Public Hospital

DeWitt Wallace Decorative Arts Gallery

Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Folk Art Center

    The last of the reconstructed 18th-century Williamsburg public buildings, the Public Hospital, opened in 1985, a full century after it was destroyed by fire.  When the hospital originally opened in 1773 it was the first institution in America devoted solely, as the law stated, "for the Support and Maintainance of Ideots, Lunatics, and other Persons of unsound mind."

    During the first year there were only 12 patients who endured the harsh conditions you will become aware of as you tour the Public Hospital.  A reconstruction of one of the original 24 primitive cells illustrates conditions prevalent during the Age of Restraint, which lasted from 1773 until 1835.  The cell contains only a straw mattress and chamber pot.  Patients were manacled.  The windows were barred and the doors padlocked.  A taped vignette helps re-create the lot of these early victims of mental illness who were treated by cold water plunge baths and harsh drugs.

    The opposite side of the viewing room at the Public Hospital has a 19th-century apartment representing the period of Moral Management from 1836 to 1862.  This approach was based on the realization that the patient suffered emotional problems, needed kindly and respectful treatment, plus work and recreational activities to fill their time in confinement.  The room contains a quilt-covered bed, table, chairs, rug and even a violin and newspaper.

Many of the "tools" of the mental health trade were recovered from the on-site excavations.  The museum section of the hospital contains a strait jacket, Utica crib (a wire cage-like bed for violent patients), a tranquilizer chair and more benign objects like the sports equipment and games used in later years.

This new addition to Colonial Williamsburg certainly runs the gamut of "pain and pleasure," because after the horrors of the mental ward come the delights in the adjoining DeWitt Wallace Decorative Arts Gallery, built with funds contributed by DeWitt and Lila Wallace, co-founders of the Reader's Digest Association.  The gallery is reached by elevator or stairs from the hospital lobby.  On entering this bi-level museum you go through an introductory gallery that suggests the scope of this incredible collection.  More than half of the 8,000 items on display have never, or only rarely, been shown, so it is indeed a new look at some very old items from the 17th, 18th and early 19th centuries.

    Around an attractive central court you'll see the master works exhibit with selected pieces from the diverse small study galleries which branch off this core area.  The prize pieces are the matched portraits of George III and George Washington that flank a throne-like ceremonial chair.  Painted in the same pose, the two pivotal figures present a study in contrasts; the King with his full figure outfitted in elegant finery and the uniformed Washington with his military bearing and piercing gaze.

    Study galleries at the museum include textiles, ceramics, glass, metals, prints, paintings and maps plus special rotating exhibits.  A major collection of early 18th-century furniture and accessories was donated to the gallery by Miodrag and Elizabeth Ridgely Blagojevich. This important collection contains items too splendid for the modest means of the 18th-century Williamsburg residents. 

    The museum is open daily 10:00 A.M. to 6:00 P.M. Admission is by Colonial Williasmburg Good Neighbor Card, Patriot’s Pass, Museums Ticket or Annual Museums Ticket available at the visitor center. The Public Hospital and DeWitt Wallace Decorative Arts Gallery are at 325 Francis Street between South Henry and Nassau streets.  Parking is available at a lot on Nassau Street.  A cafe at the gallery is ideal for lunch, tea or snacks.

    If you enjoy decorative arts you should also include a visit to the Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Folk Art Center on your itinerary.  Mrs. Rockefeller, mother of the late Governor Nelson Rockefeller, was one of the first to collect American folk art.  Her substantial collection serves as the nucleus for this small museum on South England Street adjacent to the Williamsburg Craft House. The exhibited work includes folk painting, decorated household furnishings, quilts, weather vanes, toys, ceramics and signs.  The museum is open daily from 10:00 A.M. until 6:00 P. M.  Admission is with the same ticket as the DeWitt Wallace Decorative Arts Gallery.

Directions:  From I-95 in the Richmond area, take I-64 east to Colonial Williamsburg following the signs to the historic area.