Disability History, as it's true form, is not necessarily talked about, in my opinion, but throughout my life, I have always heard about a certain place called The Central Virginia Training Center. I always knew it as a place that my maternal grandfather worked at before died young. Though, that is different from what I truly know, both in the perspective of a disabled woman with two with Autism and a mental illness and as a grand-daughter of someone who used to work there, who is learning more about it to be both close to her grandfather and to learn the horrors of that took place in that now abandoned building that is close to where I live. Though, not many people are barely aware of what took place there or what it is for that matter. So, to spread awareness, both for my grandfather's sake and the sake of sharing truth, let me tell you about this horrific from my own knowledge of what I know.
What is the Central Virginia Training Center?
The Central Virginia Training center was an institution for disabled people or those who were deemed to be "disabled enough", who couldn't take care of themselves nor could their families. In the 1910's, this institution used to be called the Virginia State Colony for Epileptics and Feebleminded (For those that don't know, this is an outdated term for saying the person had an Intellectual Disability). It was basically a state facility. However, as years progressed, it had changed its name changed twice. Once it was called Lynchburg Training School and Hospital, then to the name it now has today. However, as of now, it is shut down and no longer used. In fact, just recently, I had made a trip to see the very building myself with a friend of mine, who had seen it before me, and let me tell you, it is a huge building filled with empty rooms & suites for miles. In fact, so huge, my friend had a suggestion that it could be repurposed as discount or low-income apartments, if they were get the money to clean it up a bit and everything.
What happened in there and why is it abandoned today?
For that, we must unpack all of the history that comes with the place itself. The Central Virginia Training Center, named the Virginia State Colony for Epileptics, was founded in 1910 by Eugenicist and social welfare advocate, Aubrey Strode and in collaboration other eugenicists like her by the names of Albert Priddy and Joseph Dejarnette. It was first introduced a colony by a 1906 bill written by those who founded it to separate the disabled from criminals since, before the colony, many of its first inhabitants, basically disabled people were placed in prisons and state hospitals.
In 1911, the Colony got its first ever inhabitants. However, originally, it was disabled men only that were allowed in until about a year later, after a roughly year-round operation, Priddy allowed women to inhabitant as well, who were deemed to be feebleminded. Yet, unfortunately, due to a lot of racism back in those times, only white people were admitted into this building at the time. Though, Black people would later be admitted and inhabit in another colony in Petersburg in 1939, despite being a work camp for its 182 patients, who were deemed to have "borderline intelligence", according to Wikipedia.
Which is why in 1914, due to a lot of women coming in, being deemed feebleminded, the Virgina State Colony changed its name from The Virginia State Colony for Epileptics to The Virginia State Colony for Epileptics and Feebleminded.
In 1916 and 1917, things really started to take a ride since Priddy, a center figure in the middle of the legalization of forced sterilization, was a big advocate for forced sterilization on patients. So, with this, 80 sterilizations were performed by Priddy himself, considering that he thought that these procedures yielded favorable results.
However, by the time the 1920's arrived, things were progressing into legalization of forced sterilization. Considering that, the case Buck vs. Bell, was now in process, especially in 1924, where Carrie Buck, a poor, pregnant teenager, who arrived at the colony on June 4th, 1924, since her mother did as well, became the focus of case as she was about to face impending sterilization throughout the fight in this case. Due to the fact that Priddy sought her out to be a patient of the camp to showcase her as an example of eugenics of heredity to support his idea of legalized forced sterilization for patients in this case and moved it all the way to Supreme court as well. In fact, three generations of the Buck family and Carrie herself, with her impending sterilization, became the entire focus of the landmark supreme court case. However, right when it before the Supreme case made forced sterilization legal, Priddy died before he could see it. Nonetheless, the Supreme Court went with his idea, The Virginia State Sterilization law, considering they thought it constitutional. Though, shortly, after Priddy's death, Dr. John Bell took leadership over the colony and not only doubled size the place, but also increased education efforts to aid the feebleminded population.
Yet, in 1927, following with this decision of upholding the Virginia state sterilization law, more sterilization began to take place, including Carrie Buck herself on October 19th, of the same year. This sterilization led up to 1,333 sterilizations being performed around this time and for many years. In fact, the last sterilization that was done and recorded was in 1956.
Though, in 1940's to the 1950's, along of eugenics, including sterilization were done, but the colony also changed its name a few times again from the Virginia State Colony for the Epileptic and Feebleminded to Lynchburg State Colony and then in 1954, the name was then changed to Lynchburg Training School and Hospital.
These horrific practices and name change would stay up until the 1980's were sterilizations and eugenics were being done, but so was abuse as well. Though, in 1983, the place would eventually change its name to what it is today. The time around 80's and early 2000's is when my maternal grandfather himself worked at this place as psychologist, specifically during 1987 or 1988, where he helped those with their intellectual disability and epilepsy, along with other patients with different things. However, he had noticed the abuse going on within this place, which caused him to leave to a group home, but even that place carried on abuse to its patients as well, leading him to make a choice to move back, despite his morals and knowing what he saw. I'm not quite sure, considering that when speaking to my own mother about it, she said that he never talked about work a lot at all, but she did some things, but not a whole lot. Though, what's interesting at least to me is he knew about my slow development as a little girl, especially as a baby, considering I was very little like an infant to a year & a half. Which to me is like knowing he saw my Autism before anyone else and wanted to diagnose me when I was of age, which is like 8, even though it would unofficial if he did. However, he died in 2002, I was a year and a half at the time, before anything of the sort could happen and sadly, I don't have any memory of him, just pictures and his obituary that carry with me everywhere. Though, even with him gone and with myself having no memory, I still grieve over his death, knowing that with my family, the way it is now, it would have never been if he were here, but it what it is. This is why this place will forever be personal for me, because it's the only thing I have to be close with him. That might be weird, but it's true.
Anyways, back to the history, in 2008, with the ADA long been passed, thanks to former President George H.W. Bush, The Central Virginia Training Center went under investigation, along with three other state-run care facilities in Virginia, due to this act and law. In this investigation, they found a lot of multiple inadequacies of care and horrific abuse done for these disabled patients, along with so much more, including failure to develop a sufficient quantity of community-based alternatives for individuals with complex needs, improper allocation of funds for community-based programs, specific violations of the ADA of 1990, including unnecessary institutionalization of patients into segregated settings (like race), exposure to accidents and injuries, inadequate dietary & physical support, and the undue use of restraint mechanisms found within each of these visits with the same year, and in 2009 as well. In fact, due to the evidence of what they saw, they've found that many patients at the Training center were better suited by integrating into the community with proper services and a lot more freedom, however, it seemed based on the discharged list that they read that multiple patients were discharged-ready, but were forgotten about since they were not placed on the list, often even beyond years past their evaluation as well.
Due to this and a settlement reached from this investigation about the quality of care and compliance with ADA, Governor Bob McDonnell announced that by 2020, the facility would be closed, and the former residents inside would be resettled. So, following by those goals, as the years went on, operations became reduced and patients were resettled until December 2018, where the Training Center only had 65 patients.
Which, after two years, in 2020, as previously stated, they had reached their set goal and the Training Center had finally closed down permanently on April 2nd, of that same year. Although, as of two years and to this today, it stands abandoned with talks and planning stages of redevelopment into making the center into a medium-density urban hub for the neighboring town of Madison Heights, Virginia (my hometown).
What are my thoughts based on what I read about the history so far?
Well, knowing what I know now, I can see maybe a synopsis of what my late maternal grandfather saw, despite only being a psychologist, and what he may have disagreed with as he worked there, though as his granddaughter, who misses him very much even though I have no memory of him at all, despite wishing so. Yet, in the same breath, I also feel saddened and horrified by what I have now read and I'm glad that this place was closed down, because no one should have to go through that at all. I do hope though that the building will get a better use if those talks are true.
Though, stay tuned for part 2, where I will talk about the books that talk about the Central Virginia Training Center and everything about it.
And that's it! Please Comment and Share for more!
Bye Lovelies!
Works Cited: Virginia State Colony for Epileptics and Feebleminded - Wikipedia
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