Pennhurst is a century-old institution that was established to provide a facility for young individuals with disabilities. Unfortunately, society didn’t know how to deal with the developmental disabilities or delays of these individuals. They were viewed as outcasts, unclean, or unworthy broken people – a sub-classification of humanity. Even today, society still doesn’t do a great job of looking after them, but back then, the situation was much worse.

Science and medicine were not as advanced as they are now, which led to the mistreatment of many individuals. Pennhurst was one such place where people who did not fit societal norms were sent and essentially warehoused. Initially, the facility was predominantly for children who had nowhere else to go, but over the years, it changed and evolved, with no more children being housed there in its later years of operation. 

A sad history, unlike old school lunatic asylums or jails, where the adult population that were housed in those locations comprised mainly of adults who earned their stay in those locations, Pennhurst was a place where these kids were thrown away.  

When your dealing with any group of people that are developmentally delayed or have these pre-existing co-morbidities, you have children who were hydrocephalus or with cerebral palsy, they die younger. Because of that there was a statistically large amount of death at Pennhurst.  Also considering the fact that all of these children were dying of the flu, not because they couldn’t necessarily fight the illness, but because of the nature of them all living so close together. Tuberculosis, measles, these type of ailments would spread like wildfire through the campus.  

Pennhurst has a tragic history, but in its later years, it became a catalyst for positive change.

The biggest misconception is that no one knew what was happening at Pennhurst until the 1960s, but that’s simply untrue. There are newspaper articles dating back to 1910 that describe the deplorable conditions, lack of funding, staff, resources, and care at the institution.

“It just didn’t receive the desired response. Back in the 1960s, it was the perfect time for people to sit in their living rooms and listen to the radio. Then, Bill Baldini visited the site and filmed an exposé that aired over the course of a week during primetime television. The documentary was called “Suffer the Little Children.” Baldini explained exactly what Pennhurst was and why it existed, giving people an intimate look into the buildings to see what was happening inside. At the time, society recognized that the situation was unacceptable, and they demanded change.”