Life Magazine Byberry Mental Hospital
In philadelphia the sovereign commonwealth of pennsylvania maintains a dilapidated overcrowded undermanned mental hospital known as byberry.
Life magazine byberry mental hospital. Byberry asylum dolores d. Even today inhumane conditions and patient abuse are the main legacies of the byberry mental hospital officially known as the philadelphia state hospital. Excerpt from with the best of intentions. Philadelphia s state hospital for mental diseases also known as byberry insane asylum was built at the end of roosevelt boulevard in the somerton section of northeast philadelphia for nearly 200 years northeastern philadelphia had treated its surrounding mentally ill citizens to keep them off the.
Pennsylvania s byberry and ohio s cleveland state to a country shaken by recent revelations of nazi. While the description above sounds like something out of a horror movie it actually comes from a 1946 life magazine exposé of philadelphia s byberry mental hospital. Cooperation of the ohio mental hygiene association an affiliate of the national committee for mental hygiene. Byberry opened as an independent institution called the philadelphia hospital for mental diseases in 1928 and was troubled by allegations of neglect and mistreatment almost from its inception.
In the article bedlam 1946 maisel proclaimed the fact is that beatings are merely the extreme end product which thrusts upon overworked poorly trained and shamefully underpaid employees the burden of controlling hundreds of patients whom they. Even today inhumane conditions and patient abuse are the main legacies of the byberry mental hospital officially known as the philadelphia state hospital. Sawyer writes that respect earns respec t though a few. Fortunately byberry s legacy helped fuel outrage against hospital brutality which in turn helped reform the mental healthcare system.
A deeper dive related reading from the 101. On may 6 1946 life magazine published bedlam 1946 an exposé of two state hospitals. Mar 18 2016 explore doloresmisko s board philadelphia state hospital at byberry on pinterest. While the description above sounds like something out of a horror movie it actually comes from a 1946 life magazine exposé of philadelphia s byberry mental hospital.
There on the stone wall of a basement. Sawyer describes daily life working as an attendant at byberry the second largest mental institution at the time with over 6 000 patients.