Medfield State Hospital

Medfield State Hospital is a former mental asylum located beside a dense, beautiful forest, a river, and an almost endless rolling, green field that is scattered with field hockey and lacrosse nets, depending on the time of year. Dog walkers, runners, and families with young children roam the premises, exploring the untrimmed grass between old, brick buildings and scattered cinder blocks. The world at Medfield State feels a little hazy; everything is quiet, apart from the sound of little paws prancing against the concrete, that has been shattered by countless New England winters, and the voices of children playing with one another.

Some of my fondest memories have been made in Medfield State Hospital. I have been going there to walk my dog for years, and every moment spent there has been a good one. I have always thought the air there smells different than in Needham, but maybe that’s just me.

My dad, a member of an organization of cyclists in Massachusetts, held a bike race in Medfield State Hospital. It was freezing cold that day, but everyone still showed up with their bikes and helmets. The Chubby Chickpea, a Middle Eastern food truck parked near the center of the event, served warm food and drinks for everyone attending. One of my dad’s friends arrived at the race wearing an eagle costume; he was very happily surprised to see an ‘eagle’ (it was a hawk) perched atop one of the buildings.

Several years later, my sister bought tickets to a drive-in double-feature hosted at Medfield State, showing The Thing and They Live back-to-back until well after midnight. Like at the bike race, the air was biting cold. The only things that could remedy the extremely low temperatures were the warm, savory McDonald’s cheeseburgers we had purchased before the films and the hot chamomile tea we purchased from a concessions stand right outside the old hospital.

Fast forward to 2021. My dad and I were taking a walk with my dog at Medfield State, per usual, when he informed me that there was a bill being pushed within the local government to redevelop Medfield State and destroy some of the 44 buildings that had stood for over a century. Several buildings, including the Odyssey House, the Carriage House, and the Laundry Building, have already been destroyed. According to the bill, many more of the buildings would be destroyed and replaced; Medfield State would effectively not exist as we know it, and in its place would be masses of open space and new, most likely residential, buildings.

I was absolutely heartbroken when I heard that there were people who wanted to see this site reduced to rubble and soulless condominiums, or whatever the plan for the new buildings will be in the future. Despite its grisly history of being a hospital for the chronically mentally ill, in which the patients were routinely harmed and abused, Medfield State Hospital was turned from a place of horror and pain into one of genuine joy. I think the greatest punishment for those who committed horrible acts within the hospital is that, rather than continuing on as a place of hatred and ableism, it exists as a collection of happy memories for many Massachusetts residents and their families.

To me, Medfield State Hospital is almost like a national park. I see it as something to be preserved, protected, and untouched. The only construction I would ever support on the land of Medfield State is anything that could be done to keep some of the older buildings from eroding. If the day ever comes that I see white, picket fences and smooth cobblestone streets rather than overgrown wild grass and cracked concrete, I will mourn for the place I love so dearly as if I had lost a dear friend. Although I know this article will never be read by those responsible for the reconstruction of Medfield State, I can only wish that it will inform individuals who had never known about what it was.

To all those who read this, visit Medfield State Hospital. Have a picnic with your family or friends on the grass. Walk your dog. Walk your cat. Heck, even walk your kid. Ask the county for a permit to have a drive-in movie night. Go on a run in the nearby woods. Kayak in the river. Take a cute Instagram photo with the spray-painted angel wings. Admire the graffiti art. Hold hands. Remember that there are a thousand condos and only one Medfield State Hospital.