Links

• National Park Service Disability History Web Site
  By exploring the histories associated with different national parks, National Historic Landmarks, and listings in the National Register of Historic Places, this series aims to highlight a number of threads from the varied and complex narratives of American disability history.
• Deinstitutionalization: what the research shows
  This document identifies and summarizes the results of research studies around the nation regarding the outcomes of deinstitutionalization for people with developmental disabilities. PMPA co-president James Conroy was involved in many of the studies listed in this article.
• Rooted in Rights
  Rooted in Rights is a multi-channel platform for people with disabilities, self-advocates and their friends, families and allies. We tell the stories of the continuing fight for equal rights for people with disabilities, locally and internationally.
• Preservegreystone.org
  Preserve Greystone is a New Jersey-based organization dedicated to protecting the open space and historic buildings on the former Greystone Park Psychiatric Hospital property.
• The Richardson Olmsted Complex rehabilitation Plan
  Preserving the H.H. Richardson buildings, creating an Architecture and Visitor Center and reviving the Olmsted landscape of the original Buffalo State Asylum for the Insane.
• Asylum Projects
  The mission of this site is to archive both historical and current information on asylums across the United States and around the world.
• Abandoned Asylum
  A website dedicated to the history and preservation of public mental institutions across the United States.
• A Brief History of the Treatment of the Mentally Ill, Mentally Retarded and Physically Disabled in Pennsylvania
• Lost in a Desert World
  The true life story of a former Pennhurst Resident
• Permanently Disabled Online Support Group
  A friendly, personable site offering support for the permanently disabled and family
• The National Trust for Historic Preservation
• The American Eugenics Archive
• The State Boys Rebellion
  The inspiring true story of American Eugenics and the men who overcame it.
• Opacity's Pennhurst section devoted to photography
• Historic Asylums website
• Preservation Pennsylvania website
• 10,000 Friends website
• The Williamsburg Public Hospital
  The first public building in North America Devoted to treatment of the mentally ill; first patient admitted October 12, 1773
• PreservationPhoto.com
  Pennhurst Photos
• El Peecho's Pennhurst Information Page
  Possibly the greatest online collection of all-things Pennhurst
• "Speaking for Ourselves" - Article about former Pennhurst residents (.JPG format - Pic 1 ,  Pic 2 )
• UnionProject.org - An innovative grassroots project that has turned an abandoned church in an at-risk neighborhood into a community space for events, arts education, creativity, and job skills training.  The restoration was completed by volunteers as a means of learning construction and restoration skills useful in finding good paying jobs.  Consider the opportunity for Pennhurst to do similar things for people in our community.
• Sketches done by Joe Szimhart and Pennhurst residents.
• International Coalition of Sites of Conscience.  The International Coalition of Sites of Conscience is a worldwide network of “Sites of Conscience” – historic sites specifically dedicated to remembering past struggles for justice and addressing their contemporary legacies.
• "It's Our Story" - "It's Our Story" is a national effort to make accessible the history of the disability community.

Informational Articles About Preservation

• Preservation: the Ultimate Recycling - Preservation is key to a strong local economy and clean environment. Read more in Jay Fulkerson's article.
• Economics of Historic Preservation: "Sustainabillity and Historic Preservation - Article by Donovan Rypkema.
• Commonwealth Architects - Excellent examples of reusability.
• Concord State Hospital - Documenting the $80.5 million dollar preservation effort for the former State Hospital
• Dollars and Historical Sense - Article regarding the pros and cons of preservation.

Media

• Jean Searle, James Conroy and J. Gregory Pirmann of The Pennhurst Memorial and Preservation Alliance are interviewed by Dr. Nathaniel Williams for his Navigating Your Life podcast at WebTalkRadio.com. Discussion covers Pennhurst history, its legacy, the future of the property and goals of the Preservation Alliance. Listen to the podcast.  Recorded live April 8, 2009.