Rockwood Asylum
Government of Ontario
Entrance to Rockwood Asylum
Geography
Location752 King Street West, Kingston, Ontario, Canada
Organisation
FundingGovernment hospital
TypeSpecialist
Services
Beds300
SpecialityCriminally Insane
History
Construction started1859
Opened1862
Closed2000

Rockwood Asylum (also known as Rockwood Lunatic Asylum or Rockwood Asylum for the Criminally Insane) was one of the first criminal asylums in Upper Canada, established in 1859 in Kingston, Ontario.[1] Although methodologies of patient care changed drastically throughout its existence, the facility existed as some form of psychiatric hospital until its closure in 2000.[2] The ominous four-storey building remains on its original property just west of Portsmouth, just a few metres inland from the shore of Lake Ontario.[3]

History

The goal of establishing a separate facility in Kingston for the "criminally insane" was founded largely due to issues of overcrowding at local jails and the nearby Kingston Penitentiary.[4] The Provincial Lunatic Asylum established in Toronto and similar institutions in New York persuaded the politicians of Upper Canada to design a facility that incorporated "modern treatment methods" of the time.[5][1][6]

The building site was rented, and later purchased by the Province of Canada from John Cartwright, whose 40-acre waterfront estate sat just outside the city of Portsmouth. William Coverdale was selected as the architect of the structure, with much debate over the most optimal layout and progressive hospital design practices of the time.[7] John A. Macdonald—then joint-premier of the Province of Canada—personally inspected the site during construction, weighing in on the ideal size and function of Rockwood Asylum.[1]

Sketch of Rockwood Insane Asylum

Operation

John Palmer Litchfield was the first superintendent of Rockwood, indulging in the practices of bloodletting and lobotomies to "cure" patients. However, Litchfield was later exposed to be an experienced con-man, who had lied about his medical credentials to obtain the position.[8][9]

Affiliation with Queen's University and the provincial psychiatric system led to much research and debate about the appropriate methods for patient care, which drastically improved under Dr. William Metcalf and Dr. Charles Kirk Clarke towards the end of the 19th century.[10][7]

The Cartwright horse stables were used to house female patients until a new wing was added onto the facility in 1868.[3]

The facility had a major shift in 1959, when most patients were transferred to the nearby Ontario Hospital, and Rockwood donned a new name and purpose: "The Penrose Building", a residence for local citizens with disabilities.[1][9] The building and grounds served this new goal with some hesitation, surrounded by the walls of a century-old institution.

Officially closing in 2000, Coverdale's "Italian-style" stone building[1] remains vacant on the waterfront to this day.[11]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Mckendry, Jennifer (1993). "An Ideal Hospital for the Insane? Rockwood Lunatic Asylum, Kingston, Ontario" (PDF). Society for the Study of Architecture in Canada. 18 (1): 4–17 – via Dalhousie University Libraries.
  2. ↑ "Rockwood Asylum for the Criminally Insane Kingston Ontario Urban Exploring". FREAKTOGRAPHY. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  3. 1 2 "Lives of 'misery, sadness and terror'". The Journal. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  4. ↑ "Upper Canada (Ontario) Kingston Rockwood Insane Asylum Inmates". www.ontariogenealogy.com. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  5. ↑ "History of Queen Street Site". CAMH. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  6. ↑ Gowsell, Bill (2019-03-28). "Here in Kingston at 8 Gable Lane – Kingston News". Kingstonist News - 100% local, independent news in Kingston, ON. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  7. 1 2 "Rockwood Asylum: 1878 - 1905". www.museumofhealthcare.ca. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  8. ↑ "Litchfield, John Palmer (1808-1868) | Queen's Encyclopedia". www.queensu.ca. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  9. 1 2 Unknown (2011-07-11). "jermalism: Abandonment Issues: Rockwood Insane Asylum". jermalism. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  10. ↑ "Joseph E. Judd in Rockwood Assylum". sneydobone.com. Retrieved 2022-12-21.
  11. ↑ "Architectural Significance | Century Manor Heritage Project". CenturyManorHeritage. Retrieved 2022-12-21.

44°12′57″N 76°31′22″W / 44.2159°N 76.5229°W / 44.2159; -76.5229

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