Essex County Hospital Center

The Essex County Hospital Center, also known as the Overbrook Hospital, the Overbrook Asylum, or simply the Overbrook, was a psychiatric hospital that was located around 125 Fairview Avenue in the Township of Cedar Grove, New Jersey.[1] It was founded as a mental hospital to relieve the Essex County Asylum for the Insane in Newark.[2][3][4] The site of the hospital now contains a park and townhomes, and a new hospital was built nearby.[5][6]

History

Hospital is partly visible to the left of Overbrook Station
Hill Wards built in 1909 picture taken in 1930s
Hill Wards built in 1909 picture taken in 1930s

In 1896, a large portion of land was purchased by Essex County; the land was bought to build a new hospital to relieve pressure in the overcrowded Essex County Asylum for the Insane in Newark.[2][3][4] The hospital opened at the end of 1898.[7] During the late 1800s and early 1900s, many buildings were built that housed patients and other facilities, such as a power house, laundromat, and theater.[8] According to Weird New Jersey, in the winter of 1917, the hospital suffered a catastrophe with the failure of the hospital's boilers; there were 24 deaths that December, compared to 8 in 1916[9][10][11][12] As the years went on, many additions were built, with the hospital sometimes housing up to 3000 patients.[2][13] The hospital closed in 2007 and the buildings were slowly demolished.[14]

New hospital

In late 2006, construction was completed on the new Essex County Hospital Center, opened just down the road from the site of the original Overbrook Hospital.[13] This center houses chronically ill psychiatric patients in need of longer lengths of stay than are available in community hospitals and medical centers.[5] The new center takes a cutting edge approach to behavioral health care and its layout and programs stand in stark contrast to the hundred-year-old facility it replaced.[5] It is located at 204 Grove Avenue in Cedar Grove.[15]

Future of the former hospital

After years of back and forth about what the old hospitals in Cedar Grove were to become, county spokesman Anthony Puglisi stated that the property of these hospitals will become a park. This statement was made in 2015[6] and the project was completed in 2017. The vast 77 acres purchased by the county now is partially Cedar Grove Park.[16] The remaining space was turned into townhomes and condominiums.[6]

Directors

References

  1. ↑ Mental Health Directory. U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, Public Health Service. 1970.
  2. 1 2 3 Kowalick, Kevin R.; Cataldo, Kathryn (November 13, 2017). Essex County Overbrook Hospital. Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4396-6370-7.
  3. 1 2 "Urged by Grand Jurors". Newark Evening News. March 14, 1896. p. 1.
  4. 1 2 "New County Asylum". Newark Sunday Call. March 14, 1896. p. 1.
  5. 1 2 3 "Project Overview - Essex County Hospital Center". www.prisdev.com. Retrieved July 14, 2026.
  6. 1 2 3 Mazzola, Jessica (January 14, 2017). "Hospital's haunted history is over -- park and townhomes moving in". nj.com.
  7. ↑ "Insane Patients Moved to New Home". Newark Evening News. December 19, 1898. p. 1.
  8. ↑ Contributer (April 12, 2022). "Overbrook Asylum". US Ghost Adventures. Retrieved July 14, 2026.
  9. ↑ "A Farewell to Overbrook Asylum (Essex County Hospital)". May 29, 2023. Retrieved July 5, 2023.
  10. ↑ "Boilers Discarded at Overbrook Now In Use Elsewhere". Newark Evening News. January 3, 1918. pp. 1–2.
  11. ↑ "1,800 IN BIG ASYLUM IN PERIL FROM COLD; Essex County Hospital Heating Plant Breaks Down and Is Beyond Repair. 24 DEATHS WITHIN 24 DAYS Relatives Are Practicatly Asked to Remove Patients from the Institution". The New York Times. December 21, 1917. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved July 14, 2026.
  12. ↑ "Suffering at Overbrook in Worst Stage". Newark Evening News. December 29, 1917. p. 1.
  13. 1 2 Proctor, Owen. "Essex Dedicates Hospital Courtyard to Advocate". The Item of Millburn and Short Hills. pp. 5B.
  14. ↑ Proctor, Owen (July 11, 2018). "Historic NJ Asylum's Buildings Razed". Suburban Trends.
  15. ↑ "Essex County Hospital Center | Essex County Hospital Center Website". www.essexcountynjhospital.org. Retrieved July 14, 2026.
  16. ↑ "Cedar Grove Park | Parks | Essex County Parks". essexcountyparks.org. Retrieved July 14, 2026.
  17. ↑ "Dr. Joseph Sutton, ex Overbrook director". Star Ledger. August 5, 1971. p. 26.
  18. ↑ "Dr. Henry A. Davidson Is Dead; A Psychiatrist and Author, 68". The New York Times. August 24, 1973.
  19. ↑ "Dr. Arnold Milton Kallen, 92 psychiatrist, UMDNJ professor". The Star Ledger. December 2, 2004.
  20. ↑ "Hospital Chief Picked". The Herald News. May 4, 1973.
  21. 1 2 Malcolm, Tom (September 11, 1980). "Essex Hospital Medical Director Appointed". The Herald-News.
  22. ↑ Curcio, Diane (September 1, 1991). "Cost cutting forces layoff of medical chief". The Star-Ledger.
  • Weird NJ History, Photos, Legends of Essex County Hospital (AKA Overbrook Asylum for the Insane).
  • Antiquity Echoes History, present day photos, and video of the Essex County Hospital Center grounds.
  • Shadows and Rust Recent photographs of the inside and outside of the site prior to demolition.
  • North Jersey Exploration Pictures of Overbrook Hospital.
  • Vacant New Jersey Photographs of Essex County Hospital Center.
  • White Enamel Interactive imagery and film using the Essex County Hospital Center.
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