In 1907, the Oregon State Institution for the Feeble-Minded was created by the Oregon State Legislature.[2] It was established as a quasi-educational institution charged with educating the "feeble-minded" (today known as people with intellectual disability and various other developmental and learning disabilities) and caring for the "idiotic and epileptic."[2] The facility was overseen by a board of trustees consisting of the Governor, Secretary of State and State Treasurer.[2] Construction had progressed enough by 1908 that the first patients were transferred from the Oregon State Insane Asylum (now the Oregon State Hospital).[2] They resided on a 670-acre (270 ha) compound consisting of an administration building (LeBreton Cottage),[8] a dormitory, a laundry and boiler house.[2] By 1913, two more cottages were constructed and the board of trustees was replaced by the Oregon State Board of Control.[2]
In 1917, a commitment law was passed that was to standardize admissions to the institution by insuring that valuable space was used for the "feeble-minded" and not for the "insane".[2] It also imposed an age limit on admissions to people five years of age and older.[2] The age limit was removed in 1921.[2]
The institution had a working farm that provided both food and training for its residents.[2] By 1920, most of the land to be used for farming had been cleared.[2] 400 acres (160 ha) were planted in crops and 45 acres (18 ha) in orchards.[2] The farm also raised hogs, chickens, and dairy and beef cattle.[2]
In 1923, the legislature established the Oregon Board of Eugenics, and Fairview's superintendent served as an ex-officio board member.[2] The eugenics legislation provided for the "sterilization of all feeble-minded, insane, epileptics, habitual criminals, moral degenerates, and sexual perverts who are a menace to society."[2]Sterilizations required either the person's consent or a court order.[2] By 1929, 300 residents had been sterilized.[2]
Two types of parole for residents were established in 1931: home parole and industrial parole.[2] Requirements for parole included a surety bond filed by the parolee's guardian or overseer, who had to have a net worth of at least $1000 and have lived in the state for at least six months, the parolee had to be sterilized, and the home or workplace had to be inspected.[2] Two-thirds of residents who had been sterilized were paroled, which freed up beds for new patients.[2]
In 1933 the facility was renamed Oregon Fairview Home.[2]
Changes in care and additions to the facility continued through the 1940s-1960s, and improvements were made to the medical care and nutrition of the residents.[2]
In 1965, Oregon Fairview Home was renamed Fairview Hospital and Training Center.[2]
In the late 1960s, the orchard, raising of beef, and general farm activities were eliminated.[2] The raising of hogs was eliminated in 1975 and poultry processing ended in 1977.[2] These activities had formerly provided all the ham, bacon, sausage, eggs, broiler chickens, and pork chops used by Fairview.[2]
In 1969, the Board of Control was dissolved and the Mental Health Division placed under the newly created Executive Department of the state government.[2]
In 1979, the facility changed its name from Fairview Hospital and Training Center to Fairview Training Center.[2]
A group known as Sustainable Fairview Associates purchased 275 acres (111 ha) of the former Fairview grounds in 2002.[9] The land included several historic buildings.[10]
In 2004, Sustainable Fairview Associates sold 32 acres (13 ha) of their holdings to Sustainable Development Inc. for building Pringle Creek Community, a sustainable housing development.[10][11]
Pierce Cottage, one of several buildings remaining on the former Fairview site, was gutted by a fire of suspicious origin in January 2010.[12][13] The building was one of 50 at the site previously slated for demolition and recycling.[14] Two men were charged with arson in connection with the fire the next month. All remaining cottages were demolished in 2016.[15]
Superintendents
H.E. Bickers 1908-1912
Frank E. Smith, M.D. 1913-1914
J.H. Thompson, M.D. 1914-1915
J.N. Smith, M.D. 1915-1929
R.D. Byrd 1930-1938
Horace G. Miller M.D. 1939-1944
Ray M. Waltz, M.D. 1944-1946
Irvin B. Hill, M.D. 1946-1959
Jim Pomeroy, M.D. 1960-1970
Larry W. Talkington, Ph.D. 1970-1976
Jerry E. McGee, Ed.D. 1977-1987
Linda K. Gustafson, Ph.D. 1989-1991
Rosemary C. Hennessy 1991-1995
Charles Farnham 1995-1997
Jon E. Cooper M.B.A. 1997-2000
Cottages
The cottages on the grounds housed both staff and patients. Some of the structures were named after Oregon governors, including:
Where's Molly? is a 2007 documentary about Molly Daly who was institutionalized at the Fairview Hospital and Training Center in the 1950s[16]
Population: 2 is a post-apocalyptic film that features Fairview heavily as a location and contains the last footage of the center taken before its dismantling began in 2011
In the Shadow of Fairview - A documentary made by OPB.
Cold Case Files case of Janie Landers,
Young woman who disappeared from Fairview featured on the show Cold Case Files.
