Lakin State Hospital Explained

Lakin State Hospital
Status:Repurposed
Partially Demolished
Location:Lakin, West Virginia
Native Name:State Hospital for the Colored Insane
Start Date:1919
Opened Date:1926
Destruction Date:-->
Former Names:Lakin State Hospital for the Colored Insane
Location Country:United States
Building Type:Institutional
Owner:State of West Virginia
Closing Date:1979
Material:Foundation-Stone, Exterior-Brick, Roof-Slate
Known For:The only state hospital with an all black staff, including the superintendent

Lakin State Hospital, originally known as the Lakin State Hospital for the Colored Insane, was a publicly-funded psychiatric hospital located along West Virginia Route 62 in Lakin, Mason County, West Virginia near Point Pleasant which operated from 1926 until 1979. During segregation and Jim Crow, the asylum was designated by the State of West Virginia to care for the "colored insane".[1] It would become one of only two known psychiatric institutions that was entirely run by people of color serving an all black population.[2] [3]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Lakin Hospital. 2020-09-04. gallipolis.uber.matchbin.net.
  2. Web site: Stine. Alison. No Marker, No Memorial: The Lakin State Hospital for the Colored Insane. 2020-09-04. The Attic. 7 May 2015 . en-us.
  3. Web site: 2017-02-17. Gone but not forgotten - The Point Pleasant Register. 2020-09-04. www.mydailyregister.com. en-US.