Greystone Park Psychiatric Hospital

Greystone Park Psychiatric Hospital was a former psychiatric hospital in Morris Plains, New Jersey, whose main building had four floors, two long wings, and mansard roofs in the Second Empire style. The symmetrical design followed principles of therapeutic architecture, where long corridors and ample daylight were meant to contribute to patient recovery.

The facility opened in 1876 following designs by Dr. Thomas Story Kirkbride, who believed that architecture itself could contribute to the healing of mental illness. Over the decades the campus expanded several times before the central building was demolished in 2015 and a new treatment complex has continued operations since 2008.

Poet Allen Ginsberg often visited his mother Naomi during her treatment here, experiences that later shaped his literary work. Bob Dylan came several times in the 1960s to visit Woody Guthrie, who lived here during the final years of his life.

The original main building no longer exists, and today's treatment complex stands in a different part of the same campus in Morris Plains. Visitors can access public areas of the new facility, but the original structure itself has been inaccessible since its demolition.

At its peak in the mid-20th century, the campus housed more than 7,700 patients despite originally being designed for only about 600 people. This enormous overcrowding led to difficult conditions and eventually contributed to the later reform movement in New Jersey's mental health system.

Location: Morris Plains

Architects: Samuel Sloan

Architectural style: Second Empire style

Floors above the ground: 4

Elevators: 1

GPS coordinates: 40.83470,-74.50530

Latest update: December 5, 2025 22:23