wow that has been a few years ago!peterbillionaire wrote:Esoteric victorious.......
Topeka State Hospital
Re: RE: Topeka State Hospital
RE: Topeka State Hospital
Just saw on Channel 13 news tonight. That the buildings including the main building are going to be demolished this summer. They said it should be done by October.
So i guess if anyone is going to try and snap more photos nows your chance to try and get some.
So i guess if anyone is going to try and snap more photos nows your chance to try and get some.
RE: Topeka State Hospital
Place is wide open these days btw.
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ultra_orange
- 0-99 Poster
- Posts: 5
- Joined: Fri Jun 25, 2010 6:36 pm
- Location: Lawrence KS
RE: Topeka State Hospital
Looks sweet I'll have to check it out.
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SweetTater78
- 0-99 Poster
- Posts: 73
- Joined: Sun Feb 08, 2009 1:08 pm
- Location: Southeast Kansas
Re: Topeka State Hospital
Wrecking Ball Meets Topeka State Hospital
TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW) -- Say farewell to a historic part of Topeka. Workers Tuesday took the wrecking ball to the famous Center Building of the former Topeka State Hospital.
Topeka 501 officials hope to use the space for new educational buildings, including an interactive spot to help teach kids more about alternative energy.
The facility for people with mental illness, sitting just beyond Hummer Sports Park was open from 1879 to 1997.
Topeka Public Schools purchased the 152 acres of Kanza property for $2.2 million early last year.
After evaluation, engineers decided five hospital buildings are unsafe and should be demolished, including the distinctive Center Building.
501 Officials say they plan to reuse as much of the building material as possible.
Officials say the wrecking ball will keep swinging here for at least two or three more days and the legendary building should be completely gone by October.
http://www.wibw.com/localnews/headlines/97900129.html
(There's a sad video on that website....)
TOPEKA, Kan. (WIBW) -- Say farewell to a historic part of Topeka. Workers Tuesday took the wrecking ball to the famous Center Building of the former Topeka State Hospital.
Topeka 501 officials hope to use the space for new educational buildings, including an interactive spot to help teach kids more about alternative energy.
The facility for people with mental illness, sitting just beyond Hummer Sports Park was open from 1879 to 1997.
Topeka Public Schools purchased the 152 acres of Kanza property for $2.2 million early last year.
After evaluation, engineers decided five hospital buildings are unsafe and should be demolished, including the distinctive Center Building.
501 Officials say they plan to reuse as much of the building material as possible.
Officials say the wrecking ball will keep swinging here for at least two or three more days and the legendary building should be completely gone by October.
http://www.wibw.com/localnews/headlines/97900129.html
(There's a sad video on that website....)
Livin' in the ICT!
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SweetTater78
- 0-99 Poster
- Posts: 73
- Joined: Sun Feb 08, 2009 1:08 pm
- Location: Southeast Kansas
Re: Topeka State Hospital
Center Building demolition begins
Photos
THAD ALLTON/THE CAPITAL-JOURNAL
Barbara Hauschild worked for 15 years in the Center Building at the Topeka State Hospital. She authored a book about it called "On the Avenue of Approach". Demolition of the building and others has begun.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
DEMOLITION
Five buildings on the former Topeka State Hospital grounds are being demolished.
•Biddle (used for medical treatments) was built in 1910, according to Topeka Unified School District 501. The demolition is scheduled to begin July 1 and will end Nov. 30.
•Center Building (administrative offices) was built in 1900. The demolition is scheduled to end Oct. 31.
•Coffee Shop was built in 1957. Demolition is slated to begin July 1 and will end Nov. 30.
•Dental Clinic was built in 1957. Demolition is slated to begin July 1 and will end Nov. 30.
•Kirkbridge was built in 1957. Demolition is slated to begin July 1 and will end Nov. 30.
Other buildings on the property may have to be razed if they don’t fit future plans for the property or if they are found to have structural issues.
Superintendent Kevin Singer envisioned the property becoming a vibrant, state-of-the-art learning and renewable energy center when it was purchased in 2009. The vision hasn’t changed. During the past year, several meeting have taken place with university officials and businesses to discuss possible partnerships to develop the property. Because of the current economic climate, no definite plans have been formalized, USD 501 said.
Restoration of historic structure would cost millions
Updated June 1, 2010 at 11:38pm
Barbara Hauschild watched Tuesday as the inside of a building steeped in history — a place where she once worked — was being demolished.
"It's a sad day," she said.
Demolition of the historic Center Building of the former Topeka State Hospital began Tuesday, said Ron Harbaugh, spokesman for Topeka Unified School District. In February 2009, USD 501 acquired 152 acres of land and 30 buildings near S.W. 6th and MacVicar, which was home to the former hospital. The district purchased the land from the state for $2.2 million.
The five-story Center Building, with its turrets and balconies, is the most recognizable and iconic structure on the campus.
Chris Albert, general director of central services/facilities planning for USD 501, and his staff inspected each building to determine the condition of the walls, floors, roof and other areas, Harbaugh said in a news release.
Finney and Turnipseed, a consulting engineering firm, was hired to report on the structural condition of each building. To preserve the buildings, the walls, floors and roofs would have to be replaced, Harbaugh said. The cost of the restoration at Center Building and the Biddle Building, which sits to the west of Center, would be in the millions of dollars.
The buildings also contain asbestos, lead paint and mold. It was determined from the reports that five buildings, including the Center Building, should be torn down, Harbaugh said.
The Center Building is in such bad shape that Finney and Turnipseed wrote that "in no case should the public be allowed access to the building."
Hauschild, of Topeka, worked in the Center Building as secretary to Eberhard G. Burdzik, the 11th superintendent of Topeka State Hospital. She wrote a book on the hospital's history entitled "On the Avenue of Approach." She also was instrumental in improving the Topeka State Hospital Cemetery, which serves as the resting place for more than 1,150 patients.
According to Hauschild's book, creation of "The Topeka Insane Asylum" was authorized by the Legislature in 1875 — just 14 years after Kansas became a state. Shawnee County and the city of Topeka both put up $6,000 to buy the land, and the state put up the $25,000 for the construction of the first buildings.
Tuesday, which is when the demolition on the inside of the Center Building began, marked 131 years since the first patient, a Nemaha County man, was admitted.
The name was officially changed to Topeka State Hospital in 1901.
A Hospital Closure Commission in October 1995 picked Topeka State as the mental institution that would be closed. The hospital shut down May 17, 1997, after discharging most of its patients into community-based programs.
During the demolition of the buildings, the district is making an effort to save cornerstones along with bricks and other materials that could be used to construct an entrance-way or a dedication wall to remember the former hospital buildings, Harbaugh said.
The salvage contractor will resell or reuse as much of the material from the buildings as possible because the district is trying to be greener, said John Nesbitt, facilities manager for USD 501.
"There is a whole lot of history to the building," Nesbitt said. "I'm aware of that. But I think the school district always does the right thing, especially when it comes to safety. There are so many things not right (with Center Building). There are big holes in the floor, water damage from the rain. There are just too many items that have made the building not salvageable."
Jerry Carter, facilities planner for USD 501, said the state abandoned the building more than a decade ago.
"It's amazing how much a building can deteriorate when it is allowed to go," he said. "We have been concerned about (Center Building) for some time."
The exterior wall on the building has started to crumble and fall away, Carter said, and a section of the auditorium wall suddenly gave away a few weeks ago after hard rains.
The Center Building was constructed in 1900. Several buildings connected to it were destroyed in the 1950s, Carter said.
The Center Building is attached to an auditorium, which was used for church services, meetings and plays, and a kitchen and dining complex. Demolition of the Center Building and the buildings connected to it is expected to be complete by Oct. 31.
While author and former employee Hauschild understands the need for safety, she said it is still difficult to watch the buildings being razed.
As workers began demolition on the inside of the Center Building, Hauschild pointed to her old office.
"I understand why it has to happen," she said. "But it's still sad."
http://cjonline.com/news/local/2010-06- ... ion_begins
Photos
THAD ALLTON/THE CAPITAL-JOURNAL
Barbara Hauschild worked for 15 years in the Center Building at the Topeka State Hospital. She authored a book about it called "On the Avenue of Approach". Demolition of the building and others has begun.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
DEMOLITION
Five buildings on the former Topeka State Hospital grounds are being demolished.
•Biddle (used for medical treatments) was built in 1910, according to Topeka Unified School District 501. The demolition is scheduled to begin July 1 and will end Nov. 30.
•Center Building (administrative offices) was built in 1900. The demolition is scheduled to end Oct. 31.
•Coffee Shop was built in 1957. Demolition is slated to begin July 1 and will end Nov. 30.
•Dental Clinic was built in 1957. Demolition is slated to begin July 1 and will end Nov. 30.
•Kirkbridge was built in 1957. Demolition is slated to begin July 1 and will end Nov. 30.
Other buildings on the property may have to be razed if they don’t fit future plans for the property or if they are found to have structural issues.
Superintendent Kevin Singer envisioned the property becoming a vibrant, state-of-the-art learning and renewable energy center when it was purchased in 2009. The vision hasn’t changed. During the past year, several meeting have taken place with university officials and businesses to discuss possible partnerships to develop the property. Because of the current economic climate, no definite plans have been formalized, USD 501 said.
Restoration of historic structure would cost millions
Updated June 1, 2010 at 11:38pm
Barbara Hauschild watched Tuesday as the inside of a building steeped in history — a place where she once worked — was being demolished.
"It's a sad day," she said.
Demolition of the historic Center Building of the former Topeka State Hospital began Tuesday, said Ron Harbaugh, spokesman for Topeka Unified School District. In February 2009, USD 501 acquired 152 acres of land and 30 buildings near S.W. 6th and MacVicar, which was home to the former hospital. The district purchased the land from the state for $2.2 million.
The five-story Center Building, with its turrets and balconies, is the most recognizable and iconic structure on the campus.
Chris Albert, general director of central services/facilities planning for USD 501, and his staff inspected each building to determine the condition of the walls, floors, roof and other areas, Harbaugh said in a news release.
Finney and Turnipseed, a consulting engineering firm, was hired to report on the structural condition of each building. To preserve the buildings, the walls, floors and roofs would have to be replaced, Harbaugh said. The cost of the restoration at Center Building and the Biddle Building, which sits to the west of Center, would be in the millions of dollars.
The buildings also contain asbestos, lead paint and mold. It was determined from the reports that five buildings, including the Center Building, should be torn down, Harbaugh said.
The Center Building is in such bad shape that Finney and Turnipseed wrote that "in no case should the public be allowed access to the building."
Hauschild, of Topeka, worked in the Center Building as secretary to Eberhard G. Burdzik, the 11th superintendent of Topeka State Hospital. She wrote a book on the hospital's history entitled "On the Avenue of Approach." She also was instrumental in improving the Topeka State Hospital Cemetery, which serves as the resting place for more than 1,150 patients.
According to Hauschild's book, creation of "The Topeka Insane Asylum" was authorized by the Legislature in 1875 — just 14 years after Kansas became a state. Shawnee County and the city of Topeka both put up $6,000 to buy the land, and the state put up the $25,000 for the construction of the first buildings.
Tuesday, which is when the demolition on the inside of the Center Building began, marked 131 years since the first patient, a Nemaha County man, was admitted.
The name was officially changed to Topeka State Hospital in 1901.
A Hospital Closure Commission in October 1995 picked Topeka State as the mental institution that would be closed. The hospital shut down May 17, 1997, after discharging most of its patients into community-based programs.
During the demolition of the buildings, the district is making an effort to save cornerstones along with bricks and other materials that could be used to construct an entrance-way or a dedication wall to remember the former hospital buildings, Harbaugh said.
The salvage contractor will resell or reuse as much of the material from the buildings as possible because the district is trying to be greener, said John Nesbitt, facilities manager for USD 501.
"There is a whole lot of history to the building," Nesbitt said. "I'm aware of that. But I think the school district always does the right thing, especially when it comes to safety. There are so many things not right (with Center Building). There are big holes in the floor, water damage from the rain. There are just too many items that have made the building not salvageable."
Jerry Carter, facilities planner for USD 501, said the state abandoned the building more than a decade ago.
"It's amazing how much a building can deteriorate when it is allowed to go," he said. "We have been concerned about (Center Building) for some time."
The exterior wall on the building has started to crumble and fall away, Carter said, and a section of the auditorium wall suddenly gave away a few weeks ago after hard rains.
The Center Building was constructed in 1900. Several buildings connected to it were destroyed in the 1950s, Carter said.
The Center Building is attached to an auditorium, which was used for church services, meetings and plays, and a kitchen and dining complex. Demolition of the Center Building and the buildings connected to it is expected to be complete by Oct. 31.
While author and former employee Hauschild understands the need for safety, she said it is still difficult to watch the buildings being razed.
As workers began demolition on the inside of the Center Building, Hauschild pointed to her old office.
"I understand why it has to happen," she said. "But it's still sad."
http://cjonline.com/news/local/2010-06- ... ion_begins
Livin' in the ICT!
RE: Topeka State Hospital
This is really sad, the center kirkbride building has been my favorite building most of my life.
I have a few pics i can put up, i just joined so i'll add them when i get a chance
I have a few pics i can put up, i just joined so i'll add them when i get a chance
