Heritage Garden, Mental Asylum

Exploring Heritage Garden, Mental Asylum. (Sunnyside Heritage Garden. Restored historic fountain in the Sunnyside Heritage Garden on Annex Road. The date of the fountain is unknown but is presumed to have been built 1891 - 1895 and was located in front of the Sunnyside Hospital Administration Building. Hillmorton takes its name from Hill Morton Farm, the property of John Twigger, who settled in the area in 1863. Land from the subdivision of this farm was advertised for sale in a local newspaper in 1879 as being "part of Twigger's property known as Hillmorton". At the same time as Twigger settled the area, 1863 also saw the opening of the Sunnyside Hospital, Christchurch's first mental asylum. The buildings were constructed in a gothic style by architect John Campbell, and represented a shift in the approach to mental illness in the region. Where previously those with mental illnesses were held at Lyttelton Gaol, the hospital was founded on the principles of moral management, providing a more supportive environment for patients. Commitment to this approach varied throughout the hospital's existence, until it was closed in 1999 due to replacement by the neighbouring Hillmorton Hospital. The final buildings of the former Sunnyside Hospital were demolished in April 2007 to make way for additional housing, a move which was met with protest due to the architectural and cultural significance of the structures. Hillmorton Hospital continues to act as a dedicated mental health facility for the city from nearby to the original Sunnyside location. In 1933, Hillmorton was also chosen as the site for a Carmelite monastery to be established as the order's first New Zealand presence. The monastery was originally founded in a pre-existing homestead in June 1933, with the first wing not being completed until four years later. This was followed by the addition of a subsequent wing in 1950, since which point the monastery has maintained their presence in the heart of Hillmorton.) #historicplaces #hospital #urbex