Eloise: Poorhouse, Farm, Asylum and Hospital 1839-1984

Images of America: Michigan

by Patricia Ibbotson

Eloise, which started out as a poorhouse, later became known as Wayne County General Hospital. From only 35 residents on 280 acres in 1839, the complex grew dramatically after the Civil War until the total land involved was 902 acres and the total number of patients was about 10,000. Today, all that remains are five buildings and a smokestack. Only one of them, the Kay Beard Building, is currently used. In Eloise: Poorhouse, Farm, Asylum, and Hospital, 1839-1984, this institution and medical center that cared for thousands of people over the years, is brought back to life. The book, in over 220 historic photographs, follows the facility's roots, from its beginnings as a poorhouse, to the founding of its psychiatric division and general hospital. The reader will also be able to trace the changing face of psychiatric care over the years. The book effectively captures what it was like to live, work, and play on Eloise's expansive grounds.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Mental Health, Local History

184 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 2, 2002

Reviews

[Mom · Rating 3 out of 5]

I never knew this existed. I am puzzled at why it went away.

[Rosemary]

Eloise was so much more than an insane asylum as it’s mostly know for today. It was an entire community that at one time or another featured its own farm that included crops, cows, and pigs, bakery, fire department, police force, performance center for patients. At times Eloise housed tens of thousands of people. This book doesn’t mention funding but as most of the patients were poor I have to imagine it was largely state funded. It’s shameful that we don’t provide these kinds of resources for people today.

[Beth · Rating 3 out of 5]

Books from this series are always interesting and the information is accessible to those who aren't looking for a dense regurgitation of facts. That being said, this one seemed a little disjointed. It jumped from here to there and with a topic like Eloise, that does a disservice to anyone trying to pin down a congruent timeline. I didn't enjoy the experience as much because I kept having to skip back and forth to nail down which buildings were what and when. Also, I would have liked to know more about the people of Eloise, which was only contained in one chapter and it was mostly staff.

Also, the Ebook format had so many typos/spelling errors that it was almost irritating. The editing definitely left something to be desired.

[Justine Cucchi-Dietlin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm a big fan of the Images of America series, but this is the first one I've read front to back. I purchased this book at the Friends of Eloise gift shop in Westland, Michigan. If you're in the area, I recommend going to the museum in the Westland Historical Park and driving by the Kay Beard building. It's an interesting piece of local history.

My great-grandmother was an inmate of the asylum, and my mother was born at the Wayne County General Hospital, so I am familiar with Eloise from a personal perspective. Personally, I felt the book did a good job showing the grounds and staff off, but I was surprised how few photos included patients. I would guess this was due to privacy and respect for the families, since having a relative at Eloise's Asylum was often a hush-hush thing for families at the time, and patients were often at their lowest point while checked in.

Overall, I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who wants a pictoral reference for Eloise's grounds. My grandma often speaks of the psychiatric buildings and their surrounding grounds where she visited her mother, and I had no idea how many there were, or the sheer size of the complex, until visiting the site and reading this book.

[Jan · Rating 3 out of 5]

An over all view of the staff and buildings. There was not even a mention of the problems that racked Eloise. Not unexpected for an Arcadia book, but I was hoping for a bit more depth.

[Sydney · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Although this complex was a poor house, a large farm, a tuberculosis sanatarium, an infirmary and a major general hospital, most people associate it as being only a mental asylum."

I did a film shoot here once. Sad how places like this can fall into such disrepair and have their histories completely wiped out. This book glorified the institution which was surprising based on urban legends I've heard, so I'd be interested to hear another account.

[Krista · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wish it was more than just photos will little bits of description. I was hoping for more history and background of Eloise since is seems to have been at one point a little town with in Nankin Township, but it does give me an insight into the institution. Most definitely not like most other mental health hospitals of the times.

[Bennane Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

A Picture Book

This is a skimmer . A semi interesting read. As a teen i remember roaming g the Eloise site. And the tunnels! Not sure how interesting it would be to a non native

[Beth · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great pictures and information.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of cool ideas Boris. Not much actual writing.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Eloise

Great history on the poor house that was explored on a paranormal television show. Really enjoyed the book. The pictures were excellent.

[Celene Swagler · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mostly pictures (a TON!) but very detailed captions.
My great-grandma was a resident in the long term care unit back in the 60’s.

[Tom · Rating 2 out of 5]

In this series of books from Arcadia Publishing, one waits in vain for anything intelligent or worthwhile to be said about the cities and places it covers. Instead, each book is an amalgamation of photographs--sometimes seemingly included just because there was a picture to be had--with captions that provide little in the way of an overarching story. In the case of Eloise--a roughly square mile town entirely made up of hospital grounds, with its own post office and zip code, its own fire department, farm, cemetery, bakery, bowling alley, and theater, and most notable to residents in the surrounding community as an institution for the chronically mentally ill--a fascinating, and probably troubling, story could be told here. Among the employees shown in the photographs are African Americans. Given that many employees, married and single, lived on the grounds of Eloise, it would be interesting to know if the housing were segregated. For a sanitarium grounded in the Detroit area, a history of mental health treatment (lobotomies, electroshock, drug sedation, etc.) would seem to strongly overlap with a history of race relations. Was treatment of African Americans here the same as administered to whites, or was it as hostile? The potential for a complex history--warts and all, good and bad--waits to be told.

[Joan · Rating 4 out of 5]

After reading Annie's Ghost, I became interest the the Mental Hospital, Eloise. This book has pictures with descriptions of the events that took place in the hospital. It was not only a mental hospital, but also a forward thinking hospital for surgery, TB sanatorium, and home for the elderly. This hospital was first in the country in several areas such as X-rays, kidney transplants and music therapy. The hospital at on time had a bakery, power plant, gardens, and laundry. It did not need anything from the outside. It even had trains, interurbans, and it's own post office. The book gave me lots of information.

[Jupiter394 · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is really just a book of photos of the former Eloise Asylum in Westland, MI and descriptions to go along with them. It shows the history of Eloise and many of its workers and patients. I enjoyed seeing the photographs and had not realized how large some of the building were until purchasing this book. This is a great companion book for anyone reading Annie's Ghosts.

The only addition I would have liked to have seen was diagrams of Eloise at different points in time. It would have been helpful to have those as reference when viewing the photographs.

[Sara · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is basically a collection of photos with dates and blurbs about buildings and a handful of people. The collection of photos is impressive and the book is thoughtfully organized. If you are looking for nothing more than snapshots of Eloise's history, then this is your book.

However, of you are looking for personal stories of patients or staff at Eloise, you won't find much more than a line or two about a handful of people.

[Rita · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's a photo album of a place many of us who grew up within 100 miles of Detroit had heard of, mostly in whispers. After reading ANNIE'S GHOST, I had to know more about Eloise. The pictures and captions are like reading someones family album. I'm left wanting MORE INFORMATION, but fascinated by the history of a place that served so many needs of society for so long.

[Raelynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

A thorough collection of photographs featuring a local "legend". If you're from Michigan you grew up hearing the ghost stories of Eloise and its residents. This book however puts a lot of those "ghosts" to rest. You see the facility in a positive and beautiful light. Really a 5 star picture book but I would have liked to have a bit more depth of written history.

[Dave · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent collection of photographs from the Eloise complex. Brief descriptions of the photographs and drawings. I grew up near Eloise and Wayne County Hospital and this book is very nostalgic for me. If you are familiar with the area this is a nice flashback.

[Susan Banner · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting photo documentation of the facility.

[Terri Frank · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lot of care went into collecting and preserving these photos from an institution in Westland, Michigan. I learned a lot about how this institution was like a little city with its own fire department, dairy, etc. I was fascinated that, through photos, I learned about famous patients and how the institution got it's name. Like the title says, it served as a poorhouse, mental asylum, tuberculosis sanitorium and, finally, a hospital. Good, quick read.