A very symmetrical tree.
Abandoned DeJarnett Sanatorium rises above a forest of white flowering trees.
Once in the history of our Commonwealth our health system promoted a public policy that promised to deliver advancements in the betterment of the human race. In Staunton, Virginia it was promoted by the director of Western State Hospital, Joseph Spencer DeJarnette (September 29, 1866 – September 3, 1957). As the director of the mental hospital located in Staunton, Virginia from 1905 to November 15, 1943 he was a vocal proponent of racial segregation and eugenics, specifically, the compulsory sterilization of the mentally ill. Today we shudder at the thought of the forced sterilizations that took place under Dr. DeJarnette’s directorship. The practice only ended in the 1970s.
DeJarnette not only administered Western State Hospital. He also built the sanatorium shown above for his wealthy patients. While they received more compassionate care, Western State, on the other hand, was transformed from a sheltered community where people farmed and worked in little shops into a prison for the mentally disabled. Today the old sanitarium stands abandoned. Every Spring, the trees that have grown around it bloom in a display that I like to think offers remembrance to the lives of those who suffered from the ill informed policies of that time.
Daffodils at Good Shepherd Episcopal Church.
Flowering Trees. — Photos by Bob Kirchman