Worcester State Hospital: Clock Tower Building and Hooper Turret
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The Worcester State Lunatic Hospital, the original name of the current Worcester State Hospital, was the first state-owned hospital established in this country to treat mental illnesses. It was designed by architects Weston and Rand of Worcester in the Victorian Gothic style. The original design was created to reflect the ideas of Dr. Thomas Kirkbride, who promoted the “moral treatment” of the mentally ill. The historic hospital campus with its many buildings is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The hospital was built between 1874 and 1877. With the exception of the Clock Tower and Hooper Turret, the entire facility was demolished to make way for the state’s first new psychiatric hospital in almost fifty years. The $250 million project is one of the largest capital projects commissioned by the state of Massachusetts.
The unique Clock Tower stands 250 feet above Lake Quinsigamond and can be seen from a great distance. The Hooper Turret is a freestanding circular building. Both buildings are made of ferruginous gneiss rubble, a fragile stone that was quarried from nearby land, and are bordered with red brick to provide stability and rock-faced granite for ornamentation.
Preservation Worcester has been working with the state for more than five years on the project. A feasibility study has been completed for the reuse and redevelopment of the buildings and Preservation Worcester is hopeful that a suitable use and appropriate guardian will be found for the buildings. However, the cost of restoration and the availability of state and federal historic tax credits remain a major cause of concern.