Elvis Presley Boulevard

February 2026.

← Engine House No. 13 & Station 13 | Engine House No. 14 & Station 14 | Engine House No. 15 [demolished] & Station 15 →

Engine House No. 14 is one of Columbus’s historic “engine houses.” Of these stations, it is the furthest south, all the way down in Hungarian Village. It remains vacant since its closure, but hopefully an adaptive reuse is forthcoming.

Engine House No. 14 is located at 1716 Parsons Avenue in the Hungarian Village neighborhood of Columbus, Ohio. It is bordered by Hinman Avenue and a pawn shop to the north, houses to the south and east, and Parsons Avenue to the west.

History

Historic photo of the station. Note the now-missing ornament along the roofline and the tower’s cupola. (Wikimedia)

Like the other early 20th century fire stations in Columbus, Engine House No. 14 was built to serve the growing Hungarian Village neighborhood and the surrounding area, while also combating the poor water pressure further from downtown (the fire stations previously used hoses instead of fire engines). A simpler example of the Romanesque Revival style, its architect is unknown, but I actually found a source with its builder--Albert Sisco, a local general contractor. It opened in 1907.

Station 14. (Columbus Division of Fire)

Engine House No. 14 was used by the city until 2001. It was replaced by a newer building five blocks north on Parsons Avenue at 1514 Parsons, which takes some design cues from the original. Though its official name is Station 14 or the North Graceland Engine House, the station is interestingly nicknamed the “Elvis Presley Station.” When the firemen were having their annual inspection party in the 1990s, one of them brought a bust of Elvis. The assistant fire chief was reportedly displeased and asked why it was there, and the station’s captain explained that it was conforming with the Division Systems Manual’s suggestion for firemen to “do their best to fit into the neighborhood.” The name stuck, and locals began to donate Elvis-related memorabilia to the station. The bust remains, and a street sign on the side of the building still reads “Elvis Presley Boulevard.”

Photos

Snowy view of the building from Hinman Avenue around Goethe Street:

I was trudging through the unspoiled snow in the vacant lots across the street from the station. This stretch of Parsons must have had the Angel of Death visit--most remaining buildings have big gaps between them. (More like the Angel of White Flight and Municipal Divestment.) 

If you teleported me back 100 years, I’d be stuck in the brick walls of some commercial building.

West facade:

It seems like the original windows are intact behind the boards, but the building needs some love. The cinder-block portion at right is an addition, most likely intended for taller fire engines.

I’ve always loved this sort of battlement-like cornice design of Columbus’s vernacular Romanesque Revival architecture.

It’s integral to the walls’ construction and therefore cannot be easily removed by “water and stupid men,” and it even includes the building’s name on the parapet. It also adds a sense of strength and visual weight to the fire station.

Oblique view from Hinman and Parsons:

As usual, the hose tower’s pointed roof was removed forever ago.

I’m hoping this one gets an adaptive reuse of some sort. It would hopefully spark some life in an otherwise glum stretch of Parsons.

Sources:

https://columbuslandmarks.org/2015-most-endangered-buildings/

http://www.woodlandparkcolumbus.com/1580-granville-street.html

https://www.columbus.gov/Services/Public-Safety/Fire/Find-a-Fire-Station/Station-14

https://www.wosu.org/news/2021-03-15/curious-cbus-how-did-columbus-fire-stations-get-their-nicknames

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fire_stations_in_Columbus,_Ohio

Columbus - Hilltop

January 2026. 

The Hilltop, a collection of neighborhoods on the west side of Columbus, has the distinction of being the city’s largest neighborhood. It is also one of the city’s most impoverished neighborhoods, and crime is high as a result. I found it largely lacking in significant architecture (much of what I knew of and visited was very similar to other buildings in Columbus), and my trip there was very cursory as a result. Luckily, organizations such as the Neighborhood Design Center are working to add an architectural presence to the area.

The Hilltop is located on the west side of Columbus, Ohio. It is bordered by I-70 and Marble Cliff to the north, I-270 and Grove City to the south, I-70, Harrisburg Pike, and Franklinton to the east, and I-270 and Lincoln Village to the west.

History

Like nearby Franklinton, Hilltop’s first European settler was Lucas Sullivant, who also spawned the neighborhood’s name (it was called Sullivant’s Hill at first). He deeded the land to his sons, who used it to farm. With the arrival of the National Road (Broad Street/US-40) in the 1830s, Hilltop began to develop. Its placement on a hill versus the floodplain of Franklinton was also very desirable at the time.

During the Civil War, a Union Army camp called Camp Chase was established in the Hilltop. Its boundaries were roughly Broad Street to the north, Sullivant Avenue to the south, Hague Avenue to the east, and Westgate Avenue to the west. It was used to stage and train Union troops, as well as detain Confederate prisoners of war. In 1865, the camp had over 9,400 Confederate prisoners. It closed in July 1865, and the land was later developed as the Westgate neighborhood. The only extant portion of the camp today is the cemetery of deceased prisoners, which has a memorial arch with a Confederate statue on top.

Other early developments in the Hilltop included the Ohio State Hospital for the Insane (later the Columbus State Hospital), built from 1880 to 1887, and the Ohio Asylum for the Education of Idiotic and Imbecilic Youth (now the Columbus Developmental Center), built from 1865 to 1868. Sources contemporary to the buildings’ construction note their rural location far away from the center of Columbus.

Relief parties after the Great Flood. (Be The Street)

Hilltop’s growth spiked in the turn of the 20th century. By 1900, the neighborhood had 2,000 residents. A streetcar line connected to the Columbus State Hospital led businesses to open on Broad Street, and the formerly rural roads were paved and houses built along them. Though Hilltop was (and still is) a majority white neighborhood, upper-class Black residents owned land there for farming. After the Great Flood of 1913 which devastated Franklinton, Hilltop became home to many displaced residents. By 1924, the Hilltop had 15,000 residents, aided by its continuous expansion and growth in property values. It’s important to note that the neighborhood was segregated, however.

Westland Mall, a major commercial presence in the area. (Be The Street)

Many Hilltop residents worked in the factories nearby, such as a General Motors plant. Its population was 375,901 in 1950. This prosperity lasted until the mid-20th century, with the classic one-two (three?) punch of divestment/deindustrialization, interstate highway construction, and white flight. At this time, the far western end of Hilltop was being developed in a suburban manner, but the neighborhood quickly declined. By the 1970s, development had almost completely stopped in the area, and many businesses closed or departed. Additionally, existing buildings along Broad Street were gradually demolished. As of 1975, the Hilltop was already designated a “Neighborhood Commercial Revitalization Area” by the city of Columbus.

Aerial view of the neighborhood in the 1980s. (Neighborhood Design Center)

Hilltop’s industries continued to decline and close over the years. GM’s Fisher Body Plant, which opened in 1946 where the casino is today, closed in 2007. Other major losses included Western Electric, the Columbus State Hospital, and Westland Mall. Many other small businesses and industries went out of business from the 1980s onward.

Although crime is still an issue for the Hilltop, there are both community and city-wide revitalization efforts for the neighborhood. The most prominent is Envision Hilltop, which has led to changes such as traffic control on Sullivant Avenue to reduce accidents and speeding. Additionally, projects like the new Hollywood Casino have brought more interest to the area. Hilltop’s revitalization is important, but it must be done in a way that favors the members of the community and does not invite gentrification. Luckily, Envision Hilltop seems to focus on problems that affect residents of the community first and foremost.

Photos

Highland Elementary School (Highland Avenue School)

Historic photo of Highland Elementary School. (HathiTrust)

Highland Elementary School was built in 1895 as the Highland Avenue School. It was designed by architect David Riebel in the Romanesque Revival style. Unfortunately, that is the extent of the concrete information I could find online, so the rest is going to be my own “best guesses.”

At some point in time, probably within 10-20 years of construction, an identical addition was built onto the south end of the original building. It has a bay window in the center instead of an entrance, which could possibly be an alteration. Another one-story addition was built in the 1950s or 1960s.

The original Romanesque Revival arched entrance has been removed and replaced with a Beaux-Arts portal beneath a portico. This may have been part of Howard Dwight Smith’s modernization program in the 1920s, but it looks a little flimsy versus his high-quality stone entrance designs.

South addition with its bay window--note how it is almost identical to the original building:

Engine House No. 17

← Engine House No. 1/16 & Station 16 | Engine House No. 17 & Station 17 | Station 19 →

Chemical House No. 1, Engine House No. 17’s predecessor. (Wikimedia)

The Hilltop’s earliest fire station was Chemical House No. 1, which looked to be a wood-frame Italianate building that was built in 1897. Uniquely, its firemen were entirely Black. They moved from a firehouse on Oak Street (where Engine House No. 12 stands today), where they had worked since 1892. This station closed in 1913 when Engine House No. 17 opened.

Circa 1990 view of the station. (Columbus Metropolitan Library)

Engine House No. 17 was built in 1913. It was the last of the traditional Romanesque Revival engine houses, though this one lacked arched windows entirely and had only spare, simple brick decoration. Again, there isn’t much history online beyond this, but it likely had a taller cupola to its hose tower that was removed like the others.

Engine House No. 17 operated until 1994, and it was renovated to become a community health center afterwards. Its replacement, Station 17, has a more sprawling and suburban design.

(Columbus Division of Fire)

Sources:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RbzedPQPXjs

https://u.osu.edu/bethestreet/hilltop-histories/history-of-the-hilltop-and-its-diversity/

https://u.osu.edu/bethestreet/hilltop-histories/history-of-hilltop-timeline-of-development-and-diversity/

https://hilltopusa.org/?resource-item=greater-hilltop-area-commission

https://columbusunderground.com/the-rebirth-of-the-hilltop-via-highland-west/

https://wilshireheights.wordpress.com/assets/historydevelopment/

https://www.columbusndc.org/post/hilltop-employment-in-the-1970s

https://www.10tv.com/article/news/local/columbus-hilltop-neighborhood-a-rich-history/530-b6691b7c-a2de-4309-b1fc-44329f4321c9

https://www.envisionhilltop.com/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Hilltop_(Columbus,_Ohio)

https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=osu.32435063584155&view=1up&seq=177

https://digital-collections.columbuslibrary.org/digital/collection/african/id/20/rec/43

https://digital-collections.columbuslibrary.org/digital/collection/memory/id/182802/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fire_stations_in_Columbus,_Ohio

https://www.columbus.gov/Services/Public-Safety/Fire/Find-a-Fire-Station/Station-17

Westside, Bestside

January 2026.

West High School in Hilltop is Columbus’s public high school on the west side. Its predecessor is located in Franklinton and has been converted to apartments. Both have a similar classical-inspired design that was very common at the time, though they are expressed differently.

Old West High School is located at 120 South Central Avenue in the Franklinton neighborhood of Columbus, Ohio. It is bordered by State Street to the north, Town Street to the south, Brehl Avenue and houses to the east, and Central Avenue and the Starling K-8 School to the west.

West High School is located at 179 South Powell Avenue in the Hilltop neighborhood of Columbus, Ohio. It is bordered by Olive Street to the north, Magly Field and Postle Road to the south, Powell Avenue and houses to the east, and an alley to the west.

Old West High School History

A postcard of the old West High School building. (Columbus Metropolitan Library)

The NRHP listing for this one isn’t published online yet (it was listed in 2022), so I have to take a lot of Wikipedia’s info at face value here. West High School, along with the three other directional high schools (North, South, and East), were built to serve the growing population of Columbus as Central High School in its earlier downtown location became overcrowded. Even though the first West High School is also in Franklinton, it is further west than Central High, which is immediately across the Scioto River from downtown Columbus. This allowed it to serve the growing Hilltop.

The first West High School building at 120 S Central was designed by Columbus school architect David Riebel in the Beaux-Arts style. Construction began in the summer of 1907, and the school opened on September 8, 1908. As of 1916, the school had 457 students. Architect Howard Dwight Smith then designed an addition onto the east side of the building in 1926, which held a cafeteria, five classrooms, locker rooms, and specialized classrooms for sewing and mechanical drawings. Despite this new addition, old West High School was apparently still not large enough, and the current West High School in Hilltop was designed by Smith immediately after.

The only photo I could find of the gym addition. (Columbus Metropolitan Library)

After the new West High School opened, the old building became Starling Middle School in 1929. A Mid-Century Modern addition with a gymnasium and auditorium was added to the south end in 1955. Starling Middle School eventually became Starling Elementary School.

Starling Elementary School moved across Central Avenue to a newly constructed building in 2012, and the former West High School was left abandoned circa 2014. It was considered at risk of demolition for the following years and made it to the 2021 list of Columbus Landmarks’ Most Endangered Properties. Luckily, in 2022, a developer purchased the building and converted it to affordable housing. The project also involved the construction of new townhomes where the 1955 gymnasium addition stood. Today, the entire complex is known as Starling Yard.

West High School History

Historic photo of West High School shortly after opening. (Columbus Metropolitan Library)

West High School’s construction began in June 1927, designed by Howard Dwight Smith in the Colonial Revival style. It was built on land that was formerly Camp Chase, an army camp during the Civil War. It opened in 1929 and has operated since.

View of the interior in 1940. (Columbus Metropolitan Library)

Like West High School’s predecessor, the current building has been modified over the years. In 1953, a third floor was added to the northwest end, which brought it to the same level as the other walls. Two additions were also built onto the west side of the school around the same time.

A notable event of West High School’s history was its desegregation in the 1970s. In 1973, 14 minority students at Columbus’s schools filed a lawsuit alleging that the school district intentionally drew attendance boundaries and appointed teachers and staff to segregate the schools. At the time the trial began in 1976, 70% of the 96,000 students in school at the time attended a school that had an 80% or more racial majority, and 50% of the schools were at least 90% white or Black. A district judge sided with the students in March 1977, finding that on the west side of Columbus, the lines for attendance zones were drawn specifically to separate Black and white students. The Board of Education appealed to the United States Court of Appeals, which sided with the district court, and the board appealed again to the Supreme Court. In a 7-2 decision in July 1979, the Supreme Court upheld the ruling and decided that the school district must desegregate and begin a busing program. This decision led to white flight and a sharp decline in enrollment, leading to the closure of Central and North High School.

West High School’s original cupola was removed in August 2016 due to structural instability. After backlash from alumni and the community, Columbus City Schools approved funding for a replacement, which is built of more weather-resistant materials. It was installed in 2018. However, the school is still old and lacks air conditioning, resulting in students asking to go home due to high temperatures.

Photos

I only have two pictures of the current West High School, so I’m just going to lump the two together here.

An oblique view of old West High School:

Right after I took this picture, some driver honked at me while going by. I had this happen twice in Springfield, too. Is it a common tactic to mess with photographers?

The west facade:

Even though the school lacks overt columns, it still employs several classical features that land it squarely within the Beaux-Arts style. The symmetry, prominent entrance, roof pediment, and cornice are all hallmarks of the style. Additionally, the piers beneath the arched windows suggest the shape of pilasters.

The entrance and windows here have a stone border:

Vaulted second-floor windows and pediment:

The black paint/vinyl is…a choice. It doesn’t match the buff brick or gray stone.

North facade:

Here, you can see the addition that Howard Dwight Smith designed and its larger window openings (brutal glare):

It’s tough to tell where exactly the two meet, since they are in a very similar style. I think the building always had a T-shape to it, and Smith’s addition is the part that lacks the cornice and stone foundation.

It ain’t a Howard Dwight Smith design without inspirational quotes above the doors:

East facade of the addition:

Even though its design is simpler, it still follows the established classical symmetry of the original building. 

The newly constructed apartments south of the school:

Not the worst contemporary design I’ve seen, and the brick veneer is an attempt to respond to the school building.

Here is the current West High School:

I say Colonial Revival instead of Beaux-Arts/Neoclassical because of the brick exterior, simple rectangular windows, and cupola design.

Pediment and cupola:

Looking back on it now as I write this in July 2026, I really had issues with centering my photos and standing in alignment with the building. These are the kind of subtle details it takes a minute to learn when doing photography. In the above picture, for instance, the center of the cupola is not aligned with the center of the portico, which makes the photo look off-center.

Sources:

https://www.teachingcolumbus.org/a-history-of-columbus-schools-1812-1912.html

https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/443/449/

https://www.columbusmonthly.com/story/lifestyle/2019/12/16/my-memories-busing-in-columbus/2057807007/

https://www.wosu.org/desegregation-of-columbus-schools-lesson-plan

https://columbuslandmarks.org/2021-most-endangered-sites/

https://digital-collections.columbuslibrary.org/digital/collection/ohio/id/22500

https://www.wosu.org/news/2018-04-19/renovations-too-slow-at-columbus-schools-for-students-and-parents-alike

https://starlingyard.wodagroup.com/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_High_School_(Columbus,_Ohio)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/120_S._Central_Avenue

Townshend's Folly

Article written July 2026.

The Columbus Developmental Center, once the Ohio Institution for Feeble-Minded Youth, was an early school for people with intellectual disabilities. Though its current campus is bland and functionalist, its original Gothic Revival building was an interesting landmark of Victorian architecture in Columbus. The design was asymmetrical and picturesque, as if straight out of a Dracula movie.

The Columbus Developmental Center is located at 1601 West Broad Street in the Hilltop neighborhood of Columbus, Ohio. It is bordered by Broad Street and the site of the Columbus State Hospital to the north, Sullivant Avenue to the south, I-70 to the east, and Columbian Avenue to the west.

History

The first effort to establish a school for educating children with intellectual disabilities was in 1850, as a senator tried to get a report of their population in Ohio and effective practices to educate them. Three years later, senator Norton Townshend asked governor William Medill if the state of Ohio could build a school, as the former had studied medicine in Paris and was exposed to their efforts to care for intellectually disabled children. Despite Townshend’s efforts to sway Medill, the latter was not convinced and remarked that “fools” could not be taught anything. Subsequently, a bill to establish the school did not pass the legislature.

Renewed interest for a school occurred in 1856, when the superintendent of the New York Asylum for Idiots lectured Ohio’s legislature and brought two of his students. Another bill was drafted, which became law on April 17, 1857. Subsequently, the Columbus Developmental Center was founded in 1857 as the Ohio Asylum for the Education of Idiotic and Imbecilic Youth. (I have to clarify this every time I write about historic buildings with a similar function--these terms were not pejoratives at the time and were medically accepted.) Three trustees were appointed: Norton Townshend, William Dennison Jr., and Asher Cook. R. J. Patterson was the school’s first superintendent. 

The Neville Mansion. This Greek Revival form is much different from its current Colonial Revival appearance. (Columbus Metropolitan Library)

After visiting similar schools and hiring two teachers from the New York Asylum for Idiots, the Columbus Developmental Center opened in the Neville Mansion (on Main Street in Olde Towne East near Columbus Public Health/Ohio School for the Blind) on August 3, 1857, with nine students. At that time, it was only the second such school that was state funded. The school grew quickly, as it had 30 students by 1858 and 57 by 1862. Since the Neville Mansion could only hold about 50 students, the Columbus Developmental Center purchased land for a larger building away from downtown Columbus in 1864. At this time, it was the consensus of the medical community that alcohol was a major cause of “idiocy,” and that it was possible to train people with intellectual disabilities. More regrettably, sterilization of these people was widely advocated.

Engraving of the school building, which shows it in its original form. (Columbus Metropolitan Library)

The main building of the Columbus Developmental Center was built between 1865 and 1868 in the Gothic Revival style. When it opened that July, the school housed 105 students, rapidly increasing to 300 at the end of the year. In 1871, it was renamed to the Ohio Institution for the Education of Idiotic and Imbecilic Youth. (I guess “institution” is a step forward from “asylum.”) The main building had wings added to it in 1876 and 1878, along with the construction of a heating plant, laundry, workshop, coal house, and hospital on the campus.

Circa 1897 view of the rebuilt main building. (Columbus Metropolitan Library)

1881 was a significant year for the Columbus Developmental Center. It was renamed to the Ohio Institution for Feeble-Minded Youth, a name it would use for the following 60 years. Their population continued to grow, with 614 students attending that year. However, the main building and the school’s records were almost completely destroyed in a fire that November, leaving only the stone walls.  It was rebuilt by 1884, with fire safety improvements such as fire escapes and alarms. 

Additions for dining rooms, workshops, and kitchens took place between 1888 and 1890. The main building was damaged again by fire in 1895, though it only affected the south wing. It was rebuilt and completed that May. This second fire also resulted in the building’s conversion from gas lamps to electricity. In 1898, the Orient State Institute opened southwest of Columbus, which helped reduce the load on the Columbus Developmental Center. The first adult patients were admitted to the school in 1904, who were committed (as they would at a mental hospital).

Boys at work in the school’s workshop. (Columbus Metropolitan Library)

By the first few decades of the 20th century, efforts were being made to more equitably educate and care for children with intellectual disabilities (though they were not medically accepted just yet). Although this may be common sense today, it was revolutionary for the time, as treatment in the past either involved locking away the children for their entire lives or attempting to reintegrate them into society. Experts began to reject the previously established consensus and advocated against corporal punishment and in favor of learning handcrafts that were easy to understand. The Columbus Developmental Center placed more emphasis on industrial training beginning in 1907. However, at the state government level, people could still be institutionalized indefinitely and their marriage forbidden. In addition, the population of these institutions continued to rise, as more and more children were committed over time.

In 1912, a school building was built at the Columbus Developmental Center, and special classes at public schools began. More institutions were built and expanded across the state. 

1957 photo of the exterior. (Columbus Metropolitan Library)

In 1945, the school was renamed to the Columbus State School. Around this time, some of the original architectural details were removed from the exterior, such as the tall roof of the tower. The school’s educational approach shifted towards one similar to public school, with a focus remaining on industrial arts but other new courses such as music classes. However, the curriculum also involved religious education. 

The current buildings on the site. (Columbus Metropolitan Library)

The 1884 school building was demolished after 1957 and replaced by a Modern design by architects Tibbals, Crumley, & Musson, which stands today. The school was renamed to the Columbus Developmental Center in 1980 and continues to operate.

Sources:

https://digital-collections.columbuslibrary.org/digital/collection/memory/id/24554/rec/18

https://digital-collections.columbuslibrary.org/digital/collection/ohio/id/9999/rec/5

https://digital-collections.columbuslibrary.org/digital/collection/p16802coll34/id/4855/rec/88

https://fcbdd.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/150_Years_History.pdf

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Columbus_Developmental_Center

Columbus's Kirkbride

Article written July 2026. 

Columbus State Hospital, also known as the Ohio State Hospital for the Insane and Central Ohio Lunatic Asylum, was Columbus’s former psychiatric hospital. High Victorian Gothic in style and using the Kirkbride plan, it was supposedly the largest building in the world before the construction of the Pentagon. It has since been demolished, like many other landmarks in Columbus.

Columbus State Hospital was located at 1960 West Broad Street in the Hilltop neighborhood of Columbus, Ohio, which is Rhodes Park today. It is bordered by I-70 to the north and east, Broad Street and the Columbus Developmental Center to the south, and the ODOT and ODPS headquarters to the west.

History

Engraving of the original asylum building. (Wikimedia)

When Ohio was founded in 1803 and for the decades following, people with mental illnesses were either taken care of at home or imprisoned in local jails or the Ohio Penitentiary. However, following an 1835 medical conference, there was interest in building an asylum to care for mentally ill people. Columbus State Hospital was established as the Central Ohio Lunatic Asylum on March 5, 1835, by the state government. (Again, remember the euphemism treadmill-- “lunatic” was medical terminology of the time and became an insult later.) The earliest incarnation of the hospital was completed in November 1839 by architect Nathan B. Kelley in the Greek Revival style at a cost of $61,000. The columned exterior was Waverly marble, and it was built using convict labor. Its original location was on East Broad Street near the current Jefferson Avenue and I-71. The hospital also had three additions between 1843 and 1847.

Columbus State Hospital’s first superintendent was William Maclay Awl, who was a member of the Ohio General Assembly (Senate/House) and specialized in mental illnesses. Awl went on to found the Ohio State Medical Society and backed bills to establish the Ohio Institute for Feeble-Minded Youth and the Ohio Institution for the Deaf & Dumb. 

Looking west at the 1877 Kirkbride hospital, circa 1900. (Library of Congress)

The 1839 asylum building was destroyed by a fire in November 1868, which began in a clothing storage room. The fire killed six female patients near the ignition point and left 308 others without care. In the interim, the remaining patients stayed at the Ohio Institution for the Deaf & Dumb and the surviving hospital building. Its East Broad Street site was sold in 1870, and the current site was purchased that year. The replacement Columbus State Hospital was built from 1870 to 1877, which was a High Victorian Gothic design by Cleveland architect Levi Scofield that employed the Kirkbride plan. However, the hospital’s original board of trustees was disbanded mid-construction and a new Board of Commissioners formed, which then appointed Thomas Tinsley as the building’s architect. When the new hospital opened, it was renamed the Columbus Hospital for the Insane. (Its present name was changed in 1894.)

Snippet of the 1899 Baist map, showing the Kirkbride plan of the hospital. (Columbus Metropolitan Library)

I’m going to elaborate a little more about Kirkbride hospitals in this article, since I was unable to see the Athens Lunatic Asylum while I lived in Ohio and will not get a chance to see another one until I visit Kankakee, Illinois eventually, which could be a year or two from now. Anyways, the Kirkbride plan was a system of designing mental hospitals created by Thomas Kirkbride in the mid-19th century. Kirkbride believed that natural light and ventilation were vital to the treatment of mental illnesses, and stipulated that buildings be designed with large windows and vast open grounds surrounding them. The first of these Kirkbride buildings was the Greek Revival New Jersey State Lunatic Asylum, which was completed in 1848. Many were built across the United States through the early 20th century, though Kirkbride’s theories were discredited by that point, and the hospitals were very expensive to maintain. About 73 Kirkbride hospitals were built, and 33 still stand in their original form.

Columbus State Hospital’s Kirkbride plan is evident through its airplane-like form, with three wings on each side of the center of the building. This layout was intended to have each wing as a separate ward, and the corridors would be open to light and air with their staggered layout. Each patient had an individual room, and the hospital was originally designed to hold 800 patients. The grounds surrounding the hospital are also essential to the design, as Kirkbride believed that landscaping would calm and enlighten the patients (environmental determinism).

Aerial view of the hospital. (Wikimedia)

Despite its original capacity of 800 patients, Columbus State Hospital housed 1,350 patients by 1900, and 2,932 by 1935. Of course, additions were made to the original building, but it was still rather overcrowded. These additions followed the later “cottage plan” and were more spread out. After the Victorian treatments that were barbaric by today’s standards, later care wasn’t much better. Over 100 patients were lobotomized in the 1950s, and over 14,000 electroconvulsive therapies occurred in just one year. However, the asylum’s legacy is not entirely tainted, as lithium (a medication used to treat bipolar disorder even today) was first used at Columbus State Hospital.

c. 1980 photo of the facade. Note the missing cupola. (Columbus Metropolitan Library)

Columbus State Hospital closed in the 1980s, part of the ongoing trend of deinstitutionalization in the United States. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1986 amidst efforts to save the building, but it was demolished by (who else but) S. G. Loewendick & Sons between 1991 and 1996. A portion of the grounds is now Rhodes Park, while the asylum’s location is roughly where the ODOT and ODPS buildings are today. The only remnants of Columbus State Hospital visible today are its cemeteries.

Sources:

Architecture: Columbus by Robert Samuelson

https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71988551

https://ohiomemory.ohiohistory.org/archives/4060

https://library.osu.edu/site/mhcb/2011/09/26/ohio-state-hospital/

https://www.loc.gov/item/2016794829/

https://digital-collections.columbuslibrary.org/digital/collection/columbusmaps/id/55

https://www.kirkbridebuildings.com/about/history.html

https://www.kirkbridebuildings.com/buildings/columbus/

https://digital-collections.columbuslibrary.org/digital/collection/memory/id/79284/rec/69