Marlboro Psychiatric Hospital

Description

Starting in 1928, Five hundred and nine acres were eventually purchased by the State of New Jersey. Some of the land was in Wickatunk for the construction of Marlboro Psychiatric Hospital. The hospital's original working name was "Hillsdale asylum at Wickatunk". It was later known as "The Hilldale Development" before becoming known as "Marlboro Psychiatric Hospital" When first constructed, the hospital was composed of 17 "state of the art" cottages and central buildings. Each cottage would hold 55 patients. The initial project was budgeted for $6,000,000. Needing additional space, in 1934, two three story dormitories were also constructed for $300,000. In addition to the hospital grounds, the hospital maintained outpatient "mental hygiene clinics" in central New Jersey.

The hospital treated adults and children. At Marlboro Psychiatric Hospital, the cottages were initially Tudor style dormitories which housed as many as 55 patients each. The cottage model was selected because it was felt that treatment could best be provided by grouping similar diagnosed people. The cottages were all constructed around a huge ellipse with the exception of two cottages which were to house violent patients. A decision to provide air conditioning to hospital patients was made in 1965 with a budget of $40,000. This money was obtained from the profits from the patient item store called the "Jigger Shop". However, only a couple of high priority areas were done and the rest of the hospital remained unconditioned.

A decision to expand the scope of serviced counties occurred in 1972. At that time, Greystone Park Psychiatric Hospital which handled Essex county was overcrowded and Marlboro started to receive patients from western Essex county. In January 1972, 150 patients began arriving to relieve the over crowding and facilitate the ability to expand Graystone Hospital.

A decision to close the hospital was made in 1995 by Governor Christine Todd Whitman; following a 1993 investigation by then State Senator Richard J. Codey, during which he went undercover at the hospital and found rampant patient abuse, wasteful spending, and other illegal practices. His report stated that he saw patients "were treated with less care than the average prisoner." The process was to start in 1996 and complete the process in three years. The goal was to place patients in community support homes. An initial plan was to provide a $450 a month stipend and "create 40 mobile outreach teams to provide therapy and help with housing, medication and daily living. The teams would include psychologists, nurses and mental health advocates who would be on call 24 hours a day". The hospital closed in 1998.

Children's Unit

In January 1942 the hospital had 22 children ranging in age from 7 to 16 years old but that number had increased to 37 youth by December of that year. In 1946, Marlboro Hospital opened a children's unit at the Arthur Brisbane estate in Allaire. 35 Children from the hospital unit were transferred there and only acute patients were kept at the hospital in Marlboro. The children unit was closed in 1978 and the youth were transferred to other units. In June 1980, adolescent patients were also phased out of treatment at the hospital. In 1946, the Arthur Brisbane estate was willed to the State Hospital. Marlboro Hospital converted this to the "Marlboro State Children's Unit" and most children were transferred to this hospital.

Hospital Tunnels

Subterranean tunnels were constructed between the buildings to facilitate movement between the structures in all types of weather. They were used to deliver equipment, food and the movement of patients and staff. In later years, showing their age, the tunnels were problematic. Low-hanging pipes often dropped dirt and other items. They were reported to be "dark, dirty and had a foul odor... there was urine and excrement on the floors".

Medical Director

Given the length of the Hospital's operation; the hospital saw a number of medical directors:

Building Expansion

The hospital was originally envisioned as being a "self contained community". Originally intended to house a population of 2000 patients; however, 3000 patients was reached in 1933. In 1937 funds from the WPA were used for a building, added to accommodate 650 additional patients. In 1939 three additional administrative buildings, silos, barns and some other out buildings were constructed. Overcrowding was again addressed in 1944 with the passage of a bill authorizing $400,000 part of which was for emergency construction of two dormitory units designed for 80 patients each. Continued to be overcrowded, the hospital population was reported to be 2812 in December 1945. A state review of the hospital in 1947 showed a census of 2736 patients. The review further stated "the scenes in the crowded quarters for senile patients were not such to make anyone proud of the support... given to this needy group." In 1949, Dr. Gordon stated that "patient wards have been established in basements, sun porches and corridors." In 1951, $300,000 was appropriated for a 280-bed building which was constructed for senile patients. State voters provided a $730,000 bond for the construction of four dormitory structures on the property and provide an additional 312 beds. In 1977, the aging hospital required some capitol environmental improvements, electrical upgrades, roof repairs and new boilers. Money was appropriated for these updates in 1975 bond vote. In 1987, a four million dollar plan to rebuild parts of the hospital included a second admission unit, two more patient cottages and conversion of medical services building to a day activity center.

Other Structures

It is interesting to note that the large barn on the prison property was constructed with funds from President Roosevelt's W.P.A jobs project. This was following approval of $78,761 for construction and improvement of the hospital property. There was an auditorium built in 1956 for functions and services and in 1959 a greenhouse was also constructed for patient occupational therapy services. A medical supply room was added following the awarding of $33,000 budget in 1962. Also in 1962, the sewers and fire hydrants were considered inadequate to the need and required updating.

Emergency Services

Marlboro Hospital had its own fire and police departments. These were independent from the emergency services in the Marlboro community.

Bridgeway House

The Bridgeway house was started in March 1959. The project was a converted three story Victorian building in Red Bank, New Jersey. It was experimental and "the first of its kind in the country". The focus was to provide older persons & psychiatric patients residential and social options after recovery from the illness at Marlboro Hospital. It is to provide a bridge between hospital life and community life. In addition to the facility, a day clinic was also established as a Senior day center. Following on the success of Bridgeway House, a similar program was opened in Elizabeth in 1964. A clinic was also opened at Paul Kimball hospital in Lakewood.

Discovery House

The Discovery House was a building on the hospital grounds. The focus of this building was to house a residential program for drug and alcohol abuse patients.

Chapel

An interdenominational Chapel was added to the hospital in 1962. The Chapel construction budget was $80,000 and came from profits at the hospital snack shop. It was constructed for religious services as well as for counseling. It had offices for the Roman Catholic resident priest, Protestant chaplain and the part-time Episcopal and Jewish chaplains. There was also room for visiting ministers. It was 33 feet high and 64 feet long and large enough to accommodate 80 people for services. It was a one story red brick building with a pitched roof. The Marlboro Hospital Auxiliary funded the purchase of an organ for the chapel. The back edifice held a string of bells suspended vertically. The bells represented the faiths which served religious programs offered at the hospital. In addition to the indoor alter, the building had an outdoor one also to permit larger gatherings, concerts, and other programs.

Staff Housing

In addition to single accommodations in the upper floors of the Cottages, the hospital provided furnished housing for single and married staff. There was a larger home, located on the west corner of the hospital grounds facing Route 520. This was used by the Medical Director. In the 1960s the hospital also constructed a small development consisting of two rows of homes which were next to the Medical Directors house.

Housing for staff was segregated up to 1964. At that time the segregation policy was eliminated.

Admission Diagnosis

In 1942, the Medical Director - Dr. J.B. Gordon identified the major causes of admission to Marlboro Psychiatric Hospital at that time. He stated that 7% of all admissions were for Paresis. He further identified that others major causes were for "Dementia praecox, manic-depressive psychosis, cerebral arteriosclerosis, senility and alcoholism."

Hypnosis

Dr Elsworth Baker, Chief at the woman's unit at Marlboro Hospital identified Hypnosis as a treatment modality for a small percentage of patients at the hospital. He stated it was used for "cases where the imaginary symptoms of disease" presented as the primary symptoms. Dr Sydney Hodas, a consulting psychiatrist, stated that using Hypnotic suggestion contributed to cures in about 40% of the patients there.

Experimental Treatments

In addition to the Medical Director using "selective sterilization and eugenics" practices, in 1937, consensual Insulin experiments were conducted at Marlboro Psychiatric Hospital. Eight Men and eight women were used in the experiments with mixed results from "definitely cured" to "no improvement". The focus of the treatment was to try to treat dementia praecox The advances in medications brought about drug treatment experiments. Under the direction of Dr. John B.K. Smith there were four classes of drug treatments in 1962.

Hospital Reorganization

In September 1963, the hospital was reorganized into four units. The four units were, geriatrics, children (broken into two units "cottage 16" for below 14 years old and "cottage 17" for 14–18 years old), medical-surgical, and maximum security.

Problems with Patient Care

Going back to 1936 when the hospital was performing autopsies on patients without consent of family; Marlboro Psychiatric Hospital had a history of problems. Following a tour of the hospital in 1967, Assemblyman Joseph Azzolina stated that the hospital conditions were "so bad it turned my stomach".

Food Poisoning

On November 2, 1979, 131 patients and two employees became ill and five patients died of food poisoning. The suspected cause was Clostridium perfringens. On May 9, 1987, the eighth probe was conducted by the Public Advocate's Office into patient deaths. It was identified that months before the food poisoning incident, the Senior food service worker had complained to state officials about the "unsanitary kitchen conditions". The conditions included rodent droppings, dirty equipment and mold. Patients became ill and had severe diarrhea after eating the tainted chicken. The doctor on duty waited six hours after reports to him about patients becoming sick and misdiagnosed the first few patients he saw until the condition had become very serious for the patients Two months after the poisoning incident, state health department officials examining the kitchens found food service conditions continue to provide "ample opportunity for an outbreak to recur in the future"

Patients Leaving the Hospital without Permission

Occasionally reported in the press, many patients just walked away from the hospital care. Some of the more notable cases were:

At a special community meeting in Marlboro, Dr. Seaxinger stated there were 900 absent patients in the last year and a half. He stated the hospital was going to change the system and establish a special pass system for hospital grounds use by patients. By 1984, there were 151 incidents of missing patients.

Suicide

Suicide was a constant problem with reports going back to the time close to the opening of the hospital. Speaking in 1949, Dr. Gordon stated that there had been 15 suicides in the last 18 years. He identified that the suicides at the facility "wouldn't occur if we had the facilities to keep the patients safe". In 1972, within a two-month span, there were at least 4 suicides in the basement of a building at the hospital.

Patient Abuse

Snack Shop

The hospital maintained a small store for patients to purchase small personal items and snacks. Called the "Jigger Shop", the snack shop directed the profits from the operation to fund social activities and capitol improvements such as the construction of the chapel on the hospital grounds.

Clothing Shops

Run by the hospital Auxiliary, there were two clothing shops ("Esquire" and "Vanity Fair") which contained largely donated clothes. Some of the cloths were also made in the occupational therapy department. With permission, a patient could go to the shop, select an outfit for use for a visitation, weekend pass or perhaps on a home visit.

Social Activities

In addition to cards, newspapers, magazines, puzzles, bingo and sporting equipment such as basketball and shuffleboard; There was an active hospital auxiliary at the hospital and they created many social activities for the patients, radio and television rooms, weekly movies, crafting activities, dances and seasonal parties:

A drive to collect musical instruments was done in 1949 and again in 1953. At that time, in addition to 15 pianos collected, other musical instruments were obtained for the patients of the hospital to use. The next year the instruments were repaired having gotten hard use by the patients.

In addition to providing significant social activities for the patients, the Marlboro Hospital Auxiliary published a newsletter to announce the activities and appeal to community donations to keep the various projects funded.

Scouting Involvement

Boy Scout Pack 236 was formed on the hospital grounds for the younger patients in 1964; followed by Troop 236. This was mostly for patients with a Intellectual disability diagnosis living at the hospital. They were allowed to attend overnight camping events and cook outside on the campus. They also participated in scouting council activities. In 1964, one of the people from the troop was selected to a one-week tour of duty at the New York Worlds Fair as a service guide. In another council event they were noted to be making corn husk dolls for a Scouting Bicentennial council activity.

Semi-Pro Basketball Team

Shortly after the opening of the hospital, it owned a semi-pro basketball team. They recruited players from the local high schools. Hymie Welling was recruited in December 1934.

Mennonite Camp

From November 1942 to October 1946 the Mennonite Central Committee opened a Civilian Public Service Camp on the ground of the property. The camp was identified as CPS 063-01. The Mennonites are restricted from military service and were considered conscientious objector. Some men of that faith chose to serve the country by helping out at the hospital. The group started with 25 men from central Pennsylvania who were Mennonites or Amish. Most of the men served as ward attendants, however if they had special talents or training they could serve under that capacity. For example, one person was a trained physician (Dr. Clarke T Case). He was allowed to attend to sick patients at the hospital. Over the four years the unit grew to one hundred and three men, many married.

The medical director of the hospital personally selected the first twenty-five men from Medaryville, Indiana CPS Camp No 28 and Henry, Illinois CPS Camp No. 22. Due to staffing shortages when he saw the project working, Dr. Gordon sent a person to other conscientious objector camps in Maryland and Virginia in the hopes of recruiting more people.

Using these men as attendants was not without some problems as in 1946, an error occurred when one patient died after a Mennonite worker gave the patient wrong medication; a heart stimulant ranter than cough medicine. However, overall they were reported by Dr. Gordon to be "valuable aids" to the patients. After the war service was up, one of the Mennonites returned to the hospital to work there.

A major event in the life of the unit occurred when Eleanor Roosevelt visited on January 14, 1943. She inspected the hospital and visited with the CPS men.

Prior Land Use

The grounds which became the hospital were largely rural farms before construction began. However, there was a rather large distillery on the property which was torn down to make room for the hospital. From 1825 to about 1850, part of the land was used as a tannery by John Hulse. The 509 acres purchased by the state for the hospital grounds were purchased for $76,000. It was reported that the houses and farms which were obtained in 1928 were considered "very old". Some of the structured destroyed for the hospital and farm were built before the Revolutionary War.

Hospital Farm

The hospital had a 760 acre working farm on some of the hospital grounds. The farm provided vegetables, pigs, poultry, grains, strawberries, peas, beans, carrots, fruit trees and 120 Holstein cows for dairy products. The produce was used by the hospital for internal consumption as well as was canned and sold to other institutions in the state. In 1951, the farm and slaughterhouse provided 32 percent of the food needed to sustain the hospital population. The hospital patients were used to provide the labor in the fields and during the food production process. It was felt that the "open air work provides relief from the boredom of the hospital wards." The work was voluntary and supervised when the patients were in the field. In 1951, the cannery turned out 60,000 gallons of caned vegetables and fruit and over 60,000 pounds of pork. There were forty acres of apple and peach trees on the farm.

Rahway Prison

In addition to psychiatric patients, Rahway Prison had a work camp unit established in 1959 on 15 acres across the road from the hospital. Called the "Rahway State Prison Honor Camp", it was one of 5 similar camps established in the state. the prison farm helped with the care of the livestock and farming, were groundskeepers, laundry and kitchen aids. It was an ultra-minimum security prison farm located on the hospital property. It housed 120 inmates and all of them were trustees. Occasionally, prisoners would escape from this institution also. Clyde Norton left the hospital laundry in 1963 and was picked up in Somerville, New Jersey. In 1972, Johnnie Cooper; serving a sentence for armed robbery, was found after another one such escape attempt. Community concern peaked in 1976 when over a 6-month period 15 inmates escaped the facility. However, this continued to be a problem during the life of the prison camp. Escapes would continue to periodically happen. In 1977, two prisoners who attempted to escape were charged with the rape of a female patient. Starting in the late 70's largely in response to community requests, hospital pressures, and inmate escapes; the inmate population started to decrease. The population in 1980 was about 70 inmates. However, prison issues continue; Timothy Knight left the grounds in 1983 and was captured close-by in Holmdel Township, New Jersey.

Agricultural Experimental Station

Part of the farm was turned over to the state agricultural college at Rutgers and the US department of agriculture for experimental use. It was on this property that alternative tilling was done, various fertilizers were tried, Irrigation methods used and various experimental farming practices were tried. At one part of the property "contour farming was used" and experimentation tried. Crops produced on this land using these methods were turned over to the hospital for consumption.

Codey Investigation

Senator Richard J. Codey went undercover to work at Marlboro Hospital. He had gained access to the hospital by applying for employment using the ID of a convicted felon/possible sex offender. His background was never checked and he was assigned to work on one of the most regressed cottages at the hospital; Cottage 16. This cottage housed patients on two levels; first floor and basement. The basement level, all male, housed patients who were often speechless, incoherent or actively psychotic and included those who had murdered outside or inside the hospital. Senator Codey used his experience at the hospital to advocate for stricter rules of employment, including fingerprint and background checks. Additionally, the investigation resulted in the head of the hospital, Dr. David A. Sorenson, being "reassigned".

1993 Investigation

In an executive summary issued in mid-1993, after the 15 month 1993 investigation, showed 'irregularities and questionable activities' at the hospital. "The results of the investigation reveal a tableau of waste, fraud, thievery and corruption in which the squandering of taxpayer dollars virtually has become business as usual at this institution. Senior Hospital officials repeatedly exercised lax supervision and poor judgment, allowing multiple abuses to flourish either by directly participating in them or by simply turning a blind eye." The result was a number of personnel suspended or removed, contracts stopped, and changes to the procedures at the hospital.

1987 Investigation

A report by the US Health Care Financing Administration issued a report that Marlboro Hospital could loose its hospital accreditation. This warning was after the report suggested the hospital was understaffed and it was warned it needed to increase the size of its staff. The report also found a general "insensitivity on the part of the administration to patients, staff and community needs".

1979 Joint Commission

The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Hospitals reviewed the hospital and the hospital gained accreditation. This allows the hospital to accept medicaid payments for indigent patients. They stayed three days and investigated staff levels, quality of care, facilities and management practices. The reviewers were impressed with the way patient audits were conducted at the hospital by the staff and stated they wanted to use the system developed at Marlboro Hospital as a model for other psychiatric hospitals.

1965 Investigation

The New Jersey Tenement House Commission reported deficiencies at the hospital. At that time 272 bedridden patients occupied the fourth floor of a building. In addition, the staff are housed on the top floor of the building. There was no outside fire escape and only one stairway for egress in an emergency. These issues were noted in reports from the state fire marshal in 1947 as well as a report in 1953.

1963 Investigation

In 1963, the Monmouth County Grand Jury looked into the treatment of sex offenders and reviewed if the hospital is following the NJ Statue concerning treatment of people committed to the hospital due to sexual offences. It concluded that there was a lack of personnel, lack of program and facilities were unable to give the people the specialized treatment for sexual offence treatment. They found that the doctor to patient ratio was 400 to one and there was one nurse per floor; which was considered inadequate. A solution was reached in that if these patients become security risks, they will be transferred to the Vroom building at Trenton Psychiatric Hospital.

Unusual Events

Abandoned Hospital Grounds

Before demolition, Marlboro was informed by the U.S. military that it would be using the property for military training. This training exercise included using explosives in and around the buildings on the property.

Since its 1998 closing, the abandoned hospital has become the focus of numerous local legends. An abandoned slaughterhouse on the property fueled legends of a murderous farmer. It was said that the farmer would lure you down "death row," as he had to two slain hospital guards. Trespassing at the slaughterhouse became a frequent problem, and the township publicly stated that trespassers would be prosecuted. According to an issue of Weird New Jersey magazine, and the book "Convergence," shadow people were often spotted in, or around, the slaughterhouse. The slaughterhouse was razed.

In January 2000, a fire was reported in one of the buildings at the former hospital. Local fire companies responded and extinguished the fire but the building was a total loss.

Demolition

The state demolished eight cottages built between 1929 and 1974 in the hospital complex, in part due to the ghost stories and trespassing of ghost hunters who illegally enter the property and in part because of the serious health hazard caused by asbestos used throughout the buildings. The police reported about 100 calls to the property annually.

As of June 2013, the remaining hospital buildings had been ordered to be torn down. The demolition of the buildings was a joint effort of state, county and Marlboro Township. Destruction of the buildings could be seen from the main road Route 520. By 2015 the property had been demolished. Even the roads were removed from the property.

The only structures left on the property was an active waste treatment facility and related buildings. The waste treatment plant services New Hope Project facility. In June 2011, $3.58 million was appropriated from Clean Waters bond fund for sewerage infrastructure improvements so the plant could continue to function.

Future plans

In 1998, the New Jersey Economic Commission put most of the property at the hospital up for sale. They later reversed themselves after lobby by multiple parties to create New Jersey Open Space. On November 18, 2011, New Jersey state officials announced that the hospital site would become open space for recreational use. It was no longer be under state jurisdiction. Instead, the Monmouth County Park System oversees the property. Demolishing buildings and cleaning up the property to meet environmental standards was necessary for completing the $27 million project. The project was slated for completion in 2013 but was pushed back to 2016. The park system has reclaimed some of the hospital land and has opened "Big Brook Park" in 2011. Demolition of the buildings began in May 2014 and has since completed. All the structures on the property have been removed both above and below ground.

Hospital cemetery

The hospital operated a cemetery on County Route 520. Designed as part of the original grounds plan, it opened along with the hospital in 1931. The cemetery administrators laid out the plat of burial spaces and numbered them. They proceeded to order inexpensive stone grave markers, marked only with corresponding numbers. The first patient to die at Marlboro Psychiatric Hospital was buried in plot One and Marker 1 was placed on the grave. The 600th patient to die was placed in grave site 600 and Marker 600 was placed upon the grave, etc. There are 924 graves in the cemetery.

Originally, the standard practice was followed for cemetery visitors to check a printed list for the plot number of their deceased of interest. They used a printed map of the cemetery to find the burial location. But as burial numbers increased, a different location method was chosen.

A central location was chosen for constructing a raised, stone dais or platform. The names and plot numbers of the deceased were engraved in brass frames, arranged at waist level in a huge circle. Long since gone, the dais had a rotating azimuth – like a weather vane – which could be aimed at the target marker. This allowed visitors to choose a landmark in or outside the cemetery boundary, and commence walking towards it, in order to reach the correct marker.