On the banks of Lake Chauncy sit the remains of the Westborough Insane
Hospital, later known as Westborough State Hospital. Westborough is
perhaps best known as the second homeopathic hospital for the insane in
the United States and the first example of institutional reuse in the
nation. The hospital's unique treatment methods put it squarely at the
forefront of mental health treatment, and it was one of the last state
hospitals in Massachusetts to close its doors. The pioneering African
American pathologist Solomon Carter Fuller spent much of his career at
Westborough studying the physical changes made to the brain by
Alzheimer's. When it closed in 2010, it was the only state hospital in
New England with a dedicated unit for deaf and hard of hearing patients.
Though somewhat less infamous than some of its neighbors, Westborough
holds a very distinctive place in the history of mental health
treatment.