Would You Visit The Northern Michigan Asylum?

When you hear the word asylum what comes to mind? Do spooky and haunted visions start creeping into your mind? With The Northern Michigan Asylum in Traverse City that's not exactly how it is. Learn more about the tour we took of the asylum, unfortunately, they did not allow video inside the asylum.

It may have been called an asylum but for the time when asylums treated the mentally ill in inhumane ways, it was very progressive in the healing and treating of people. In 1882 the asylum was built according to the Kirkbride plan or "bat wing" style which consisted of an administrative section in the middle with patient wings on either side.

Kirkbride's style included theories to best heal the mentally ill, in which the environment and exposure to natural light and air circulation were imperative. There have been at least 30 original buildings registered with the National Register of Historic Places.

One thing you will notice when visiting are the red spires at the top of the building. These red spires are just for decoration but at the time they were used for ventilation. They had a very interesting and advanced ventilation system to ensure that patients always had fresh air.

The central belief of The Northern Michigan Asylum was a 'Beauty is Therapy' Philosophy by founding Medical Superintendent Dr. James Munson. This was the belief in moral treatment which was revolutionary for the time. Each patient room had a view of the outside that allowed for direct sunlight and fresh air which was a very important part of the plan when healing these patients. He wanted patients to be surrounded by a beautiful environment and feel as though they were home and not trapped in an unfamiliar place.

The doctors believed in progressive ideas of lots of light, fresh air, and nutritious food. They also believed in staying productive and had a farm as part of the grounds of the asylum. This farm produced most of the fresh food that the patients would eat for their meals and many of the patients would work at the farm. They would learn how to farm, garden, and work with animals to learn skills that can help them when they got out.

The doctors always spoke about the patients 'when they get out of the asylum and not if'. Our tour guides dad actually worked at the asylum so she was always around the patients and knew that the whole staff cared tremendously for everyone that stayed there.

These days you can take a tour of the part of the asylum that is no longer in use and learn about the history. While in another part of the asylum, you can enjoy shopping in cute little boutique and crafty shops. You can also take a break to eat and drink in the number of restaurants and coffee shops that they have available. I highly recommend taking a tour whether you are looking for a spooky aspect, wanting to learn a little history or looking for a humane story then this asylum tour is for you.