Mendota Mental Health Institute

Mendota Mental Health Institute, formerly known as Mendota State Hospital, is a psychiatric hospital located in Madison, Wisconsin north of Lake Mendota. It was the first mental hospital in Wisconsin and was opened July 14, 1860. It is currently operated by the Wisconsin Department of Health and Family Services. It is accredited by the Joint Commission and was one of the first mental hospitals to be accredited. Portions of the facility are included in the Wisconsin Memorial Hospital Historic District, District #88002183.

The facility opened in 1860 as the Wisconsin Hospital for the Insane and, in 1935, it was renamed Mendota State Hospital. In 1974, the facility was renamed Mendota Mental Health Institute. Its highest patient population was 1,300 in 1959. In 1997, there were less than 300 patients.