• Ep. 89: History of Camarillo State Hospital Children and Adolescent Programs
    May 12 2025

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    In this week's episode, we discuss the history of the children and adolescent programs at Camarillo State Hospital. Find out where children lived when they were first introduced to the hospital and how long it took them to get their own separate program. Learn what types of units made up the Adolescent Treatment Program and what services were offered to them.

    My primary source is the Images of America book on Camarillo State Hospital by Evelyn S. Taylor and Mary E. Holt. Other sources include documents from the California State University digital archives.

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    24 mins
  • Ep. 88: Camarillo State Hospital, Part 2 (1958-1997)
    May 5 2025

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    This week's episode explores the final decades of operation at Camarillo State Hospital. Learn about the introduction of the Developmental Center that separated patients with mental illness and those with developmental disorders. Find out how one patient attempted to escape from the hospital before being stopped. And discover when and why the hospital finally came to a close.

    My main source for this episode is the Images of America book on Camarillo State Hospital by Evelyn S. Taylor and Mary E. Holt. All other sources will be listed at the end of the episode transcript.

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    29 mins
  • Ep. 87: Camarillo State Hospital, Part 1 (1929-1957)
    Apr 14 2025

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    This week's episode examines the early years of Camarillo State Hospital in Camarillo, California. Find out why it grew so quickly in its first decade, and learn how many patients it housed at its peak. Discover which movie patients said was true to life at the hospital and was one that the public needed to see.

    My main source will be the Images of America book on Camarillo State Hospital by Evelyn S. Taylor and Mary E. Holt. Other sources include the CSU-Channel Islands Digital Library. All sources will be listed at the end of the episode transcript.

    Follow the show on Instagram at @behindthewallspod and on Facebook (Behind the Walls Podcast).

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    30 mins
  • Ep. 86: Zelda Fitzgerald and the Craig House
    Mar 24 2025

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    This week's episode explores the life and hospitalizations of author and artist Zelda Fitzgerald. Discover where she was institutionalized throughout her life and how her life came to a tragic end. Learn about the Craig House in Beacon, NY, where she was hospitalized for a time and find out what amenities were available to patients who resided there.

    My main source for this episode is an Atlas Obscura article written by Luke Spencer.

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    21 mins
  • Ep. 85: Interview with Rusty Tagliareni and Lisa Marie Blohm
    Mar 3 2025

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    This week, Sarah interviews Rusty Tagliareni (photographer and co-author of the Images of America book on Greystone Park Psychiatric Hospital) and Lisa Marie Blohm (President of Preservation Works advocacy group) to discuss what it was like to try and save the old Kirkbride building at Greystone Park and what Preservation Works is doing now to try and save other historical sites.

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    51 mins
  • Ep. 84: People of Greystone Park Psychiatric Center (Harrison W. Noel)
    Feb 24 2025

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    This week's episode tells the story of a patient, Harrison W. Noel, who was committed to Greystone Park for the rest of his life following the commission of a gruesome double murder and kidnapping. Learn about his symptoms prior to the crime spree and find out which infamous murder Noel hoped to copy.

    All sources will be listed at the end of the episode transcript.

    Follow the show on Instagram: @behindthewallspod

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    31 mins
  • Ep. 83: People of Greystone Park Psychiatric Center (Woody Guthrie)
    Feb 17 2025

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    This week's episode examines the life, music, activism, and eventual hospitalization of folk singer Woody Guthrie. Find out how he got started in music and who influenced him along the way. Learn why he was eventually committed to Greystone Park Psychiatric Center for five years on "Wardy Forty."

    My main sources for this episode include the book Woody Guthrie's Wardy Forty: Greystone Park State Hospital Revisited by Phillip Buehler, the Woody Guthrie website, and the Wikipedia page on Woody Guthrie. All other sources will be listed at the end of the episode transcript.

    Follow the show on Instagram: @behindthewallspod

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    44 mins
  • Ep. 82: History of Greystone Park Psychiatric Center, Part 4 (1950-2015)
    Feb 3 2025

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    This week's episode discusses the arc of deinstitutionalization at Greystone Park, from the early-1950s until the closure of the original Kirkbride building in 2008. Find out how many people lived at Greystone at its peak and how quickly that number dwindled. Learn about a class action lawsuit filed against the hospital due to the poor conditions for patients. Finally, discover just how many dangerous patients escaped in 1978 alone.

    Sources for this week's episode include the Greystone Park annual reports, accessed via the New Jersey State Library website; the Images of America book on Greystone Park by Rusty Tagliareni and Christina Mathews; the Preserve Greystone Website; and the Greystone Oral History website.

    Follow the show on Facebook and Instagram at @behindthewallspod

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    44 mins