Unknown Artist
Wood and Paint
1945-1955
Courtesy of the Southeast Ohio History Center
In the 1950s, the Athens State Hospital offered mental health therapy through the production of crafts and woodworking. A patient created this Pony Ride Rocker, constructing the toy with yellow eyes, a red seat, and a braided tail. Although the patterns suggested placement and color of elements like eyes, tails, and reins, it was left up to the imagination of the individual builder.
More about the Rocking Horse
Photographs from Athens State Hospital
c. 1912
Courtesy of The Nellie Maud Roseboom Collection, Southeast Ohio History Center
Documents from Athens State Hospital
c.1912
Courtesy of The Nellie Maud Roseboom Collection, Southeast Ohio History Center
Formed just a few years before these photos, the Athens State Hospital Training School for Nurses provided an opportunity for women to receive training and work in the medical field. Here, Roseboom and fellow graduates including Netta Mapes practice hydrotherapy techniques to improve the lives of the patients. Although this building is currently a museum and was known as a place where people were sent for mental health treatment, it also served as a place of many employment and educational services.
More about the Asylum Series
Photographs from Athens State Hospital
c.1912
Courtesy of the Netta Mapes Collection, Southeast Ohio History Center
These photographs are of patients and nurses at the Athens State Hospital from the 1910s to the mid-1920s. The nurses and patients frequently interacted which often resulted in creating bonds and friendships as suggested in these photographs.
made by a patient at the Athens State Hospital ca. 1930
Courtesy of The Southeast Ohio History Center
This seemingly straight forward object has a mysterious past. It may have been created by a man known only as John, who was a patient at the former Athens State Hospital. Believed to be a product of an early occupational therapy activity, this “instrument” is strung with twine and lacquered with brown paint. Its functionality is deceptive from a distance as the violin cannot be played.