Insane asylums have a horrible history. Originally intended to provide a place to keep away “madness” within society, asylums eventually paved the way for medical professionals to study patients with mental illness. The asylums were palatial buildings surrounded by vast landscaped grounds and beautiful vistas. Due to overcrowding, untrained staff, and corrupt administrators, these institutions gradually became places of squalor and negligence. State funding could not keep up with the high cost of maintaining the monstrous structures. As time went on, more and more patients were admitted, making it challenging to keep up with the demand for better care. By the 1980s, many state hospitals were closed.

This book provides the history of Minnesota’s two oldest state hospitals – St. Peter, which opened in 1866, followed by Rochester in 1879. Before, laws allowed families to commit their spouses, relatives, or friends with little supporting evidence. Many times, people were committed involuntarily and never released.