Abandoned Psychiatric Hospital in Kansas City MO

Christian Church Hospital, Kansas City Missouri

Date added: May 02, 2024

Do you have an update on the current status of this structure? Please tell us about it in the comments below.

The Christian Church Hospital, established and managed by the National Disciples of Christ Church, is a rare surviving example of the private hospital buildings constructed before World War I in Kansas City. In the early twentieth century, different religious and ethnic groups established hospitals and related medical training facilities for the use of their members. It is unique among the private hospitals erected at this time in that there was a stipulation in its bylaws that it be open to members of all religious denominations. The property later became the city's only private neurological hospital in the treatment of the mentally ill beginning in 1935 when Dr. George Wilse Robinson, Sr. purchased the property. At this time it was the only private neurological hospital in Kansas City and one of the largest and most modern in the Midwest. The program administered by Dr. Robinson, one of Kansas City's earliest and leading psychiatrists, was at the forefront of the movement to improve the standards of treatment for addiction and mental disease. The building, designed by Kansas City architect Henry F. Hoit, was one of the largest modern hospital buildings in the city, and, as a result of visits to other hospitals on the East Coast before the beginning of the design process, incorporated the latest advances in medical technology and patient care. Particularly significant was the design of a single building to incorporate various departments rather than a series of smaller cottages that had been the norm in the design of large healthcare facilities.

Until the late nineteenth century, health care in Kansas City and the surrounding area relied on doctors in private practice meeting the needs of the public in their offices and in their homes. Private hospitals, under the sponsorship of these doctors, provided surgical and recuperative care and were located in large private residences. The indigent depended upon the charity of these doctors and their institutions or public health services. Initially, these facilities did not attempt to segregate by sex, race, or nature of illness. Publicly supported hospitals and clinics at this time were often small and inadequately funded.

During the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, various religious denominations began to establish hospitals for their members. This pattern evolved during the late nineteenth century, a period when religious denominations became more structured and enjoyed statewide and national affiliations. The earliest of these denominational hospitals in the Kansas City area was the founding of St. Joseph's Hospital in 1875 under the sponsorship of the Roman Catholic Church. The Episcopalians established All Saints Hospital (St. Luke's Hospital) in 1882. That same year William Volker and the German Evangelical Church founded German Hospital (Research Hospital). In 1905, in response to the increasing need for adequate health care, the African American Episcopal Church and other black churches from both sides of the Missouri-Kansas state line joined and took over the support and maintenance of Douglass Hospital in Kansas City, Kansas. In 1906, the Swedish Evangelical Lutheran Church erected Swedish Hospital (Trinity Lutheran). In 1909, the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints erected the Independence (Missouri) Sanitarium establishing a health care facility and nursing school. The Christian Hospital, erected in 1914 by the Disciples of Christ denomination, was part of this pattern. But, unlike many of the private sectarian hospitals, the Christian Church Hospital served patients of all religious persuasions. Newspaper articles beginning in 1911 through the hospital's opening in 1916 found this policy to be particularly noteworthy. The announcement of the hospital's opening stated:

Our charter and by-laws provide that the facilities offered and the benevolence rendered shall be without reference to creed or nationality. . . . Our purpose is to render a real service to all mankind." The hospital board reinforced its message of humanitarian service by dedicating one-third of the beds to charity patients."

In March 1911, R. A. Long, Kansas City resident, lumber magnate, philanthropist, and a leader of the Disciples of Christ Church, donated $200,000 to the denomination for the purchase of land and construction of a large hospital building in Kansas City, Missouri. A condition of Long's donation was the stipulation that the church membership pledge an equal sum to an endowment fund to insure that one-third of the beds would be used by charity patients. It was Long who stipulated, in accordance with the Disciples' ecumenical tenets, that the hospital admit persons of any religious persuasion, including Roman Catholic and Jewish faiths. The following July at the Disciples' annual convention, Long announced that over the next ten years, he would endow the hospital with an additional $800,000 in matching grants.

At this time, Long hoped that this would be the first building in a larger complex that would form the national headquarters for the Disciples of Christ Church. To this end he commissioned Kansas City architect Henry F. Hoit to develop plans for several buildings including the hospital building, a nurses' training facility, an orphan asylum, a home for the aged, and a publishing house.

The February 4^th, 1914 edition of the Kansas City Star announced that a contract for construction of the new $200,000 hospital building had been awarded to the Joe Hollinger Construction Company of Kansas City, Missouri, and work on the building would begin immediately with completion by November 1^st. The site was a 460-foot by 270-foot tract that fronted onto The Paseo between 26^th and 27^th streets. The account noted that "At this time the Paseo passes on the west and south of the tract and the proposed new Paseo will give a boulevard boundary on the east." To the south of the tract was undeveloped land.

In the lengthy planning for the hospital, Long considered several sites, all on hilltops with scenic views, convenient to Kansas City's retail center by public transportation. At the time Long announced his donation in 1911, he noted that physicians at other large facilities felt that the efficiency of the hospital facility required convenient access to the "downtown district."

After the selection of the site, Henry F. Hoit refined the design for the hospital building that he began in 1911. Hoit chose the popular Classical Revival style for the large 186-foot x 59-foot institutional building. The design featured buff-colored vitreous brick veneer over the steel and reinforced concrete structure with terra cotta and stone ornament enhancing the building's classicism.

Although the building was completed in November 1915, the Board of the Christian Church Hospital Association delayed the opening for six months to raise additional funds to furnish the hospital. It opened its doors to patients on April 1th1, 1916. The opening announcement declared the facility to be:

... A first class hospital with all other departments and equipment necessary to meet the present day requirements of such an institution. Our aim is to give the most efficient hospital service at reasonable cost, dispensing absolute charity where it is justified.

The final cost for construction and furnishings was $330,000. The five-story building had 75 patient rooms and 150 beds and facilities for the surgical, obstetrical, pediatric, orthopedic, urology, ophthalmology, otolaryngology, dermatology, neurology, pathology, roentgenology (radiology) and general medical departments.

The basement/ground floor level contained a drug store under the direction of a registered pharmacist, an autopsy room, a "detention" room for examination and disinfection for charity patients prior to entering the hospital proper, a dining room for officers and another for the nurses, a diet kitchen, the main kitchen, a central linen supply room and various storage areas.

The main floor housed the waiting room, hospital parlor, administrative offices, floor nurses' room, nurses' training room, and the superintendent's quarters. The main entrance and public rooms featured marble walls, oak woodwork, and terrazzo floors.

The second floor contained the charity wards, which varied in size from four to sixteen beds making a total of fifty beds. Men occupied the north wing and women the south wing. The head nurse's room and fully equipped kitchen completed the facilities on this floor.

The third floor contained private suites with bathrooms and single rooms, some with and others without private bathrooms. As on other floors, there was a room for the head nurse and a kitchen.

The south side of the fourth floor served as the maternity ward and included private rooms and a six-bed ward, a delivery room, and a nursery. The surgical suites on the north side of the floor took advantage of the clear north light and included two main operating rooms, two operating rooms for ear, nose, and throat surgery, anesthesia and sterilization rooms, two rooms with showers for surgeons, an x-ray suite, and a kitchen.

The central portion of the fifth floor contained the children's ward with 30 beds, an orthopedic ward containing a playroom with exercise equipment, the hospital laboratory, and a kitchen. On the roof of each wing was a large enclosed sun parlor opening onto open-air roof gardens partially covered with awnings.

Twenty-seven staff physicians had full charge of all free beds, clinical services, and nurses training. Five physicians provided consulting services in general medicine, pediatrics, and urology. The board invited other physicians and surgeons to practice at the hospital and treat private patients.

At the time of the hospital's opening, the hospital board planned to build five additional buildings on the property. In 1917, they erected the nurses' dormitory and classroom building, establishing a teaching program associated with the hospital. Their expansion plans also included a pathology and research facility, a convalescent home for extended treatment, and an endowed outpatient department for charity patients with an affiliated social services department. However, lack of funding precluded the construction of these facilities. After ten years in operation, the hospital had considerable deficits and lacked sufficient funding to continue.

The hospital closed in June 1926, and the board leased the property to the United States government for a Veterans' hospital. The Veteran's Administration increased the number of beds to accommodate 200 patients. Between 1926 and 1933 the hospital treated 16,540 veterans. During this period, many luminaries visited the hospital including General John J. Pershing, Mrs. Warren G Harding, Fatty Arbuckle, Amos and Andy, Dorothy Stone and dancers, Tom Mix and Kate Smith. In 1933, the Veteran's Administration closed the facility, relocating patients to facilities in Leavenworth, Kansas, and Excelsior Springs, Missouri.

This set the stage for the building's association with one of the oldest and largest psychiatric hospitals that operated west of the Mississippi. Dr G. Wilse Robinson, Sr. purchased the Christian Church Hospital property in 1935, and with his son, Dr. George Wilse Robinson Jr., opened Robinson Hospital in October of that year. The Robinsons' practice was a continuation of the oldest private practice treating mental illness in Kansas City. Dr. John Punton established Punton Sanitarium, the city's first psychiatric hospital. Dr. Robinson Sr. took over Dr. Punton's practice and purchased the Punton Sanitarium in 1910.

Punton's mission was the provision of a comfortable environment to treat patients with psychiatric disorders. At the time of its founding, typical care of such cases was primitive and, at times, brutal, the subject of various reform movements beginning in the mid-nineteenth century. In 1909, the National Committee of Mental Hygiene was formed to educate the public about the known nature, causes, and treatment of mental illness. Their campaign promulgated the latest scientific information about these diseases to reduce their stigma and promote humane care. The Punton Sanitarium, and later, the Robinson Neurological Hospital, was at the forefront of the movement to improve the standards of treatment of mental illnesses.

In 1928, Robinson moved the hospital from its location at 30^th Street and The Paseo to the former Dyer Mansion on Independence Boulevard. In 1935, Robinson purchased the Christian Church Hospital property to provide a new, larger home for the Neurological Hospital. Robinson adapted the facility to its new use. In addition to new medical equipment and redecorating to create a "home-like manner," he had steel casement windows with safety features installed. The specially designed windows eliminated the bars typically found on the windows of psychiatric hospitals. Administrative offices, doctor's offices, a laboratory, and conference and waiting rooms occupied the first story. The middle three floors held wards for 75 patients. The main admitting area and therapy rooms were on the third floor. Those on the second floor prepared to leave the hospital, while those on the fourth floor were the most critically ill. At the north and south ends of each floor were recreation rooms added in response to modern treatment theories. Apartments for Dr. Robinson's family and other physicians occupied the fifth floor.

The remodeling of the building provided hospital facilities unique in the Middle West. Dr. Robinson, Sr. noted that

We expect to fill a great need in Kansas City for this type of hospital. We are getting away from the old sanitarium idea, which has grown somewhat repellent to the public. At the same time, we are deviating from the general type of hospital which, because of the lack of recreational and other facilities, is not best suited for the care of this type of patient.

Dr. George Wilse Robinson, Sr., worked throughout his life to eliminate the stigma often associated with mental illness, promoting a better understanding of mental illness and the role of psychiatry in its treatment. During his tenure as Superintendent at General Hospital, Kansas City's publicly funded hospital, he established that facility's first psychiatric ward. His subsequent work at the Robinson Neurological Hospital set a high standard for mental health care in the region.

A native of Appleton City, Missouri, Dr. Robinson graduated from Beaumont Medical College in St. Louis in 1896 and pursued additional medical studies in England, Germany, and Switzerland. He opened a general medical practice in Kansas City in 1902. The following year he joined the staff of University Medical College as a professor of physiology. He served as superintendent of the Missouri State Hospital for the mentally ill in Nevada, Missouri from 1907 to 1909. He returned to Kansas City for a one-year term as superintendent of General Hospital. He stepped down from that position to join the staff of the Punton Clinic and focus his attention on neurological disorders. During World War I, Robinson served as a chief of neuropsychiatry for the U.S. Army. While stationed in France, he developed an interest in the effects of nerve gas. He was president of the Missouri and Jackson County medical associations and of the Kansas City Academy of Medicine. Following his death in 1958, the Kansas City Times wrote, "G. Wilse Robinson, Sr., was a true pioneer who contributed much in his technical field just as he contributed greatly to the alleviation of human suffering."

Dr. George Wilse Robinson, Jr. was born in Joplin, Missouri, and lived in Kansas City most of his life. He was a graduate form the University of Missouri in 1925 and received his doctorate from the University of Pennsylvania. His medical career spanned over forty years beginning in 1927 when he joined the practice of his father. At his father's death in 1958, he assumed the directorship of the Robinson Neurological Hospital. He also served on the psychiatric staff of the following Kansas City, Missouri hospitals: General Hospital, Research Medical Center, Baptist Memorial Hospital, Menorah Medical Center, and St. Luke's Hospital. He was an associate professor of the University of Kansas School of Medicine. During World War II, he was chief of the Psychiatric Unit at the San Diego Naval Training Station and held the staff position at the Marine Corps base hospital in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. He was a past president of the Southern Psychiatric Association, the Central Neuropsychiatric Association, the Mid-continent Psychiatric Association, the Missouri Kansas Neuropsychiatric Society, the Kansas City Mental Hygiene Association, the National Association of Private Psychiatric Hospitals, and the Missouri Society of Neurology and Psychiatry.

Patients treated at Robinson Neurological Hospital included the mentally ill as well as those suffering from alcohol and drug addition. It served primarily the citizens of Kansas City and of the states of Kansas and Missouri and "had the facilities to employ any kind of treatment the doctor wanted." The hospital embraced the latest advances in the field of psychiatry. Robinson steadfastly treated patients with the view that the cured victim of mental disease was perfectly capable of a return to society, a view that was quite revolutionary to the general public in the early and mid-twentieth century. Staff referred to patients as "guests." The daily regiment included physical exercise, educational lectures and movies. Treatments included fever and hydro-therapies, physical therapy, and shock therapy. The hospital's unique open policy enabled any doctor affiliated with the American Medical Association to admit patients and supervise their treatment. In addition, the hospital provided training in mental disorders for a great many psychiatrists.

In 1949, Dr. Robinson Sr. and the trustees of the hospital created a new charter designed to make the hospital a non-profit organization. Changes were made to the hospital building to accommodate additional doctors. After Dr Robinson, Sr.'s death in 1958, his son directed the management of the hospital. The name of the hospital changed to Robinson Memorial Hospital in 1967. Dr. Robinson, Jr. died in 1972. The loss of his leadership and the presence of more modern psychiatric facilities led to a decline in admission and the hospital closed a year later. The building has remained vacant since that time. When the hospital closed there was no hospital in Kansas City devoted exclusively to psychiatric treatment.

A committee, including R. A. Long, architect Henry F. Hoit, Dr. W. E. Minor and members of the hospital board visited Washington D.C., Baltimore, Philadelphia, New York and Chicago prior to beginning the design process. They noted that the John Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore had fourteen acres but was cramped for room due to its expanding complex of buildings. This finding reinforced an early design decision. Long initially envisioned a building for each department; administration, surgical cases, medical cases, children's diseases, and contagious disease; in a park-like setting that also included a research facility and a training school for nurses. Instead, according to Long, preliminary investigation revealed that, "The modern idea is to restrict a sanitarium to one large building. The theory that cottages were needed to prevent the spread of diseases appears to have been exploded. In one building the expense of administration and the service is much less as compared with the cottage plan."

Henry F. Hoit received the commission to design the Christian Church Hospital building from his patron, R. A. Long. Hoit began the design in 1911 noting that Long's instructions were for the largest and best-equipped hospital building in the country. Among the projects Long commissioned of Hoit were the designs for the R. A. Long office building in downtown Kansas City and Longview Farms in Lee's Summit, Missouri. Hoit designed Long's Kansas City residence, Corinthian Hall, in the Classical Revival style as well as the Independence Boulevard Christian Church in Kansas City and the First Christian Church in Independence, Missouri.

Born in Chicago, Henry Hoit received his architectural training at the Massachusetts Institute for Technology. He came to Kansas City in 1903, joining the architectural firm of Van Brunt and Howe. Upon Van Brunt's retirement the following year, Hoit became a partner in the firm of Howe, Hoit and Cutler. Hoit was known for his monumental buildings. His work includes many of the City's early high-rise buildings. The 1905 R. A. Long Office Building is considered the first skyscraper in Kansas City. The Southwestern Bell Telephone Building, the Kansas City Power and Light Building, and the Fidelity Bank and Trust Company Buildings were also designed by the firm.

Building Description

The Christian Church Hospital-Robinson Neurological Hospital building is located in the center of a block bounded on the south by 27^th Street, on the north by 26^th Street, on the east by The Paseo, and on the west by West Paseo Boulevard. The site is approximately two miles to the southwest of downtown Kansas City, Missouri on a prominent hill that offers excellent views of the skyline and surrounding area. Missouri State Highway 71 (Bruce Watkins Memorial Drive) passes just beyond The Paseo on the east. The property is located in a residential neighborhood of single-family dwellings. The block contains three primary buildings and three secondary structures. The Classical Revival (Neo-classical) style hospital building is a five-story, yellow brick building with a rectangular footprint and measures approximately 186 feet by 59 feet. The building has a poured-in-place concrete foundation, steel framing, and cast concrete walls. The flat roof has a tar and gravel surface. Terra cotta and stone are used for ornamentation. Wings which are five bays wide flank a central three-bay pavilion that project slightly from the plane of the building's primary facade. On the roof of the north wing is the structure of the conservatory originally in this location. On the roof of the south wing, the conservatory was either enclosed or replaced by a dark brick structure with five window openings.

The primary facade design employs large wings flanking a central, slightly projecting pavilion. The primary facade is four stories in height with a fifth story that incorporates the central pavilion and recessed conservatories occupying the flat roof of the flanking wings. A pediment roof that caps the central pavilion and the terracotta ornament of the pavilion further define the Classical Revival style of the building. Four engaged Corinthian columns are flanked by banded brick pilasters, which border and divide the windows of the pavilion. Below each column is a scrolled bracket with oak leaf ornament. The name "Christian Church Hospital" is engraved on a stone plaque in the fascia above the columns. The pediment capping the fifth story of the pavilion has dentils lining the eaves. The stone plaques that adorn the pilasters at each corner of the pavilion have rams heads and acanthus garlands. Shells with floral garlands mark the pilasters that flank and divide the windows. The molding above the windows carries a series of discs and the windows have molded surrounds.

The fenestration includes a symmetrical arrangement of one-over-one light, double-hung sash windows, and multi-light paired metal casement windows with matching transoms. All of the window openings have stone sills. Those in the second and third floors have brick jack arches with stone keystones. In the central pavilion, the second-story windows have pedimental window hoods. The doorways on the main facade are slightly arched with stone keystones ornamented with acanthus leaves.

The first-story brickwork creates a horizontal banded pattern that integrates the exaggerated jack arch lintels. The same pattern of brickwork creates the effect of quoins on the slightly projecting end bays of the wings. A stone belt course runs between the first and second stories defining the base and body of this tripartite building. A stone belt course above the fourth story marks the base of the cornice, which also includes dentils, modillions, and a series of discs marking the bays on the front of the projecting stone molding.

The first five stories of the rear (east) elevation have 16 bays created by a symmetrical arrangement of windows. The fifth floor has 14 bays defined by the windows, which have stone sills and brick jack arch lintels with keystones. Short horizontal windows pierce the fascia below the cornice. Brick walls laid in a running bond pattern define the basement/ground floor on this elevation. The window and door openings have concrete block infill. The second floor of the east (rear) elevation corresponds with the first floor if the west (front) elevation and features the same horizontal banded brick pattern that integrates the exaggerated jack arch lintels found on the west (front) elevation. The stone belt course that runs between the first and second stories continues on this elevation. The horizontal pattern brickwork found on the second story occurs at the corners of the slightly projecting end bays on floors three through five, creating the effect of quoins. The stone belt course above the fourth story that marks the base of the cornice continues on this elevation, but does not include the dentils, modillions, and a series of discs found on the primary and side elevations.

Because of the slope of the terrain, this elevation has five stories and is three bays wide. Window openings define the bays. The basement floor has square windows filled with concrete block. The brick wall has a running bond pattern on this floor. The second story of this elevation corresponds with the first floor of the west (front) elevation and features the same horizontal banded brick pattern that integrates the exaggerated jack arch lintels found on the west (front) elevation. The stone belt course that runs between the first and second stories continues on this elevation. The horizontal pattern brickwork found on the second story occurs at the corners of elevation on floors three through five, creating the effect of quoins. It also occurs in the vertical panels that flank the central bay on these floors, again conveying the appearance of quoins. The stone belt course above the fourth story that marks the base of the cornice continues on this elevation, but the dentils, modillions, and a series of discs found on the primary elevation do not continue past the first bay. Short horizontal windows pierce the fascia below the cornice. A metal fire escape spans the width of the center bay. The windows in the end bays on the second and third stories are one-over-one light, double-hung sash units. The window units in the end bays on the fourth floor are multi-pane metal casement units. Small rectangular casement windows flank the center bay on this floor. On the fifth floor are full-size tripartite windows that fill the width of each end bay. The openings of the central bay have double-leaf door openings on floors two through five accessing the fire escape.

Because of the slope of the terrain, the south elevation has five stories including the basement, and is three bays wide. Window openings define the bays. A full-height chimney occupies the southeast (rear) corner and projects a full story above the building. The basement floor has square windows filled with concrete block. The brick wall has a running bond pattern on this floor. The second story of this elevation corresponds with the first floor of the west (front) elevation and features the same horizontal banded brick pattern that integrates the exaggerated jack arch lintels. The stone belt course that runs between the first and second stories continues on this elevation. The horizontal pattern brickwork found on the second story occurs at the southwest (front) corner on floors three through five, creating the effect of quoins. It also occurs in vertical panels that flank the central bay on these floors, again conveying the appearance of quoins. The stone belt course above the fourth story that marks the base of the cornice continues on this elevation, but the dentils, modillions, and a series of discs found on the primary elevation do not continue past the first bay. A metal fire escape spans the width of the center bay. The windows in the end bays on the second floor are one-over-one light, double-hung sash units. The window units in the end bays on the third through fifth floors are multi-pane metal casement units. Small rectangular casement windows flank the center bay on the fourth and fifth floors. Short horizontal windows pierce the fascia below the cornice. The Openings of the central bay have double-leaf door openings on floors three through five accessing the fire escape.

Very few alterations have been made to the exterior of the hospital building. The most notable is the replacement of the original window sashes with steel casement units, a change made in 1935 to address the changing role of the hospital to that of a psychiatric facility. This change did not alter the size or shape of the window openings. The building shows deterioration associated with its age and a vacancy that spanned thirty years. Most of this damage occurred on the interior of the building.

Except for the windows on the basement level, the majority of the building's openings remain unaltered and the majority of the building's window units also remain. Most window sash units display significant damage and may require replacement using similar materials, profiles, and sizes as the original building elements; rather than repair. The exterior cladding material has not been altered and is generally in good condition. Significant decorative elements and design elements intrinsic to the building's style are intact. There has been some loss of terra cotta and stone ornamental material but it represents a small percentage of the original ornamental features.

The original configuration of rooms and hallways remains intact and there is a clear distinction between public and private spaces. Most of the design elements that made the building an innovative design in 1914 remain, communicating their significance. Marble wall covering in the public spaces has been removed but the original ceiling, archways, and floor materials communicate the interior decorative design of the early twentieth century. Water infiltration and lack of temperature control has led to damage of the original plaster. A high percentage of the original woodwork and trim remains intact.

The block contains three primary buildings and three secondary structures. The block is defined as bounded on the north by East 26^th Street, on the South by East 27^th Street, on the West by West Paseo Boulevard and on the East by The Paseo. The primary buildings include the Christian Church Hospital-Robinson Neurological Hospital building erected in 1914-1916 in the center of the block; the Christian Hospital Nurses Home building erected in 1917, located at the southeast corner of the block; and a one-story multi-family building erected in 1954 at the southwest corner of the block. Auxiliary or secondary buildings and structures include the 1962 carport adjacent to the northwest corner of the Nurses Home building; a two-car garage of an unknown date located immediately east of the hospital building's rear elevation and a one-story building known as the Dr. B. L. Elliot Recreation Building erected in 1958, northwest of the hospital building.