Talk:Norwich State Hospital

Corey Sipe
Who is Corey Sipe and what is the 'associated content'? Jtyroler (talk) 07:10, 12 September 2011 (UTC)

Merge
The Norwich Hospital District covers most of the grounds and buildings of the Norwich State Hospital. The two are better merged for better historical context. --Polaron | Talk 13:11, 1 November 2012 (UTC)


 * Yes, I agree. I am the person who recently started the Norwich Hospital District article, without being aware of this separate, previously created article.  Will implement a merger now.  Thanks for calling attention to need for this. -- do  ncr  am  19:12, 18 November 2012 (UTC)

This article needs research and editing
There are some errors in this article that need to be fixed. I reported them to the article author (I think) some time ago, but I haven't seen any of my suggestions implemented. For example, I recommended that in the bibliography, the following book should be included. It is the most extensive history of the hospital that I have come across. Its only weakness is that it is written for a nursing audience, but it is better than nothing.

Carini, Esta, et al. The Mentally Ill in Connecticut: Changing Patterns of Care and the Evolution of Psychiatric Nursing 1636-1972. Hartford : State of Connecticut, Dept. of Mental Health, 1974.

Also, I pointed out that the Bryan Building was not built in 1949. It was in use previously as the New London County Temporary Home, and then purchased by the hospital in 1946. I got this information from: Bruce Clouette, Matthew Roth, and John Herzan (March 24, 1987). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Norwich Hospital". National Park Service. It is #17 in the references.

I would like to correct this information, but do not have the time. I was hoping that someone would follow up on my suggestions, as I believe these would improve the article.

TackyJulie (talk) 12:35, 8 April 2013 (UTC)

Names of the buildings
I would like to suggest a correction to a statement in this article. I base this comment on having read all of the biennial reports of the Norwich State Hospital from its beginning through 1944. Other sources I have used are a 1933 Appraisal of Norwich State Hospital (available at the Preston Historical Society), and Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps from dated 1926 and 1949 (which show the changes in the names of buildings). I also used the book by Carini which I mentioned in a previous message, which I still think should be cited in this article.

The following statement in the second paragraph of the History section, under Development of the Grounds, is not true: "To provide an identification system, each building was given a name, usually after that of a superintendent or other state hospital."

During the first few decades of the hospital's existence, buildings were assigned letter names. Some time around 1940, these buildings were renamed after leading figures in mental health care (e.g., Dix and Kirkbride). One exception is the Lippitt Building, which was always called that.

The letter names were in pairs, with "North" or "South" added as appropriate. All the buildings designated as North were for female patients, and those designated as South were for male patients.

Awl and Salmon were originally called North A and South A. Bell and Brigham were North B and South B. Cutter and White were North C and South C. Dix and Stribling were North D and South D. Butler and Earle were North E and South E. Stedman and Woodward were North F and South F. Mitchell and Galt were North G and South G. Ray and Gallup were North H and South H.

As far as I can tell, there were no I or J buildings. Also, I couldn't find a North K, but Kirkbride was originally known as South K.

I hope the author of this article will include this information in a future edit. — Preceding unsigned comment added by TackyJulie (talk • contribs) 14:49, 5 April 2014 (UTC)

Response to user Destin
I'm sorry that I can't figure out how to respond to your message privately.

Thanks for your attention to detail. I had such a hard time keeping the buildings straight that I had to create a spreadsheet just for that purpose. After seeing your message, I double-checked my sources. I found that two out of three that I used agree with the way that I described them to you in my previous message, but one does not. On page 154 of Carini's book, she states that North G is Mitchell, and South G is Gallup. The other two sources I used were the Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps (for 1926 and 1949), and a 1931 appraisal of the hospital done by Bliss and Cole of Hartford, Connecticut.

I tend to take the views of the two independent mapping companies over Carini's book. However, I agree with you that in these sources, the G wards and the H wards aren't mirror-image like the other letter wards, which is odd. So, if you would like to leave out the letter names for Gallup, Galt, Mitchell, and Ray, I won't mind. The point I was trying to make was that the honorary names of the wards didn't come along until about 1940.

Thanks again.