The Richardson Olmsted Campus in Buffalo, New York,

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

, was designated a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...

in 1986. ''Note:'' This includes , , an
''Accompanying three photographs''
/ref> The site was designed by the American architect

Henry Hobson Richardson Henry Hobson Richardson, FAIA (September 29, 1838 – April 27, 1886) was an American architect, best known for his work in a style that became known as Richardsonian Romanesque. Along with Louis Sullivan and Frank Lloyd Wright, Richardson is one ...

in concert with the famed landscape team of

Frederick Law Olmsted Frederick Law Olmsted (April 26, 1822August 28, 1903) was an American landscape architect, journalist, social critic, and public administrator. He is considered to be the father of landscape architecture in the USA. Olmsted was famous for co ...

and

Calvert Vaux Calvert Vaux (; December 20, 1824 – November 19, 1895) was an English-American architect and landscape designer, best known as the co-designer, along with his protégé and junior partner Frederick Law Olmsted, of what would become New York Ci ...

in the late 1800s, incorporating a system of enlightened treatment for people with mental illness developed by Dr. Thomas Story Kirkbride. Over the years, as mental health treatment changed and resources were diverted, the buildings and grounds began a slow deterioration. In 2006, the Richardson Center Corporation was formed to restore the buildings. Today, the Richardson Olmsted Campus is being converted, beginning with the now open Hotel Henry Urban Resort Conference Center and 100 Acres: The Kitchens at Hotel Henry, both within the Towers Building and two flanking buildings (about one-third of the Campus). The Richardson Olmsted Campus will also house The Lipsey Architecture Center Buffalo. The remaining buildings have been stabilized pending future opportunities.

History and architecture

The large Medina red sandstone and brick hospital buildings were designed in 1870 in the

Kirkbride Plan The Kirkbride Plan was a system of mental asylum design advocated by American psychiatrist Thomas Story Kirkbride (1809–1883) in the mid-19th century. The asylums built in the Kirkbride design, often referred to as Kirkbride Buildings (or si ...

by architect

with grounds by landscape architect

. The campus consists of a central administrative tower and five pavilions or wards progressively set back on each side, for eleven buildings total, all connected by short curved two-story corridors. Patients were segregated by sex, males on the east side, females on the west. The wards housed patients until the mid-1970s. The central administration building was used for offices until 1994. The campus, the largest commission of Richardson's career, marks the advent of his characteristic

Romanesque Revival Romanesque Revival (or Neo-Romanesque) is a style of building employed beginning in the mid-19th century inspired by the 11th- and 12th-century Romanesque architecture. Unlike the historic Romanesque style, Romanesque Revival buildings tended to ...

style. When emulated by later architects, this style is referred to as Richardsonian Romanesque. It has been the subject of a long-term preservation campaign. Nevertheless, three pavilions on the east side were demolished in the 1970s to make way for newer psychiatric facilities. In 1927, the northern farmlands were transferred back to the State for the development of what is today Buffalo State College. In 1973, the Asylum was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

and in 1986, it was designated a

. Patient records from 1881 to 1975 are in the collection of the New York State Archives in Albany, NY. Architectural plans and drawings are in the H.H. Richardson Collection in the Houghton Library at Harvard University.

Preservation efforts

The Preservation Coalition of Erie County (renamed "Preservation Buffalo Niagara" in October 2008) filed a lawsuit resulting in New York State establishing the Richardson Center Corporation in 2006 to rehabilitate the site and the State committing $100 million towards rehabilitation. Both former New York State Assembly Member Sam Hoyt, and former

Buffalo State College The State University of New York College at Buffalo (colloquially referred to as Buffalo State College, SUNY Buffalo State, Buffalo State, or simply Buff State) is a public college in Buffalo, New York. It is part of the State University of New ...

President Muriel A. Howard, were involved in plans for the restoration and reuse of the Richardson.Hoyt proposes civic panel for Richardson site
''Buffalo News'', Buffalo, NY: Berkshire Hathaway, 22 January 2004, Sommer, M., Retrieved 15 January 2014. Perimeter fencing and lighting were installed and a

Peace Officer A law enforcement officer (LEO), or peace officer in North American English, is a public-sector employee whose duties primarily involve the enforcement of laws. The phrase can include campaign disclosure specialists, local police officers, prose ...

was hired to conduct regular patrols and prevent and deter further crime at the complex. On March 5, 2008, stabilization began with the most severely damaged buildings, including the roof and down-spouts. Stabilization was completed in 2012. On April 10, 2010, a fire occurred. The cause of the fire was under investigation. Damage was estimated at $200,000. In 2013, the South Lawn landscape on the property was completed. During the planning stages, the Richardson Center Corporation has used an active public process, aimed to help to inform the Master Plan during all phases of redevelopment for the Campus, including several public meetings. A Community Advisory Group includes representatives from the adjacent neighborhoods, business districts, cultural institutions, Buffalo Psychiatric Center, SUNY Buffalo State, and historic preservation groups.

Hotel Henry Urban Resort Conference Center

On January 25, 2013, Phase I plans were announced to redevelop one third of the Campus into Hotel Henry Urban Resort Conference Center, 100 Acres: The Kitchens at Hotel Henry and the Buffalo Architecture Center, both within the Towers Building and two flanking buildings. This first phase of redevelopment was completed in 2016. Hotel Henry and the 100 Acres opened in May 2017, and the architecture center will open thereafter.

In popular culture

In 1983 a portion of a ground floor hallway and one hospital room were prepared to appear as a maternity ward and used as a location for

The Natural ''The Natural'' is a 1952 novel about baseball by Bernard Malamud, and is his debut novel. The story follows Roy Hobbs, a baseball prodigy whose career is sidetracked after being shot by a woman whose motivation remains mysterious. The story mo ...

, where the character Roy Hobbs, as played by Robert Redford, was shown recovering from internal injuries. Mount Massive Asylum, the main setting for the 2013 horror game

Outlast ''Outlast'' is a 2013 first-person survival horror video game developed and published by Red Barrels. The game revolves around a freelance investigative journalist, Miles Upshur, who decides to investigate a remote psychiatric hospital named M ...

, was modeled after the Richardson Olmsted Complex.

References

External links

* * {{authority control Hospital buildings completed in 1870 Architecture of Buffalo, New York Buildings and structures in Buffalo, New York National Historic Landmarks in New York (state) Richardsonian Romanesque architecture in New York (state) Richardson Olmsted Campus Psychiatric hospitals in New York (state) Kirkbride Plan hospitals Historic American Buildings Survey in New York (state) Hospitals established in 1870 1870 establishments in New York (state) Hotels in New York (state) National Register of Historic Places in Buffalo, New York