Keith -- Kate, who posts regularly on this site, just had a legitimate tour of the interior. She will be posting the pictures sometime on her website: www.geocities.com/kma4asl -- good luck!
It's really quite nice what they've done with the place. I must admit I was very disappointed that interior shots wouldn't be possible for most people, but I have to also admit I am thrilled to see them actually doing the right thing and keeping this place safe and secure. And the way they lit the exterior is quite nice too. Well, I'd bet if you asked the right people, and asked them nicely enough, it wouldn't be out of the realm of possibilities to have a bit of a tour some day. Come to think of it, that holds true for nearly all of these places, but it's usually just not exciting to get in the legal way. :o)
I've left quite a bit of comments lately. Well, one more before bed can't hurt. Not sure what that comment about LSD and Thorazine was supposed to be about, but it does seem to have some success in aborting some acid trips. Remember that, kids! When you start to see your dead grandmother crawling up your leg with a knife in her teeth, you better hope you remembered to keep the thorazine handy. Double super extra bonus points if anyone knows the inspiration for the sentence just before this one!
Yeah, I'll be honest. I just found the site last night and I actually did have a nightmare. I've seen a lot of places like these and it's fairly rare that their imagery makes it into my dreams, so I suppose we can only conclude that... you use subliminal messages in your photography. I found you out, sir. Now, you must reveal all of your secrets.
With the advent of more powerful anti-psychotic drugs and other such things, not to mention changing attitudes, there was a definite move away from using isolation from about the late 60's onward. So, they probably phased out the rooms. Perhaps even made them into private bedrooms for well-behaved patients. Which could explain the light switches. I mean, if you have a bedroom you'll want control of your lighting.