Montana State Hospital

Montana State Hospital
Montana State Hospital, historic hospital building
Geography
Location	Warm Springs, Montana, United States
Coordinates	46°10′51″N 112°47′28″W
Organization
Funding	Public hospital
Type	Psychiatric hospital
History
Opened	1877
Links
Website	msh.mt.gov
Lists	Hospitals in Montana

Montana State Hospital is located in Warm Springs, Montana, just off of I-90 near Anaconda, Montana.

The hospital is the only publicly operated psychiatric hospital in the state. It was founded by the territorial government in 1877. The hospital was once Montana's largest unincorporated community. Its peak census was in 1954 when the facility housed 1,964 patients.

Montana State Hospital, modern facilities

Today the census averages under 200 patients, primarily placed by civil court commitment action. The facility also includes a forensic unit for individuals who have either been found mentally ill or are undergoing evaluation while unfit to proceed. Exceptionally violent patients may also reside on the forensic unit regardless of criminal charges. The hospital is no longer* licensed by the State of Montana and certified for participation in the federal Medicare and Medicaid programs, due to issues with State inspections.

Cemetery The hospital grounds include a large cemetery, home to at least 3260 graves. The hospital severely restricts access so these graves have not been photographed nor completely listed. The listing on Find a Grave comes from death certificates found online which date back to just 1907 and would not include those who died between 1877 and 1906. Therefore the grounds likely include as many as 5000 burials. Deaths during the Winter months likely precluded shipment of remains home, this being the only asylum in the state and the roads, even the railroads, not being reliably passable for such tasks at such distances.

External links

• Official Montana State Hospital website