Oregon State Hospital

Oregon State Hospital (OSH) in Salem, Oregon, United States, is the primary state-run psychiatric hospital in the state of Oregon since Dammasch State Hospital closed in 1995.

History
Built in 1883 as the Oregon State Insane Asylum, much of the original structure still stands and is currently in use. Some wings of the original building, however, have been off limits due to structural deterioration.

The original Oregon State Hospital for the Insane was located in what was then East Portland, Oregon, (now the Hawthorne District). It was built in 1862, and the street on which it was built was renamed Asylum Street. Local residents protested about the name, however, and it was renamed Hawthorne after the hospital's founder in 1888.

The street on which the current hospital is located, Center Street, was also originally named Asylum Avenue.

The hospital (along with the state legislature) is frequently criticized as providing substandard mental health care.

The facility is perhaps best known as the filming location for the Academy Award-winning film based on Ken Kesey’s novel One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.

In 2005, an architectural assessment of the facility determined that the site was unsafe. On August 82006, the hospital was fined USD $10,200 for asbestos violations.

Another controversy at the hospital involves the fate of over 5000 cans of cremains that are warehoused at the site. The cremains were the subject of a Pulitzer Prize-winning series by The Oregonian newspaper.

Facilities
The remains of a narrow gauge railroad can be seen on the grounds of the hospital, leading into different tunnels and buildings. Tunnels connect the hospital to the Oregon State Capitol building and also lead to the nearby state penitentiary, where freight was once unloaded from the standard gauge railroad unto the smaller train for use at the hospital. The railroad is no longer used.

Notable patients

 * Richard Brautigan, writer
 * Jerry Brudos, serial killer

Articles

 * Profile at hospital-data.com
 * Oregon State Hospital history from Salem Public Library
 * New York Times article on cremains

Images

 * Historic images from Salem Public Library
 * Photos of hospital interior
 * Photos of cremains cans
 * Gallery of images from The Oregonian
 * Photos of hospital exterior