What is Left of The Government Hospital for the Insane

The first federally owned psychiatric hospital in the U.S., The Government Hospital for the Insane opened in 1855 in Washington DC.  Though the expansive campus is undergoing redevelopment, many buildings remain in a state of decay–awaiting their turn for repurposing. And like the many historic large and overcrowded psychiatric complexes active in the midcentury, a tainted history of maltreatment also includes electroshock therapy–used to “treat” homosexuality, transorbital lobotomy, and CIA experimental testing of mescaline, scopolamine and THC as “truth serums.” Located near the headquarters of The Department of Homeland Security, there is much to see without trespassing on the secured grounds.