Western Center

Western Center
Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare
A map showing the Western Center's location in Pennsylvania
Geography
Location	Cecil Township, Washington County, Pennsylvania, United States
Coordinates	40°16′28″N 80°09′59″W / 40.27436°N 80.16642°W / 40.27436; -80.16642Coordinates: 40°16′28″N 80°09′59″W / 40.27436°N 80.16642°W / 40.27436; -80.16642
History
Closed	2000
Demolished	2011
Links
Lists	Hospitals in Pennsylvania

Western State School and Hospital, commonly known as Western Center, was a state-run mental hospital and reform school near Canonsburg, Pennsylvania. It is best known as an institution serving people with intellectual disabilities. At various times during its existence, it was also known as the Pennsylvania Reform School, Youth Development Center of Canonsburg and The House of Refuge. Locally, it was called Morganza. It was a well-known part of the Canonsburg community, appearing as a stop on tours during community festivals.

The exterior of the Western Center's administration building was used as the setting for Baltimore State Hospital for the Criminally Insane, where Hannibal Lecter was incarcerated, in the 1991 film The Silence of the Lambs.

In 1986, the Washington County Redevelopment Authority acquired land around the Western Center. The areas was ideal because of its access to Interstate 79, its proximity to Pittsburgh, and low tax rates.

In 1992, the Western Center was the subject of a lawsuit brought by disability advocates against the Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare; the lawsuit resulted in a settlement that permitted the state to move residents to community-based facilities.

In 1993, the Washington County Redevelopment Authority began construction on its property near the Western Center, building what would become Phase I of Southpointe.

The state decided to close the facility in 1998 and began making plans to move its remaining 380 residents to community-based facilities. The final closure came in 2000, with the 56 remaining residents moved to temporary housing before final placement in community-based facilities throughout Western Pennsylvania. The closing, the timing of which came as a surprise, was controversial, especially because the temporary locations were frequently to far-flung locations, including state's Ebensburg Center. The employee's union, residents' families, and the original litigants in the 1992 lawsuit sued unsuccessfully to stop the move. Many of the residents were moved to community-based facilities run by Allegheny Valley School.