need, except the will, as well as excessive codes that drive up cost and cause huge delays.
@@b_uppy-- The assumption that "the community" will step up was a false one back in the 60s through the 90s when most of the closures happened, and it's still a false one now.
Without funding in place to create and maintain halfway homes and other assisted living facilities out in the community, including funding to pay the right kind of people to staff those facilities, it's not going to happen.
Funding takes tax money, and conservatives don't want to supply the taxes. Liberals sincerely want to "mainstream" these patients back into society, but there usually isn't a place for them to go.
The loving, financially solvent, and stable families that everybody was told these patients would go back to, don't necessarily exist.
Sometimes the parents have passed away.
Sometimes the parents are still alive, but the patient is dangerous enough that he or she would pose a danger to other children still in the home.
Sometimes the parents are still alive, but mentally ill themselves, or drug abusers themselves, or physically or mentally abusive to children under their care -- therefore not qualified to supervise and protect the mentally ill patient.
Sometimes the family still exists and consists of wonderful people who would do their best to care for the mentally ill individual, but they don't have the financial resources to do so. If both parents have to work outside the home to pay the bills, then there isn't going to be somebody home 24 hours per day to take care of the mentally ill person. Same situation for an adult sibling, aunt or uncle, etc. who might want to take care of the mentally ill patient but just can't afford to do so.
Getting rid of the abuses of the mental institutions was a noble goal. But the failure to replace them with something better, just means these people have no place to go and end up on the streets, and in and out of emergency rooms.
Funding needs to be available. And the people who have the mental and physical strength to staff the proper facilities and give people the proper care deserve to be paid more than just a living wage, because it is very difficult work.
The way we fix this is by making sure taxes are raised, and we have enough funding for it. Nothing else will fix the problem.
@@b_uppy I agree with some of what you are saying but speaking for myself, I came from a family where intense psychological and some physical abuse and neglect had been going on since the age of at least 4. Now 50 years later, it has been challenging to fix the damage. If you are in a good family I can see that would be helpful. The family would then need a lot of support too so that they don’t get burnt out (I’m also a former caregiver that had no support or days off in 6 months). So having a whole community get behind you would be good, but depending on where you live this may be hard since most of us need everyone to work in order to survive, which cuts into free time to volunteer when you come home from work exhausted. If people are severely ill, there should be experts of some sort involved for more support.
@@wileyann9449
Loved ones can be more than family, it's why I used "loved ones."
People from the local community are more likely to push for localized care rather than warehousing people far away.
Where have you seen instances where taking people far away and putting them in an large, anonymous system turned out really good for the affected individuals?
Anybody that wants to ship people out over localized care just wants the optics of dysfunctional people removed from their neighborhood...
@wileyann9449
Warehousing mentally ill (or just inconvenient) people in asylums is the 'opposite side of the pendulum' from whats going on today where the mentally ill are just left to fend for themselves with minimal help.
There needs to be a balance. There needs to be support.
The problem in both sides is the same. People that need help arent getting it. They are either locked away from the public where they are forgotten and abused, or they are left to fend for themselves on the streets where they are ignored and abused.
Bring back our mental institutions! Make access more accessible and the criteria to enter to get much needed help🙏🏻
Ive not watched any of the post yet but i strongly agree with u. My father is old enough to remember the hospital closures and how the pts seemed (and still seem) to end up in jails being abused by fellow inmates. We need that resource. Ppl w disabilities do not deserve to be abused or tossed away in jail. I agree
@@dionnedunsmore9996 Yes, jails because crimes are often committed due to poor mental health, but jail isn't where the mentally ill belong.
What we need is the community help and resources that were promised when these institutions stopped being funded by the states and were shut down. It was there in the very beginning, and then slashed from budgets over the last 50-60 years. Sadly, every budget cut lead to more homeless people - people who'd had help and were stable until the funding got cut.
There is zero desire in disability spaces to see these places reopened. In fact, we fear it. Please see the history of ugly laws in the US. We already struggle with abuses in currently open psychiatric hospitals. Bringing back even more is not the solution.
No. Bring on localized housing and treatment. These big centralized treatment centers got away with a lot, and lived ones were prevented from close oversight.
These were closed because of patient rights issues/abuses. What happened next is where the problem is in that the state failed to supply localized support in a timely manner. It exacerbated the drug problem, and housing is further complicated by excessive local housing codes.
@@b_uppy Thank you. This is exactly it.
I'm so grateful this man is taking the time to uncover these gravestones. Sadly, the history of this place has been all but destroyed. A few buildings are still in use but most of it is crumbling and given over to vandals. What a loss. The grounds have been kept up beautifully and the area with the remains of the farming, dairy and crumbling reminders of the cannery, are now a historical site but without any preservation., but it with no reader boards or informational history to speak of. They actually had a pretty amazing system with a fully functioning dairy business and canning facility. They had huge gardens in which the residents worked, along with the dairy and canning facilities. All those records were burned taking the history and stories of the numerous people within those walls to a fiery end. People who could have related stories are almost all gone now; those outside people who worked there or lived on the grounds in staff housing are all mostly passed on now.
Today the medical practices used back then to treat mental health are obsolete, but it shouldn't be ignored or silenced as though it never existed. It's not like movies portray. These residents weren't in padded cells with crazed, unintelligible noises emanating from them. While there were some of those patients, the build were able to work and hold responsibilities under supervision. They just couldn't function in the real world. It was too over-whelming. And yes, they were there for treatment---archaic as it was---and they NEEDED to be there. But they were also made to feel useful while under the watchful eye, and it provided a safe place for them to live a life as "normal" as they could expect to have. As I wander the grounds today---it's beautiful peaceful place----I'm so sad this place wasn't preserved from the start, and opened to public for tours with educated tour-guides, because it's an era that has passed and is extremely interesting. I wish those records wouldn't have been burned. Names could have been changed, and their stories told through what I believe would have been a major best-seller book. What a rich tapestry of lives experienced this institution. The lives of the residents and the stories of the staff could have been the subject of award-winning documentaries and spotlighted a system, in spite of the medical practices, that was nothing short of amazing. But it's all lost now. So much money is wasted by hundreds of millions, but this piece of history is forever lost by their lack of interest.
The fact the husband could put her there so easily is stunning.
My great grandmother was institutionalized in a mental hospital but it wasn’t Western State. I bet it was Northern State because she gave birth to my grandma in Sedro-Woolley. She was given electro shock therapy in the early to mid 1930s. It was supposed to cure her promiscuity after she had a baby out of wedlock.
Very moving. Respect to you for honouring your ancestors.
With an interest in Genealogy and Mental health, this documentary hit them both. Well done - I enjoyed this.
Lillian was a beautiful woman. Sad story, it's one of many. Northern State sounds a lot like the old Central State Hospital in Nashville now closed. It was a working farm at one time. There are hundreds of unmarked graves of deceased residents and patients behind it. About 18 years ago there was a project in the works to make a mass memorial there but don't think it ever came into fruition. Sad that this happens. Thanks for the report.
I wish I were a grant writer I’d put my energy into helping this man with this project. It’s so worthy and would be so valuable to the community and the city and state.
Thank you
From an NZ Psychiatric Nurse
Very interesting… God bless these forgotten souls ❤
I just so happened to pause this where it says that the Seattle Times played an important role in the unsealing of Northern State Hospital's records on it's deceased patients. Also Lauren Frohne (Seattle Times) produced this documentary. Thank you to all those who helped bring light to the forgotten souls who reside, and passed at Northern State Hospital.
Heartbreaking....riveting....so well done....my heart aches......🙏🐾
This was incredibly heartbreaking. I hope so much the cremated remains placed in food cans and buried are found. These people deserve dignity after death.
Their legacy lives on through their decendants. Youre doing a great job.
You gentle searchers have brought these lost to memory.
Tears flow.❤
I'm thinking maybe syphilis was untreatable back then? And due to the deterioration of the brain these patients needed to be in a facility? Medicine has come so far! Kudos to the man uncovering these forgotten grave sites. Wonderful gift.
Correct. There was no treatment for it back then and it was a long horrible death.
Heartbreaking. Yet, deep gratitude to the man who devotes his life to finding and remembering the forgotten. And, the woman searching for her female ancestor. Bravo for your heart's courage to search.
John Horne - thank you for your sense of humanity. From the relatives of these people who have no idea where their loved ones rest, I thank you for them.
Thank you.
Thank you for that. The story of your hospital is retold over and over throughout the country. I worked in 3 on the east coast. At least the one I worked for placed the names on the gravestones in the cemetery. As for the comment “it wasn’t a utopia but it wasn’t a house of horrors either. It was human- both good and bad.” So true❤
Thank yu for givig Lilian a voice and a shoulder. I have both Olmsteds and Masseys in my family tree.
My great-grandmother's mother was institutionalized before 1900 in Austin, Texas. Records were lost in a fire, so no one knows what happened to her or where she's buried. It makes me sad knowing the story that put her there, but not knowing where she is now. 😞😊
People hate that these huge mental institutions existed, but we honestly need them back. We would need much more strict regulations, but so many people out there need help. Locking someone up for having syphilis is of course absurd, but giving people who have mental health issues that can't be managed on their own need a place to stay. It's just so sad that the patients of these defunct places were locked away, abused and forgotten.
Nowadays, syphilis can be cured with a shot of penicillin. This wasn't true back then.
100%!
Neurosyphilis came with many mental health symptoms in its late stages so they probably didn't have any other options.
@LynneSimpson-sb9fhthe treatment in those places was so horrific. You need to research it before calling for the return of these hellholes.
I'd prefer to see more home-like or group home situations for ppl with mental illness. It's hard to put trust in institutions when you look at the history. A good example would be Nursing Homes. They're rife with abuse and neglect. But I also believe these vulnerable ppl shouldn't be left to die on the streets or funneled into the Prison industry. Which is a whole other problem. Incarceration/institutionalization should never be a for-profit enterprise. The fact that most states have very few beds set aside for mental healthcare is a huge issue. Our Healthcare System is broken.
This happened to my great grandmother at medical Lake Washington. Apparently the hospital burned then we didn’t know where she was until a few years ago. A cousin found the records from another relative and they were able to locate her grave and place some marker on it.
I loved going there. We always marked the graves . Last time I was there someone left super shiny pennies.
It wasn’t uncommon years ago for a woman to be committed to a mental hospital by her husband or other male family members if unmarried. I’m reading a book - The Woman They Could Not Silence by Kate Moore. It’s about a woman who, in the mid 1800s, was committed by her husband simply because she “didn’t know her place”.
Kids were often dumped there for disobedience.
@@robertgarrett3002 - When I was a little girl, we lived near what was then called a reform school. When we would drive by, my dad would often tell me and my siblings that if we didn’t behave, that’s where we’d end up.
Live a mile away. Grew up here. Family worked there. It was an amazing place at its height. Still in use and lots of the land is open to the public.
This is an amazing video/documentary. For so many of us non-professional historians, this sort of information and data is not available. Thank you so much for sharing.
We have the Central State hospital here in Pineville Louisiana and have been designated a Historic Site. Their stories must be told and there are so many unknown forgotten people there. So much Love for this work!❤️🔥
What a beautiful looking hospital...worst part of mental health is psychiatrists. That man is a wonderful human being who cares. That building needs to be repurposed
My grad work was in 19th century asylums….this is amazing what you are doing!
This is why I do Find-A-Grave. Everyone has a story.
It is so sad and heartbreaking that so many people were just cast away and forgotten. They were all someone. They were each someone's child, parent, sibling, grandparent, aunt or uncle. May their forgotten souls rest in peace.
Thank you for this.
Thank God for men like this that would do the research, go out and find the headstones of the forgotten. God has blessed all the people that had relatives at this mental hospital. I’m glad you found your grandmother. It is horrific that these souls were just forgotten. So very sad.
What a lovely young man
Thank you
I live in Sedro Woolley. Not far from Northern State. The buildings have the coolest architecture and it's sad that much of it has become dilapidated. Although some of the property is maintained. Some of the buildings do have businesses in them and there are walking trails on the land. The hospital has an interesting history. It was quite self sufficient. If anyone would like to learn more about Northern State there is a book about the hospital called "Under the Red Roof".
Awesome. And even awesomer to be reminded that there are in fact good people in the world who care about people and who care about history, and being humane to ppl both before and after their deaths even many decades after the fact. Thank you!
This is an amazing story. I have a similar story, my great Xs 2 grandmother Martha Ella Summers Pendley was put in the Anna, Illinois state hospital at about age 28 and she had 2 children. Her husband married a 14 year old right after Ella was put away. I want to find out more about her story. I want to know where she is buried and also if there are possibly any pictures of her. I have her admit date and reason why she was admitted and it says her brother committed her. She died I believe in 1918 there. It’s a sad story.
May they be resting in heavenly peace
Bless this man ❤❤❤ for helping 🙏
I'm curious if any information is known about Lillian's first 2 children, Evelyn & Elma? Did her ex-husband keep & raise them?
He did keep them. =)
Around 16:00 she says all three of the children ended up as alcoholics. So that sounds as if all the children kept in contact with each other.
"The belief was you keep people busy."
The worst thing about being on disability for my mental illness is having no job. I miss working. Now that I'm getting older and less mobile also makes it harder to do other kinds of work like gardening.
I am grateful to see the care going into this needed project.
It is so strange, but I could not ditch the feeling this granddaughter could have been Lillian in a past life, her need for the emotional chase and journey for the truth. Prayers for her.
Imagine how beautiful life could be without family trauma🫶🏽 Rest Easy Lillian🕊️
This man is incredible. Thank you
Thank you for this documentary, it is so sad how people were put in asylums and forgotten. The photograph of Lillian, in those late 1910s clothes, is so beautiful. Iam glad there is at least one picture of her before she was put away. 💕🙏
I really feel for you, and your search, for your grt grandmother, she is a part of you, and you are,
because of her,
i totally get the hurt you feel. You have a connection to her,
You have brought her story alive, and so she will never be forgotten,
Dont give up your search.
Thank you for finding Lillian. I am in the process of find some of our lost mentally ill relatives.... What a job!
Thank you for this, it brings them back to life by the efforts of these kind, gentle souls. Love to all-
I love family history, no matter how it comes.
And what you are doing, locating the grave markers and finding out who they are is amazing to me.
That is just wonderful!!!
My 2nd GGM died in 1929 at the age of 42 at Eastern State Hospital from Syphilis. It broke my heart when i found her death certificate. Thankfully i know where she's buried. Wish i had a picture of her.❤
Beautiful, heartfelt piece. Thank you to everyone helping to uncover the truth of these lost souls.
Thank you !!! So much for what your doing . I cried watching this. I kept my sister Estelle Lynda Duran ( Tolly) ❤️out as much as I could from Western State Hospital .. ( they worked with me because was one of the longest patients, at that time ).. and she was intelligent very likable . she was diagnosed with Borderline Personality complex from nature nurture syndrome. Age from 19-27 then again on and off till 40 she passed at 40 in 2005 from MRSA . In my arms . I loved her so much . I grieved for 10 years … I loved my sissy so much . Say her Name. Estelle Lynda Duran a Beautiful little Star . Someone who loves me unconditionally and I her. I pray I see again , I feel I will. Tolly’s Sissy Nony 🥲❤️✝️Leona Idom
❤️✝️🙏🏽🕊️
What a beautiful comment! Your love for your sister shines!
@@cleoldbagtraallsorts3380
thank you I felt her love and she said she felt mine . Not just words with… I love you. 🥲
@@Faith-ib7vf ❤️
You will see her again ❤
❤ When your emotions are so raw like this it's the energy from your past decedent's running through you and those who are reaching out to you.
I have a daughter just like your describing, heartbreaking.
Thank you for your hard work. I didn’t know people were doing anything like this. 😢❤
That’s really sad if I was born in that time period because I’m bipolar I’d be in the ground no family no headstone covered up why isn’t anyone taking care of these graves?
I'm autistic and feel the same way.
Yep I’m autistic with anxiety and adhd. They’d have put me there
@@kaidevaleria2531 well hopefully we could all be friends lol thank god we weren’t born then