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By the mid 1950's,
Byberry stood 50+buildings, 0ver 6500 patients, and over 800 fully equipped staff members and doctors, but still unsatisfactorial
numbers of "rehabilitated". So more change was called for, and was responded to by the determined efforts of a new
Occupational Therapy Department. A change that occured due to state control in the 40's was a redesignation in building titles.
The female buildings were now classified as the C buildings or Central Unit. The east group, the male side, were now called
the E buildings, ect.
Responsible, at least
financially for Byberry's turn-around was Furey Ellis. Ellis was the chairman of the board of trustees for Byberry in the
40's and into the 50's. He fought for funding and got it. A Byberry hero if you will. In 1955, at the time of Ellis's death,
a new auditorium was constructed in his honor. Equipped with modern 35mm projectors and accomodations
for up to 400 patients, this improved public relations. Also a new stretch of hallway was built connecting the auditorium to
the rest of the hospital with one wall of the hallway being all windows, definately moving away from the 'hospital' look.
By the late 50's, the buildings were co-sexed
which brought on a new slew of difficulties involving male and female patients and staff getting "too close". The cottage
group, closed off and practically falling apart at this point, were demolished and the children were transferred to C-4 and
C-5.
The 60's also brought about a serious rise
in transportation issues as well. By the mid 70's, the S buildings, or south group were no longer needed as hardly any
staff chose to live there. The recreational section was the only part in use until downsizing forced it too to close. The south
unit buildings were demolished in the late 70's and by 1982, a new industrial park was in operation on the site. In turn,
W-7 had been re-designated "south unit". It was bricked off from the traffic tunnels and became used for the
small amount of remaining staff who still chose the option to live on the grounds, as well as staff offices and makeshift
lounges. President Kennedy's call for deinstitutionalization officially began in 1963, and small, community-based mental health
centers were built around the country.
This marked the beginning
of the long end for Byberry and other big institutions like it. The rise of psyciatry and advances in psycho-theraputic drugs
achieved so much more in ten years than any state or private mental hospital had in a hundred. The state
turned its funding almost 180 degrees from Byberry's direction, and right to private and corporate mental health centers.
Byberry was now forced
to downsize the hospital rapidly, and work against a dropping budget to find homes for it's remaining patients. The
E buildings, which had begun the transfer of its patients to the north and west groups in 1954, were completely
closed by 1962. By the late 70's, N-8's second floor was used as a pharmacy, and the first floor was used as
an admissions unit, as most of the C buildings were closed off. A few remained as staff buildings and
offices. In the early eighties, administration was moved to W-3 building, and the C's began there long silent
sit. By the 1980s funds had dropped so significantly, the hospital was forced to stop accepting admissions and had
begun the transfer of its patients to other facilities.
The last nail in the coffin was hammered in
1987 when governor Bob Casey had the hospital seriously and thoroughly seached and observed, turning up conditions that made
headlines around the country. Casey ordered the hospital closed in phases, closing each building until there were but two
patients left. In 1990, a team of 17 willing staff members carried out furniture and other important items, believing
the hospital was to be standing for but a few months more. The last building to close was N-8, which contained the last two
patients. They were released in June of 1990 and Byberry's last rites were read. cleaned out and closed up, byberry was now
lifeless..... or was it?
Demolition started with the E buildings in 1991.
Most of their materials such as the mass amounts of copper had been long stripped. They had been the victim of countless fires
and vandalism as well. Having been abandoned since the 1960's, they were but shells of former glory. One building from the
east group was salvaged and refurbished, E-6. It still stands today as a business. The rest of the E buildings went down
quickly with few problems. Most of the asebestos had been removed by scrappers to get at the pipes. But when demolition
began on the west group, unsavory amounts of deadly airborne asbestos was discovered in every building. The state
calculated it's removal at a cost of 13-16 million (not including demolition), and the State decided to leave the
buildings alone and hired a security company to watch its grounds. After an alleged overdose victim was found inside,
every one of thousands of windows and doors were boarded up at an estimated cost of about 100,000 dollars and
the hospital remained in solitude.
All in all, Byberry was a "bottomless money pit" to the city
and state. Although intentions were always good, much of Byberry's features were highly overlooked. It has always been looked
at as a "dumpy" place. A place to send grandma when the family no longer wanted to deal with her. Despite the strong efforts
by its staff and doctors, Byberry's reputation stood as a place where no one wanted to be. Poor Byberry was just as much a
helpless victim as its patients, of misunderstanding....
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