Northern State Mental Hospital, formerly the main hospital for mentally ill people in Sedro- Woolley, Washington State, is a defunct institution that was founded in 1909. In response to public uproar over overpopulation at Western State Hospital, the hospital was built in 1909. Northern State was founded in 1912 and has been in business for almost five decades. As better medical methods became available, it was abandoned, leaving the structure to decay in despair.

Mental health center

The fort was purchased by the Washington Territory to transform it into a mental health center. The Washington Territory Insane Asylum, as it was known at the time, opened in 1871 with 15 male and six female patients. The hospital was renamed Western Washington Hospital for the Insane after Washington became a state in 1889. The hospital was renamed Western State Hospital in 1915. The methods for treating the mentally ill admitted to Western State Hospital evolved with the nascent state of Washington.

The early treatment of choice was hydrotherapy. For almost 50 years, wet packs, hot tubs, and showers have been utilized to help patients relax. In the mid-1930s, insulin treatment was introduced, followed by electric shock therapy. For a while, a surgical technique known as frontal lobotomy was employed. It was eventually superseded by psychotropic medicines, psychotherapy, and behavior modification treatments, all of which are still in use today. On November 25, 1977, the Fort Steilacoom Historic District was added to the National Register of Historic Places and the Washington Heritage Register.

Slashed Funds

Northern State housed around 2,700 patients in the 1950s. According to the superintendent at the time, this was the hospital's full capacity, but he was still under pressure to accept more patients. The public's opinion of mental hospitals began to shift in the 1970s, and Northern State Mental Hospital closed its doors in 1976 when funding was slashed by the State Legislature. Some of the structures, notably the farm's housing ward, have since been demolished. Currently, a couple of the remaining structures are being utilized for job corps initiatives and drug rehabilitation.

North State Recreation Area

The active facilities at Northern State are not open to the public, although much of the old site is now part of the Northern State Recreation Area. It's located north of the Skagit River, near the town of Sedro-Woolley. The recreational area has an extensive route system that will lead you through wide-open meadows, along wooded alleyways, and past the hospital's self-sustaining history's remaining barns, milking shed cannery and other facilities. You may also visit the old cemetery, which has at least 1,500 persons buried there. There are no serious life-threatening dangers in the structure that have been identified.