Columbus State Hospital

In 1835, the Ohio legislature passed a bill to erect the Lunatic Asylum of Ohio, and in 1838, Dr. William Maclay Awl became its first superintendent. The institution was built as a typical Kirkbride plan, accommodated one hundred-twenty patients, and was the first institution for the treatment of the insane organized west of the Alleghenies.

In 1868, the original hospital building was almost completely destroyed by fire, and in 1869, an act was passed by the Legislature to re-build the asylum on the old grounds. The first patient was admitted into the new hospital in 1877, and it was able to accommodate eight hundred and fifty-two patients. The hospital remained in service until the late 1980s, despite falling into severe disrepair, and was demolished in 1991.