Central State Hospital, Georgia
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Photo: "Sea Of Green"
Milledgeville was the capital of Georgia when the Georgia Lunatic Asylum, later known as Central State Hospital, was opened in 1842. Overcrowding quickly became a problem and expansion projects began in the 1870's and continued well into the 1960's. The Walker Building, designed to house male convalescent patients, was constructed in 1884.
Photo: "Back To Life"
Top floor restroom inside the collapsing Walker Building at Central State Hospital.
Photo: "Two-Toned"
Blue hour light mixes with sodium vapor streetlamps inside this day room.
Central State Hospital is the oldest psychiatric facility in the state of Georgia, admitting its first patient in 1842. This building, the Walker Building, wasn't constructed until 1884, but remained in operation for almost a century. Today, much of the top floor of the building has experienced severe damage due to the humid, wet conditions of the area.
Photo: "Peeking"
Top floor in the Walker Building
The Walker Building at Central State Hospital was constructed in 1884 and abandoned nearly 100 years later. The last 30 years have not been kind to this building. Days like this, humid and rainy, have taken a toll on the wooden elements of the building, causing much of the roof to collapse onto the floor of the third level.
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Photo: "Light Falls"
Light seeps in through a window in a opposite room, lighting up parts of the corridor of the Walker Building at Central State Hospital in Georgia.
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Photo: "Mossy Reflections"
Since Central State Hospital in Georgia closed in 1974, much of the Walker Building has experienced serious damage from years of heat, humidity and rain. A few rooms are full of water and the majority of the wood roof on the top floor has collapsed.
Photo: "Fallen Plaster"
Corridor inside the Walker Building at Central State Hospital, Georgia.
The Walker Building was constructed in 1884 for male convalescent patients. It remained in operation for 90 years before being abandoned in 1974. Three decades of heat, humidity and rain have taken a toll on the building and the hallways have become a collection of falling plaster, moldy walls and stale air.
Photo: "Patient Toothbrushes"
Central State Hospital, Georgia
In this crumbling top floor room of the Walker Building lies a cabinet of toothbrushes that once belonged to the patients admitted to this facility. In particular, the Walker building housed white, male convalescent patients.
An End To Discrimination
I couldn't think of a more fitting image to post for today to tie into the Supreme Court decision regarding DOMA and gay marriage in California.
The Walker Building at Georgia's Central State Hospital was designed for white males with mental disorders. During the early 1900's, the "coloured" male patients admitted to this asylum were placed in overcrowded tents, while they received a lesser quality of treatment.
Today, we thankfully live in a country where the law does not segregate or discriminate people based on race or sexuality.
June 26th, 2013 is a great day for the LGBT community.
Photo: "Patient Room, Central State Hospital"
This asylum is the oldest psychiatric facility in the state, admitting its first patient in 1842, but this building, the Walker Building, wasn't constructed for four more decades.
Photo: "Winding"
Central State Hospital, formerly known as the Georgia Lunatic Asylum, admitted its first patient in 1842, but it wasn't until almost 40 years later that the Walker Building was erected.
This building was constructed during a time when racial segregation was common in the south and because it was intended for white male convalescent patients, its design seemed less institutional than the buildings housing the "coloured" patients.
Photo: "Light Checkered Dayroom"
Central State Hospital was once the largest psychiatric facility located in Georgia, within the boundaries of the former state capital. The asylum accepted its first patient in 1842, but overcrowding quickly plagued the hospital.
In 1884, this building was constructed to cope with the expanding patient population and housed white, male convalescent patients.