Hopital Psychiatrique Maison Blanche
THE ABANDONED HOSPITAL IN FRANCE
‘Hopital Psychiatrique Maison Blanche’ is an abandoned psychiatric hospital close to Paris, the capital of France.
On 6 July 1894, the General Council voted to construct a new insane asylum. The architect, Georges Albert Morin Goustiaux, won a competition with this project. The main building was built in the shape of a Louis XIII castle.
On July 1, 1900, the hospital opened. The asylum housed 630 patients and employed 144 staff members. It was part of the Ville-Evrard estate, owned by Madame Veuve de Roche Taillère and her son.
During the First World War, the hospital evacuated patients to other facilities and converted into a military hospital. After the war, it resumed its role as a psychiatric asylum.
In the 1930s, Maison Blanche expanded with numerous new buildings, effectively becoming a small town. After the Second World War, additional pavilions were added to the existing ones, resulting in a total of 5,000 jobs. By 1971, the establishment had eight sections, accommodating 2,125 sick adult women and 1,200 men.
During my visit, there were only 60 employees left. Most of the buildings were abandoned or in use for film making. The 59 hectares of the former psychiatric hospital was transformed into a new living neighborhood housing 10 thousand people. I took these photos of ‘Hopital Psychiatrique Maison Blanche’ in 2015.
