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menninger clinic

The Menninger Clinic

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Location Class:
Built: 1924 | Abandoned: 2003
Status: AbandonedGuttedUnder RenovationPrivate Property
Photojournalist: Emily CowanSteven Harvey

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The Menninger Clinic

Before there was Menningers there was Security Benefit Association which established a home for the elder, orphanage, hospital, and farm on the grounds known as Martin’s Hill. The hospital and dormitory building was built of limestone and brick, three stories high with a 140-foot clock tower in the center. Being constructed in 1924 as one central building that would cost around $250,000 initially. Deemed a replica of Independence Hall in Philidelphia the hospital opened officially in 1925, but it wasn’t long before the SBA determined that they would need a bigger facility. The largest building project since the Hotel Jayhawk was underway on Martin’s Hill in the fall of 1928. The enlargement would cost no less than $300,000 to complete and two wings would be added on to each end connecting them to the central building and creating space for 200 beds. They would also include new kitchen facilities and a nurses’ dining room, in addition to fifteen clinic rooms, two laboratories, a physical therapy room, and five operating rooms. After no admissions for a decade, the Security Benefit Association shifted its focus and closed down the Security Benefit Hospital and Home in 1954.

Menninger Sanitarium (East Campus)

The Menninger Clinic
Menninger’s Sanitarium East Campus
Kansas Historical Society

Menninger might as well be a household name throughout Topeka, there isn’t a family in town that at least one person knows of the Menninger’s. The Menninger Clinic was started by father and son duo Dr. Charles & Dr. Karl Menninger in 1925 after their fascination in the psychiatric industry overcame them. The first building on what became known as the East Campus of Menningers Sanitarium was a farmhouse that sat on twenty acres in Topeka, fit with twelve beds.

As Menninger’s work and campus continued to grow so did the need for funding. Thus the Menninger’s Foundation was born in 1941 as a registered Non-Profit 501(3c). This allowed for more funds to be moved around in the operation and expansions in buildings and programs to be brought in. The Menninger School of Psychiatry was one of those programs, established in 1946 it became one of the largest psychiatric training centers in the country. This was the start to one of the biggest and most advanced psychiatric education revolutions of the post-WWII era. Becoming the main hub for students training in psychology, and mental health disorders. The “new” therapies integrated into the program involved those of medical, developmental, family, and emotional/physical/social needs to help improve patients. This campus treated thousands of patients and taught thousands of student psychoanalysts up until a new and larger campus was needed.

Menninger Clinic (West Campus)

Sitting lifelessly for five years, the complex of buildings that used to be Security Benefit Home and Hospital was bought up by the growing Menningers Foundation in 1959. This would become West Campus, which already had fifteen buildings that just needed a little modernization and renovation. Bringing the total number of buildings to thirty-nine and equalling 430 acres, with a staff of one-thousand and a $17,000,000 annual budget. After assessing the Menninger Foundations’ buildings and programs in 1975 it was determined that consolidating the East Campus clinic, educational, and research buildings into one campus would be financially smart and beneficial for the Foundation. The East Campus had buildings over fifty years old and it was decided that further developing and consolidating to the West Campus would benefit the Foundation most. On May 1, 1980, groundbreaking for the $35 million dollar project was underway and the development of Menningers West Campus would soon become the hub of the thriving psychiatric industry in Topeka.

The Menninger Clinic
Menninger West Campus Provided by Mike Boucher

The Main Building (former SBA Hospital Building) was truthfully the center of the West Campus, the eye-catcher, a staple piece in the Topeka skyline. The beauty and detail of the watchtower that sits in the center is something that all Topekans recognize to this day. The Power Plant was used to power the campus and included a laundry unit within it. A pool was located in between the Power Plant and Building D, which was a four-story brick, steel, and concrete building consisting of twenty-eight rooms. In addition, others on the West Campus were Building A, a three-story brick building consisting of twenty-four rooms equipped with a kitchen and cafeteria. Building B & C were three-story brick buildings with B having twenty-eight rooms. Building E was fitted with eight apartments for executive personnel and fifty rooms, Building G was of brick and wood. The reservoir held 2 1/2 million gallons for emergencies.

In the late 90s and early 2000s, the Menninger Foundation started to experience financial stress as the treatment of patients changed so did the facility’s needs. Long-term patients that needed to be housed full time in its dormitories became less and less, which meant running the giant campus became more and more expensive. Health insurance coverage for mental health had changed and many plans no longer covered the treatment patients needed to receive creating a further issue.  September 27, 2000, Menninger’s made its official announcement that it would be leaving not only Topeka but Kansas altogether, after more than seventy-five years in the Sunflower State. President Walt Menninger, son of William Menninger, had signed a letter of intent to work with Baylor College of Medicine and Methodist Health Care System to form an alliance in Houston Texas. The move was to ensure the future of Menningers be secured, even if that meant leaving their roots behind.

Over the next three years, the clinic worked to move operations down south and figure out outpatient situations. On May 31, 2003, the last twenty-nine patients boarded a jet to Houston leaving Topeka the “Psychiatric Capital of the World” no more. Only eight psychiatrists were still staffed with the clinic versus the almost eighty that worked there just a few decades earlier.

Article by AKS Photojournalist Emily Cowan.

This location is patrolled by local cops and is monitored 24/7 by security cameras. Trespassers will be prosecuted to the fullest extent if caught on the premises. DO NOT enter the property unless you have permission.




Bibliography

“12 Sep 1928, 6 – The Frankfort Index at Newspapers.com.” Newspapers.com, www.newspapers.com/image/345236518/?terms=security%2Bbenefit%2Bhospital.

“25 Mar 1922, 12 – The Topeka State Journal at Newspapers.com.” Newspapers.com, www.newspapers.com/image/324557675/?terms=security%2Bbenefit%2Bcompany%2Bhospital%2Bbuilt.

“Demolition of Menninger Campus Begins.” Plainview Herald, www.myplainview.com/news/article/Demolition-of-Menninger-campus-begins-8465948.php.

“Famed Psychiatric Clinic Abandons Prairie Home.” The New York Times – Breaking News, World News & Multimedia, 31 May 2003, www.nytimes.com/2003/05/31/us/famed-psychiatric-clinic-abandons-prairie-home.html.

Grossman, Ron, and Tribune staff reporter. “Era Ends for Menningers.” Chicagotribune.com, 28 Aug. 2018, www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-2001-07-03-0107030172-story.html.

Hrenchir, Tim. “CapFed Best News: Foundation Renovates Historic Menninger Buildings.” The Topeka Capital-Journal, www.cjonline.com/news/20190720/capfed-best-news-foundation-renovates-historic-menninger-buildings.

“Menninger Clinic East Campus and West Campus, Topeka , Kansas.” Home – Kansas Historical Society, www.kshs.org/index.php?url=km/items/view/223344.

“The Menninger Clinic, A Farmhouse in 1925, Now a World Center.” The New York Times – Breaking News, World News & Multimedia, 13 Nov. 1975, www.nytimes.com/1975/11/13/archives/the-menninger-clinic-a-farmhouse-in-1925-now-a-world-center.html#:~:text=The%20speaker%20was%20Dr.,treatment%20of%20the%20mentally%20ill.

“Menninger Foundation.” Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia, Wikimedia Foundation, Inc, 30 June 2004, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Menninger_Foundation. Accessed 15 Sept. 2020.

NPGallery Search, npgallery.nps.gov/GetAsset/87ddda29-f120-416f-8ae0-178372224049.

“Sunflower Foundation.” Sunflower Foundation, 22 June 2020, www.sunflowerfoundation.org/home&view=standard.

The Menninger Clinic
Emily Cowan

Emily is a three-time published author of "Abandoned Oklahoma: Vanishing History of the Sooner State" - "Abandoned Topeka: Psychiatric Capital of the World" and "Abandoned Kansas: Healthcare in the Heartland. With over two hundred published articles on our websites. Exploring since 2018 every aspect of this has become a passion for her. From educating, fighting to preserve, writing, and learning about history there is nothing she would rather do.

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Emily Cowan

Emily is a three-time published author of "Abandoned Oklahoma: Vanishing History of the Sooner State" - "Abandoned Topeka: Psychiatric Capital of the World" and "Abandoned Kansas: Healthcare in the Heartland. With over two hundred published articles on our websites. Exploring since 2018 every aspect of this has become a passion for her. From educating, fighting to preserve, writing, and learning about history there is nothing she would rather do.

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Kelli C
Kelli C
1 month ago

I was there on Whitney Hall from 85-89
Dwayne, Gary, Zenab, Charlotte, Elaine and Dita were our counselors. I don’t regret my time there. I was actually sad to leave.

Kelli C
Kelli C
1 month ago

I was on Whitney Hall from 1985-1989
Zenab, Gary, Charlotte,Elaine were our counselors there was another, I can’t remember her name…Dita?
I don’t regret my time there. Sad looking at those pictures

Damien
Damien
4 months ago

I have an old science lab work bench that’s in beautiful condition that for the longest time had no idea where it came from, I saw something on the back while moving it one day and it turned out to be from the science lab in mennigers and I was amazed by how great of shape it is in!

Brian Ferguson
Brian Ferguson
6 months ago

Well, as strange as this may seem, I will be arriving to Topeka on Friday 9/29/ until 10/6/2023.I have a concert to attend on Wednesday,104/2023.I also plan on taking some kind of a tour of Topeka since I was at Menningers as well.

Nancy Meyers
Nancy Meyers
7 months ago

Wow. I worked as an psych intern there 1990 or so….In Sunrise Children’s hopspital. I met Walt Menninger in person. A group of interns were invited to meet him. We walked into the big tower building and went in a large dark-ish library type room. We all sat around a large table and were served almond cookies. Then Walt came in. I knew he was such an important person but I couldn’t come up with anything to ask him (I just just a college student at the time). I enjoyed working at Sunrise and saw many ill children with mostly… Read more »

Brian Ferguson
Brian Ferguson
10 months ago

I was on children’s corner from August 22, 1967 to August 2, 1969. It was quite an experience. Fond memories as well.

INVS Logistics
11 months ago

Ve aşk; hak edenlerin hayali olurken, hak etmeyenlerin oyuncağı oldu.

Aleks
Aleks
1 year ago

Helped shoot a music video there in 2010 it was a fantastic experience for someone like me who enjoys history and film making. I did quite a bit of exploring on my downtime. Check out the video I made afterwards.

https://youtu.be/NloRb9pfWB0

Mary
Mary
2 years ago

My grandmother died there in Feb. 1938 as the result of a botched hernia operation. She was 36 years old and left 4 young children. I wonder if the hospital records are still available anywhere. Employees of the hospital were going around the surrounding states selling insurance, probably to raise money, and my grandfather bought their insurance.

Regan
Regan
2 years ago

I was in the children’s hospital for 2 years on the sunrise unit. It was the turning point in my life. Ship many memories.

Bob
Bob
Reply to  Regan
2 years ago

My brother was the director there for a few years. William easson

Janet Warren
Janet Warren
Reply to  Regan
1 year ago

I was on the Sunrise unit as well! 1984-1986… when were you? Definitely a turning point in my life, too.

Phil Bermann
Phil Bermann
Reply to  Janet Warren
1 year ago

I was in sunrise 67,68,69, Dr Morrow was in charge of the unit then. A great man!

Brian Ferguson
Brian Ferguson
Reply to  Phil Bermann
10 months ago

I remember you very well. How have you been doing these last 54 years?

Phil Bermann
Phil Bermann
Reply to  Regan
1 year ago

Ispent 6 yrs at Menningers in the 60s. I was in childrens corner and sunrise, left in 1969. Quite an experience !

Vickie Solien
Vickie Solien
3 years ago

This would be amazing place for senior living apartments. Get tennis courts, veg. Gardens, pools, flowers gardens. You would get plenty of volunteers to help who would live there. Like Brewster’s just not quite as expensive. I would hate for the place to be torn down. It would be fantastic for seniors who can take care of themselves.

Chris Mazulo
Chris Mazulo
3 years ago

What happened to the cemetery that was on the grounds?

bob
bob
Reply to  Chris Mazulo
10 months ago

It is still there. I was in the cemetery today. It is all overgrown but there are a lot of gravestones to look at if you brush the weeds off

Carrie VanDruff
Carrie VanDruff
3 years ago

Who bought the Power Plant building? It’s looking gorgeous with all the renovations occurring. It’s sad that the Sister’s of Charity Leavenworth let these buildings all become so ruined, and St Francis (KUMC St Francis Campus) let it go, refusing to upkeep the property / and now refuse to pay the taxes. They should have not purchased the land / buildings if they didn’t want to keep everything up and ACTUALLY USE the land / facilities. I thought the SBH/MH Tower Building was on the Kansas State Historical Site list and COULDN’T be torn down because of this “historical certification”!?!… Read more »

CDubya
CDubya
Reply to  Carrie VanDruff
2 years ago

Actually the SCL spent over $147,000 in 2017 to have it professionally assessed first and then repaired and stabilized.

Donald Snethen
Donald Snethen
3 years ago

Place for an International Museum of Psychiatry Could bring worldwide visitors to topeka

Sharon Young
Sharon Young
3 years ago

My father was a pharmacist part time at Menninger as was BD Ehler in early. 70s.

Ashley Miller
Ashley Miller
3 years ago

My question is how did you get in there and are you willing to take someone 🥺❤ ive been wanting to get in for years and even have contacted Mr Walter Menninger and we can’t get ahold of who owns it.

Nicole Carothers
Nicole Carothers
Reply to  Ashley Miller
3 years ago

I was Walt’s maid for a brief time and the man had stories for days. I would hear him refer people to the city for information on entering. When he signed it over, he lost all privelage. Even in his blossoming age and forgetfulness at times, he lit up when he spoke of Mennigers…and you could tell it was his heart. He never wanted to let it go to Texas.

bob
bob
Reply to  Ashley Miller
10 months ago

Me too

Lesa (Reavis) Dierking
Lesa (Reavis) Dierking
3 years ago

WOW! I haven’t seen the Menninger grounds for probably around 20 years. I worked at Menninger from 1993 to 1998. It was a great place to work, and I have wonderful memories of the job positions I held and the co-workers and other employees there during that time; a lot of really great people! I cannot even imagine the money it would take to maintain such a property, but it just saddens me that this historic building has been left to such neglect and deteoration. It was an amazing building at one time. I recall, and the pictures support, the… Read more »

Samuel Huntsman
Samuel Huntsman
3 years ago

So cool thanks for telling about it. And taking photos on the inside.

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