4,537 Comments for Pennhurst State School

This is only the third picture Ihave gotten to, It just disgust me that these poor kids went through such disgusting treatmet,

Its crazy to see all the pictures. The pictures are great the really kind of show the hospitals history. I like the stories of the history of the hospital its amazign how much medical things have advanced from what they where to what they are now. It freaks me out to see how people where treated back then.

bsmarcia,
Thanks for replying. I realize we aren't arguing just relaying what each of us knows. I know from good people in these places because it is only due to one that I am alive and able to be writing this. But you must realize to an abused child the abuse is all the exists until they are taken away from it even if there are nice things going on in between the episodes of abuse. And often the nice things just don't get mentioned. Why take on responsibility for what others did?

I also came here today to address something I read on here a few weeks ago but don't want to look up today. The person posted about how they saw patients on the street who always waved at them and their mother told them not to wave back because they would follow you home. They posted this as if it were some sort of proof of defectiveness at least that is how I took it. It isn't.
That sort of sudden attachment is due to being starved for affection. They were probably never treated like normal people. I'm sure no one took time to get to know them personally and have personal discussions with them that all children need let alone allowed them to emotionally bond and learn about being human because along with that idea of following you home and many other urban legends and distortions of normal behavior until the mid 70's emotional attachment wasn't even acknowledged as being essential for human development. Many abusers used knowledge that it was and the false concept that it wasn't in practice this to inflict torment and use the reaction to that torment as an excuse for some physical punishment.
The lack emotional attachment to a specific person makes people do things that others who have had it but aren't aware of it will misinterpret. When you see teen boys or even men who attach too quickly to women this is what that is. They have been starved for affection and also probably starved of proper prepubescent opposite sex bonding experiences. The early life relationships with the opposite sex sets the pattern for ones behavior and ability as an adult unless one knows and acts to try to learn what is missing one is stuck with what one learned as a child. Thus if all the members of the opposite sex are dishonest and untrustworthy as a child one cannot trust the opposite sex as an adult. But one only knows untrustworthy people whom one loved so one is doomed to pick untrustworthy opposite sex partners as that is all one knows. Honest partners will often trigger fear and make one pull away due to not being able to understand it.
Well there's my rant have a nice day

well, not to jump on the band wagon or anything, but.. in my opinion, it is extremely messed up to be stealing from a place like this. whoever did is asking for some serious issues with the spirits who still linger in those buildings. it really wasn't smart. plus, SO MANY people lived, never saw their families, then died in those buildings. so to steal from those helpless people, even if they aren't "there" anymore is wrong in so many ways. people, think about the things you do before you do them. what if somebody just went in your home and stole something special to you? you have some issues if you can just do things like that without thinking twice about it. just saying.

correction i ment what they did to the people at pennhurst school they should be punished i said javes javes toolk alot of people out of pennhurst and byberry and gave them nice homes with aids around the clock to stay with them, they are certified in all medical and first aid. and are treated real good. they have choices go out to dinner and vacations movies and many more places. i had a good time my self. i went on more vacations then i ever did in my life.

In 1932 my grandmom died,She had4 boys and 3 girls all went to foster homes where they were treated so bad starved my mom got tb from lack of food but her sister no one would take so they put her in pennhursy school. there was nothing wrong with her. so they used her to take care of the disabled feed them clean them when they had a accident while the nurses sat watched if she didn,t do her job she got hit when my mom became 21 she went and got her out it was hard all the paper work court. . my mom had apartment and proff of a job so she could be taken care of. so they left her go. my aunt anna never could read and had a low i.q they never taught her how to read just do there work.. she was only a young girl when they put her in there. she said that was the worst place she ever lived.and thought she would die there or get killed..alot of little children were put in there that wre not wanted by there parents .so they were mixed with the mental health and retarted.. I worked for a company called jewish employment for 15yrs. for mental health and retardation. believe me then can learn and they love to be loved .I loved my job.now i am disabled and stopped working.what they did to our people at javs they should been put to death. with no pain meds given they removed there eyes.and if the bite took all there teeth out.. so much more it would make you sick. they didn,t need any pain meds because they said there retarted and had no feelings. so they were operates on without anything just left to screem. IdaNancy@aol.com. thankyou

okay so this gives me no answers on how many daeths have taken place at Pennhurst yearly /:

and flushed as I have said before I am not arguing the fact that some bad things happened. I am only trying to say that conditions had vastly improved during the 11 years I worked there. Was it perfect...no...but it also was not the hell hole that Bill Baldini depicted in his report. What people choose to not accept is that there were good things that also took place there. And just because group homes were established doesn't mean they are also without problems. You can be abused in those type of settings just as easily because they aren't monitored nearly as stringently as was Pennhurst . ( During the final 10 years anyway) What people also don't understand either is that what started out as a lawsuit to get better conditions , more staff, etc. turned into a whole other animal. Most of the parents I was in contact with did not support closing Pennhurst. That's not what THEY wanted. But a certain lawyer who wanted to make a name for himself took it one step further. Not all agreed with him but there was little they could do. They were pawns in a very nasty game.

bsmarcia,
As someone who was in a similar institution as a child I can assure you these things do happen and most employees do not witness them or know of them. After all the perps know it is wrong and take pains to hide it.

Firstly TA did not stand for Theraputic Activities. That would be something that was offered to the clients. This was a mandatory class that staff attended to supposedly help us with all the negativity that was being directed at staff. Because staff morale was so low..because not all the staff was barbaric like you want to believe. It was a futile attempt to bolster morale and it was pretty lame. Warm fuzzies are lame.

And secondly in the 11 years I worked there I did not witness the atrocities that you believe took place on a daily basis. Things had improved and most likely if we would have remained open would have continued to improve. I NEVER said things were less than ideal throughout the history of Pennhurst. What I said was when I worked there it wasn't that bad. And that's great that your friend has done extensive research but has she ever worked there? I think not. Has she ever worked in an institutional setting? Probably not. Sometimes first hand knowlege can be believed. It's ok.

How is it that I wasn't aware that lonely chairs are a typical/standard/expected thing to be encountered in places like this until I read the comments just now??

Roof certainly seems possible, Grumpy. Depends on what kind of room this was in, probably not the roof if patients had access to it. If it was a staff-only room, though, then the roof is probably the most likely answer.

Correct me if I'm wrong, guys, but couldn't it also be possible that patients with more severe mental and/or psychological disabilities/illnesses/whatever could have been responsible for a couple of those fires? Like, if they somehow found a way to create a spark, or did so on accident or something...? Just thought I'd throw that out there since it crossed my mind.

Evane's right, especially about the abuse part. Apparently there were even cases of staff members raping (or at least trying to rape) patients. Don't know how true those stories are, but they have circulated.

To add to what silkster said about the no-longer-present shower curtain and the window, I just feel the need to say that my GOD, I hope that room wasn't on the first floor!