Western State Memorial Mental Institute - Bolivar, TN
Posted by: YoSam.
N 35° 16.667 W 089° 01.627
16S E 315636 N 3905732
County sheriff made sure I stayed off the property...big signs also tell you not to enter without police escort.
Waymark Code: WM11R6E
Location: Tennessee, United States
Date Posted: 12/08/2019
Views: 1
County of site: Hardeman County
Locatio of district: US-64, western limits of Bolivar
Architectural Style: Gothic Revival
Built: 1889
Architect: Adolphus Heiman
Note: There are signs at both front entrances (all others are blocked closed) that read no entrance without police approval and escort, EVEN TO TAKE PICTURES
They mean it. I was challenged by a Deputy Sheriff who tried to tell me I could not take pictures from across the road.
"The Western State Hospital Historic District is comprised of seven historic
and four modern buildings centered around the circa 1889 Administration
Building. This large Gothic Revival style building and the circa 1932
classically influenced Polk Building are the two institutional buildings
included in the district. Historic support buildings include an apartment
building and house, a clothing store, bakery, and carpenter shop. The
buildings in the district represent a good example of institutional architecture
and help illustrate the self-sufficient nature of the hospital.
The district is an intact collection of resources that have undergone few
alterations. Historically, the hospital has had four names and was known
for the longest time span as Western State Hospital (1919-1965). For this
reason, the title "Western State Hospital Historic District" was chosen.
"Opened to receive patients on November 22, 1889, the then denoted "West
Tennessee Hospital for the Insane" was designed by architect Harry P.
MacDonald of Louisville, Kentucky, and Memphis, Tennessee. The MacDonald
firm was responsible for many fine, large public buildings in the South,
such as the Sevier County Courthouse in Sevierville, (NR 3/24/71)Tennessee
(1896). The institution was intended not only to meet the mental health
needs of the Western Section of the State, but also to complete Tennessee's
first efforts at implementing a social policy initiated before the Civil
War.
"The nominated property is irregular in shape and approximately 37 acres in
size. The boundary is as follows: beginning at the intersection of
Highway 64 and the driveway behind the Polk Building (K), the boundary
moves southwesterly along the west edge of the driveway approximately 1,450
feet to a point behind the maintenance shops (D, E) ; the boundary then
moves west approximately 300 feet to another driveway; the boundary then
moves north approximately 125 feet until it intersects with the north side
of a driveway; the boundary continues west and north approximately 1,900
feet until it intersects with Highway 64; the boundary then moves east
approximately 1,900 feet to the point of the beginning." ~ NRHP Nomination Form
Since a close-up was not possible due to restriction of egress, I add this close-up photo by Brent Moore when he snuck on the place
Visit Instructions:Category Visiting Requirements
An original photo is necessary to log a visit in this category along with a description of the visit. No extra visit requirements are allowed by the waymarker.