{Nostalgia} The long forgotten minds....

Imagine being committed to an asylum to be forgotten by the world outside...to pass without a care of those who may be walking free beyond the window panes. Having only a small suitcase of your earthly possessions to bring with you. To be left by family members who were fed up taking care of you or brought in on your own, tired of taking care of yourself.  The Willard Asylum for the Insane' in Upstate New York was open to these souls from the 1800's to 1995, housing thousands, some for the rest of their lives. Being born in a time where you could be committed for anything from epilepsy & having seizures (which was grounds for lifelong commitment) to young women who were promiscuous, gays, lesbians, or mothers who couldn't get over the loss of a child within three months or less would be put away here.  When they arrived, they brought a suitcase filled with all the items they thought they might need for their time inside. Sadly, most never left. The mental hospital had an average of nearly 30 years, when a patient died, they were buried in nameless graves across the street; possessions packed up in their suitcases, stored in the attic and forgotten.

In 1995, a worker of the mental hospital came upon these suitcases, 400 of them. They dated from 1910 to 1960. Now, photographer Jon Crispin has taken the painstaking task of cataloging each suitcase and shining new light on the forgotten, echoing the voices of the minds of the people deemed not fit enough to be allowed in society. The place is now used as a drug rehabilitation center. The chills that tingle the spine looking over the articles of clothing, pictures of loved ones, little gems of happiness taken away to never be gazed upon again brings a sense of sadness, yet wonder. In a small way, we get to discover what these people were like, it strips away the stereotype of an 'insane' person, we see the raw underneath that many don't take the time to understand or love. We see the human - the realness, the idea of what is actually normal ripped apart, to realize that no matter what - we all feel! While, thankfully the conditions some of these people were committed for are no longer reasons to do so, we still look at them as if they should be in a place like this. The human mind is such a great creation with so much power that we haven't even touched on, it would be nice to live in a world where we at least tried a bit harder to do so & understand mental illness and conditions better, so that everyone can live a safe & healthier life.

I hope you enjoy, have a great Wednesday dolls

xoxoxoxo

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Pieces of a past life: This suitcase belonged to Anna. Inside was a letter that was not addressed to her, a pair of toothbrushes and several belts and sashes - as well as shoes and hats.

This case belonged to Frank C., a U.S. Army veteran from Brooklyn, New York. Here, a sewing kit, personal grooming kit, toy pistol and bread ration card are all visible. He also carried several photos of himself and his family

Frank C.'s uniform was perfectly preserved - even though it was packed away in the 1950s and not found until 1995

This is the family that Frank C. left behind. It is unknown whether he ever left the Willard Asylum for the Insane.

This remarkably-detailed prosthetic leg was shipped to Willard for Henry L.

Flora T.'s kit includes what appears to be strychnine sulfate, which is a drug that could treat epilepsy. It is unknown why she was committed, though.

A moment in time: Peter L. bought a newspaper in Syracuse, New York, the day before he was committed. The date: March 22, 1941

There is no sign of mental illness is this well-ordered suitcase left behind by Frank C.

Dmytre, who owned this suitcase, is one of the few patients from Willard who is well known. He was committed in 1953 and stayed in the hospital for 24 years. He died in 2000

Flora T. was clearly a woman of class. The fine possessions, including a perfume bottle and silver napkin ring, reveal a woman with means. However, the kit of needles and injection drugs adds a dark element to this collection

Eleanor G. had several suitcases in the collection. This is one. It contained an expensive bottle of perfume, a pair of electric curling irons and the remnants of a sewing kit

Charles played the zither and he brought it with him when he was committed to Willard in the 1930s. It's unknown whether he was allowed to play it while in the hospital

A bottle of glycerine, still corked, was found in Maude K.'s case, along with a paperweight from the 1893 World's Fair in Chicago.

♥

{All images & some of the picture info is copyright to Jon Crispin. Some put in my own words. No alterations done to any photos. For display purposes only}