Topeka State Hospital

The Topeka State Hospital, a publicly funded institution for the care and treatment of the mentally ill in Topeka, Kansas, was in operation from 1872 to 1997. Located at 2700 W 6th st, the hospital opened in 1879, after the Osawatomie State Hospital, once thought to be sufficient, became overcrowded with mentally-ill patients.

The first buildings in both Topeka and Osawatomie were designed by John G. Haskell who was among the architects of the Kansas State Capitol.

Most of the buildings have been torn down. Hummer Sports Park now occupies its space.

In the early 1900s, there were stories of patients being abused, neglected, or raped. Patients were often left confined or chained for long periods of time. In the 1940s, reforms at the hospital changed conditions for the better.

In 1913, the Kansas legislature passed the first sterilization law in the state. Many felt that the law was problematic, and thus its enforcement was less than stellar. In an attempt to make the process of the law easier, a second law was passed in 1917, which eliminated some of the work for the institutions. The 1913 law was directed at “habitual criminals, idiots, epileptics, imbeciles, and insane”. The 1917 law targeted the same groups, but eliminated the courts’ approval from the decision.

After the passage of the sterilization law in 1913, 54 sterilizations occurred over the next seven years. Because there was still a great deal of doubt and uncertainty regarding the laws, sterilizations occurred at a relatively slow rate up until 1921. However, with the passage of new laws and a new widespread acceptance, sterilizations began to increase rapidly until 1950. The rate of sterilization decreased steadily until 1961, when they ceased altogether. The rate of sterilizations per 100,000 residents per year during the peak period of sterilizations, in the mid 1930s, was about 10. At least early on, most of Kansas' forced sterilizations took place in the State Hospital in Topeka.

In 2001, Cynthia Turnbull, a psychologist at the Topeka State Hospital (TSH) in Kansas, sued her employer and the state for sexual harassment after she was sexually assaulted by a patient. The jury found a sexually hostile work environment existed at TSH, but it split over whether TSH should be held legally responsible for that environment. After learning of the jury's inability to decide, the district court granted an earlier defense motion for judgment as a matter of law. The sole issue on appeal was whether that ruling was proper. They held that it was not, and remanded the case for further proceedings.

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