Administrative and Utility Buildings

This page serves as a record for non-residential buildings on the MSH campus.

Administrative and Utility Buildings (No Longer Extant)

Main Building

  • Dates completed:
    • 1893: Male Ward, Female Ward, Store/Kitchen Building
    • 1899: Administration Building
    • 1905: Assembly Hall, connecting corridors1
  • Location (coordinates): 39°08’01.8″N 123°09’41.8″W
  • Patient capacity: 503 (in 1930), 750 (1939)
  • Original cost: $438,740 (in 2025 dollars, adjusted for inflation: $14,221,936.18)
    • Administration Building: $60,0002
    • Assembly Hall: $30,0003
  • Date demolished: May 9, 1952-4

The “Main Building” was actually comprised of five large buildings linked to each other with connecting corridors. Due to its size and importance, and the fact that no internal blueprints of the building remain, its history merits a particularly detailed analysis of any surviving information. A reconstruction by me of the layout of the “Main Building” can be seen above based on outlines on later blueprints and photographic evidence. The building was primarily built out of brick, with an interior completely comprised of wood.

The Main Building was constructed in the style of the Kirkbride Plan, a style of mental asylum design popular at the time that prioritized fresh air in the wards. However, unlike other Kirkbride buildings, the Main Building at MSH only ever had two wings; further expansion through the addition of more wings does not seem to have been implemented.

By 1939, the building was over-crowded compared to its design capacity and the Fire Marshal recommended that non-residential uses should be moved out of the building into others. (The entire building had a single fire escape)

Discontinue the use of the Auditorium for assembly purposes. The facts that the internal construction of the building is of combustible material, and that the auditorium, because of its
second floor location, is hazardous not only from a fire but also from a panic viewpoint, indicate that this space should not be used for this occupancy, but might well be used for additional ward space.

Remove kitchen, refrigeration equipment and all food preparation units from the basement of the main building. The basement space might be used for the storage of incombustible
supplies only.5

Wards and the Store/Kitchen Building

See also Ward Buildings.

Front view of the hospital, showing the female ward and the corridors that linked them to each other. Note the absence of the not-yet-constructed Administration Building. (from the Robert J. Lee collection, courtesy Ed Bold)
Another image from the same series of Wards A, B, C. (from the Robert J. Lee collection, courtesy Ed Bold)

These three buildings were the original portions of the Main Building that were present at the opening of MSH in December 1893.6

The structures consist of ward buildings, laundry, bakery, boiler house and the kitchen. The main building is 488 feet long, with a basement ten feet in height and three additional stories. Each floor contains rooms for inmates on the east side, while on the west are the attendants’ quarters. Concrete is the material used in the construction of the basement and first floor of the ward buildings. Elevators run by hydraulic pressure are provided. Strength and durability was made the first requisite in the buildings, which are of brick with granite and red sandstone trimmings. The upper floors are counterparts of the first. The building can accommodate comfortably and safely about five hundred patients. Each of the buildings is supplied with separate heating appliances. Besides the main building the upper floors of the kitchen and laundry will be used for patients.7

From the quote above, it can be inferred that the corridors linking the wards to each other were present at opening (the description of the building as 488 feet matches the distance between the extreme ends of the two wards).8 Due to ersatz nature of early management of the hospital, the buildings often served multiple uses (for example, the second floor of the Store/Kitchen building housed patients as noted in the Morning Union report above, and the basements of the residential wards had kitchens despite the fire risk).

There were two prominent square towers on both ends of the wards. These were also impacted by the April 18, 1906 San Francisco Earthquake and subsequently rebuilt without their topmost floors (the floor featuring three arched windows on each side).

Administration Building
Photographed by A.O. Carpenter before the 1906 San Francisco Earthquake. (from the Robert J. Lee collection, courtesy Ed Bold)
Horse buggy linking MSH with Vichy Springs and the Asylum rail stop. (from the Robert J. Lee collection, courtesy Ed Bold)
Description in the April 13, 1898 issue of the San Francisco Call.
Contemporary postcard featuring MSH.
Contemporary postcard featuring MSH.
This excerpt from one of the biennial reports is a rare photograph that shows the administration building separate from the wards. Note the absence of the Assembly Building in between.

Construction of the administration building was contemplated even before MSH (then named Mendocino Asylum for the Insane) opened.

Senator [John H.] Seawell has introduced a bill in the Senate changing the name of the Mendocino State Asylum for the Insane to the Mendocino Asylum; also appropriating $261,000 for the erection of an administration building for the Mendocino Insane Asylum.9

Plans for the administration building were adopted in April 1898, with the San Francisco Call reporting (see image above) on the intended functions of the building:

The style of architecture adopted is Romanesque, of a somewhat modified form, and the material to be used in the construction of the exterior will be red pressed brick with red sandstone trimmings.

The handsome structure when completed will have a general elevation of fifty-eight feet, a frontage of one hundred and thirty feet and a depth of seventy-two feet, the whole being surmounted by a tower one hundred and twenty feet high.

Of the three floors into which the building is divided the first will be devoted to the offices of the institution, a reception room, room for the board of managers and a general dining room. The second floor is to be used exclusively for the living apartments of the physicians and their families, the third floor being utilized as a day room and dormitory for patients.

The plans and specifications adopted were those submitted by Cunningham Brothers of Oakland, who estimate the cost of construction to be $56,000.10

Offices and some living quarters for staff members, especially medical doctors, were housed in the lower floors of this building. The Administration Building featured a dramatic soaring clock tower above a three-arched grand entryway with steps. However, this clock tower collapsed in the aftermath of the April 18, 1906 San Francisco Earthquake and was subsequently rebuilt in a much squatter fashion. Due to their prominence, the clock tower and the administration building features in many contemporary postcards of MSH (see above).

Assembly Hall /Assembly Building and connecting corridors

The Assembly Building was the last portion of the Main Building to be built, and its connecting corridors linked the Administration Building and the others into one whole building. Given its location in between the other buildings, there are few pictures of it by itself, but you can see parts of it in some of the pictures featuring the other wards.

The Assembly Building featured an auditorium (which gave its name to the building, evidently) with a balcony for showing patients weekly films; this appears to have been a particularly popular pastime. The rationale given for the construction included:

This State Hospital is yet without an assembly hall. All the other State Hospitals have large, roomy, well-furnished assembly halls. They are everywhere recognized as a necessity in the treatment of the insane. Here we have no place where the patients can assemble for church service or for amusement. The need of an assembly hall is great. As originally planned, the assembly hall is to be placed between the Administration building and the connecting corridors of the ward buildings and form the connection between them.

I would recommend that it be constructed with a basement, with a ward above capable of accommodating twenty-five to thirty patients, and a hall over all. The cost of this building, including the construction of the ward and furnishing same, is estimated at $30,000.11

Upon completion:

The Assembly Hall building was completed and occupied in August, 1905. This building , with its apartments for officers and employés [sic], and the spacious, well-lighted amusement hall is a most important addition to the Hospital buildings.12

Other Side Structures

Two large walled garage structures were later built to enclose the rear of the Main Building, and formed two courtyards. Several other smaller structures in the courtyard can be seen in historical photos from the rear of the Main Building.

Cannery

The cannery appears to have been located right behind the machine shops attached to the boiler building. Little more than a wooden shack, it was probably demolished when the Industrial Building was completed in 1940, and the cannery moved there instead.

Shed

There were many sheds on campus, but this one was likely located between the morgue and the carpenter shop. The note in the Historical Record reads:

This was constructed for storage of tools, etc., and was made from salvaged materials and with inmate labor. It is very old.13

Laundry and Bakery Building / Industrial Building (old)

Originally serving as a laundry and bakery, by 1939 it is clear that the building hosted a number of various industries unrelated to either laundry or food.

First floor contains a bakery with an oven burning fuel oil, a cannery, shoe shop and storerooms. The second floor contains sewing room, art room, and an industrial shop in which cane chairs and decorative furniture is made. Furniture is finished by means of lacquer spray. 15 gallons of lacquer and gasoline were found stored in one corner of the industrial room.14

This building was later torn down and replaced with the present-day kitchen and bakery building after World War II.

Water Tower

Image from the 1908 Report of the Department of Engineering of the State of California (link below)

Manufactured and installed by Chicago Bridge and Iron Works, the steel water tower could hold up to 100,000 gallons of water and towered over campus at 139 feet.15 It was demolished in 1955 and its purpose replaced by two large water tanks at the rear of campus. It appears that the photograph in the Historical Record might be older than the photo in the 1908 Department of Engineering Report, as it contains a note that the wooden water tower and the stable (barn) in the picture have been demolished since the photograph was taken.

Besides the receiving building being erected at this institution by day’s labor, three small pavilions for patients were designed by this Department and built by the institution. On November 4, 1907, a contract was entered into with the Chicago Bridge and Iron Works for the erection of a steel water tower and steel tank. The tower of this structure is 139 feet above the ground and the tank’s capacity is 100,000 gallons. This tank was built to replace the water tanks in the main building. This is a modern and well-built structure, after plans designed by the Department, thoroughly stayed laterally against horizontal forces.16

Morgue (I)

This was the first morgue for MSH, located next to the metal water tower. After the construction of the boiler building, the morgue was moved there but the building remained until 1955.

Mattress Shop

The mattress shop was located near the carpenter shop. It was probably demolished when the Industrial Building was completed, and the mattress shop moved there instead.

Tick House

Despite its unappealing-sounding name, the “tick” in this building’s name is unlikely to refer to the bug, but rather, to “tick” being an old term for mattress sheets. Its entry being next to the mattress shop’s entry also supports this conclusion, and it’ was likely ‘s possible that it is the furthest left shed close to the hospital boundaries on the 1916 map.

Carpenter Shop

Assuming the construction date is correct, this is likely MSH’s second carpenter shop as a carpenter shop is already shown on the maps from the 1910s. The carpenter shop is still listed in the 1939 State Fire Marshal Report, indicating it was probably demolished after the Industrial Building was completed.

The site of the carpenter shop became where the Laundry Building was built.

Boiler House (old)

The location and size of the first boiler building, seen here on an early map. (color added by me)

The original boiler house appears on early maps next to the Laundry Building and early reports of MSH at its opening indicate that a boiler building had already been built to provide the institution with heating. The extant boiler house was built to replace it in 1926. Unfortunately, no pictures of the building survive.

Stable and Wagon Shed

Listed as a “barn” in the Historical Record and located east of the water tower, the stable and wagon shed appear to have been demolished prior to 1930 as it seems to not have separate entries in the work (just a picture). However, the stable is separately noted on the back of another page. Presumably the popularization of motor-driven cars obviated the need for horse-drawn wagons.

The stable is listed as having a capacity of 22 stalls.

Ballpark (old)

View from behind home plate. Note the flag pole in the distance, as well as the Superintendent’s Residence. (courtesy Ed Bold)
Caption: A flag-raising ceremony for the opening game of the baseball season. Individuals listed are: 1. Unknown, 2. Superintendent R.B. Toller 3. Mayor of Talmage [sic] R.O. Foster 4. Business Manager A.E. Spillman. MSH game between Laytonville (won 5–4)
and Talmage Sluggers. Sunday, March 29th (courtesy Ed Bold)

The original ballpark was built facing west. Its wooden bleachers appear to have been demolished around 1955, and new ones constructed to the north of the field.

Credit Union

Administrative and Utility Buildings (Extant)

Greenhouse

Location of the first greenhouse

In some later documents, the greenhouse’s construction date is placed as 1905 or 1908. However, this is unlikely, as maps from the 1910s clearly show a greenhouse but at a location relatively near the Main Building, which is not where the existing greenhouse is. Furthermore, this greenhouse is built entirely from concrete, which was not a common building material for cheap utility buildings in 1908. Assuming this greenhouse was built as a replacement for the earlier one, it would probably have been built in the late 1910s or early 1920s.

Boiler House and Machine Shop and Morgue (II)

  • Date completed: 1926
  • Location (coordinates): 39°07’57.8″N 123°09’42.9″W
  • Original cost: $62,941.56 (adjusted for 2025: $1,117,022.81)
  • Current building name: Earth Treasury Hall (地藏殿)
  • Current building use: Religious chapel

A replacement for the much smaller original boiler shop, the second boiler house appears to have been designed by Alfred Eichler in the early stages. In addition to the main boiler room (which is the tallest room of the building), there were annexes for a new morgue and machine shop. The morgue continued to serve in that purpose until the R/T building was completed in the 1950s. The second iteration of the smokestack was removed by CTTB during the renovation of the hall in 2018.

Gas House / Mason Shop

  • Date completed: 1914
  • Location (coordinates): 39°08’01.5″N 123°09’28.9″W
  • Original cost: $1,599.11 (adjusted for 2025: $50,799.09)
  • Current building name: Mason shop
  • Current building use: Primarily storage

This small brick building was initially built as a (coal) gas house to service the large gas tank in its rear. The entry in the Historical Record notes:

Oil Tank: Large. [Second from right]
Original Cost: [ ] Date completed: [ ]
Walls: Steel. Roof: Steel, Floors: Steel,
Foundation: Concrete. Water: None. Size: 28’0″ O.S. Dia. Capacity: 1,000 Bbls (barrels).

Gas Tank: [Rear of Building]
Original Cost: [ ] Date completed: 1914.
Walls: Steel. Roof: Steel, Floors: Steel,
Foundation: Concrete. Water: None. Size: 48’0″ O.S. Dia. Capacity: [ ]

Gas House: [Extreme Left]
Original Cost: $1,599.11. Date completed: 1914. Walls: Brick, Roof: Composition. Floors: Cement.
Foundation: Concrete. Water: Yes. Size: 26’0″ x 34’0″. Sewer: Yes. Light: Electricity.
Facing: Brick. Extinguishers: None. Hydrants, interior: None. Hydrants, exterior: 200′.

After the hospital ceased to use coal gas, the tank in the rear was removed sometime in the 1950s, as the tank still appears in maps from that decade. The concrete foundation for the tank, however, remains. The gas house was repurposed as a mason shop, and is now primarily used for storage.

Firehouse

Laundry Building

Industrial Building

Administration Building (new)

  • Date completed: 1953
  • Location (coordinates): 39°07’56.9″N 123°09’45.6″W
  • Original cost: $ (adjusted for 2025: )
  • Current building name: Administration Office
  • Current building use: Administration

Auditorium & Library

  • Date completed: 1955
  • Location (coordinates): 39°08’00.5″N 123°09’40.1″W
  • Original cost: $ (adjusted for 2025: )
  • Current building name: Hall of Ten Thousand Buddhas/Buddha Hall (萬佛寶殿、佛殿)
  • Current building use: Main prayer hall

Arts & Crafts Building / Picnic Hut / Picnic Building

  • Date completed:
  • Location (coordinates): 39°07’57.7″N 123°09’27.9″W
  • Original cost: $ (adjusted for 2025: )
  • Current building name:
  • Current building use: Primarily storage

Motor Pool

  • Date completed: 1960
  • Location (coordinates): 39°07’46.9″N 123°09’39.3″W
  • Original cost: $ (adjusted for 2025: )
  • Current building name:
  • Current building use: Workshop/maintenance

Incinerator / Landfill

Water Tanks

Mill Creek Dam No. 2

  • Date completed: 1908
  • Location (coordinates): 39°07’51.7″N 123°08’07.0″W
  • Original cost: $9,500 (adjusted for 2025: $307,946.38)
  • Current building name: Second Dam
  • Current building use: Recreation

The dams on Mill Creek (also called Middle Creek) were built in order to supply the hospital with a consistent supply of water. After the hospital was closed by the state, the dams and their land was transferred to the County of Mendocino in July 1973. Though this dam was the second one built, it is the furthest downstream of the three dams.

Mill Creek Dam No. 3

  • Date completed: 1916
  • Location (coordinates): 39°07’38.8″N 123°07’48.7″W
  • Original cost: $56,400 (adjusted for 2025: $1,722,754.27)
  • Current building name: Third Dam
  • Current building use: Recreation

The dams on Mill Creek (also called Middle Creek) were built in order to supply the hospital with a consistent supply of water. After the hospital was closed by the state, the dams and their land was transferred to the County of Mendocino in July 1973. Though this dam was the third one built (and by far the most expensive), it is the middle of the three dams.

Footnotes

  1. 1906 Biennial Report, page 71. ↩︎
  2. San Francisco Call (1898, April 13), page 11. ↩︎
  3. 1904 Biennial Report, page 82. ↩︎
  4. ↩︎
  5. State Fire Marshal Report, pages 5-6. ↩︎
  6. Alameda Encinal (1893, December 7), page 2. ↩︎
  7. Morning Union (1893, December 8), page 4. ↩︎
  8. I am unsure, however, if the ward corridors linked to the kitchen at this stage. ↩︎
  9. Fort Bragg Advocate (1893, February 1). Note that this had been reduced by the time the bill made its way through the Legislature; the Sacramento Daily Union (1893, February 27) report on the bill (Senate Bill No. 120) notes the amount as $100,000, and by April it was listed as $60,000. ↩︎
  10. San Francisco Call (1898, April 13), page 11. ↩︎
  11. 1902 Biennial Report, page 70. ↩︎
  12. 1906 Biennial Report, page 71. ↩︎
  13. page 51. ↩︎
  14. State Fire Marshal Report, page 13. ↩︎
  15. 1908 Report of the Department of Engineering of the State of California, page 26. (archive.org) ↩︎
  16. 1908 Report of the Department of Engineering of the State of California, page 26. (archive.org) ↩︎