Morningside Hospital » Media Coverage

Fighting for the 49th Star: C.W. Snedden and the Crusade for Alaska Statehood

Ellen — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 23:10:34 +0000

Terrence M. Cole’s book “Fighting for the Forty-Ninth Star: C.W. Snedden and the Crusade for Alaska Statehood” tells the story of how C.W. “Bill” Snedden, the long-time publisher of the Fairbanks Daily News Miner, used a small town newspaper to champion the fight for statehood.

One of the most fascinating parts of the book is the role played by the late Sen. Ted Stevens in convincing Congress that the federal commitment process used in Alaska was barbaric. Stevens, a protégé of Snedden, was a young lawyer working for the U.S. Department of Justice. Stevens related his experience with the criminal proceedings (jury trials) that were used to commit adults and children to Morningside. He told the Congressional sub-committee that the insanity jury system was “archaic” and that he had “a very great respect for juries, but not insanity.”

Dr. Cole directs the UAF Office of Public History and is a Professor of History at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. Dr. Cole kindly granted us permission to reproduce the section of the book dealing with Morningside and the Alaska Mental Health Act.

Fighting for the 49th Star Excerpt (4 MB)

If you’d like to read more of “Fighting for the Forty-Ninth Star: C.W. Snedden and the Crusade for Alaska Statehood” you can purchase it here.

Oregonian Historical Archive

Ellen — Wed, 15 Sep 2010 21:20:49 +0000

The Oregonian Historical Archive is online! This is wonderful news. We found a limited number of articles on Morningside at the Oregon Historical Society, most of which had to do with the 1950s. The new online archive lists 345 articles on Morningside Hospital, many providing insights into the day-to-day activities there. You can get a one-day pass, which includes up to 50 downloaded articles, for $9.99. Monthly subscriptions are $19.50/month with which you can view up to 200 articles a month. Here’s where you can find the archive.

Questions about Quality of Care – 1915

Ellen — Tue, 12 May 2009 01:44:03 +0000

Over the years, there were numerous occasions when concerns were raised about the quality of care provided by Morningside Hospital. The earliest we’ve found was in 1915. The Sunday, March 28, 1915 issue of the Atlanta Constitution included the following story:

Syndicate Enriched from Insane Asylum
Juneau, Alaska. March 27 – A report criticising the Morningside sanitarium at Portland Ore., where Alaska insane are cared for under contract with the government, was returned yesterday by the judicial committee of the territorial legislature. The report demanded “that conditions there, by which the syndicate is enriched $30,000 annually, be improved.”

The report says: “The ninety insane are in cramped and crowded quarters, with no reasonable space for living or sleeping. Some of the patients sleep on the floor.” Copies of the report were ordered forwarded to President Wilson, Secretary Lane, and Governor Strong.

Portland, Ore., March 27 – A denial that there was any ground for statements contained in the report of the judiciary committee to the Alaska territorial legislature critising the Morningside Sanitarium, where Alaska insane patients are cared for, was made by Dr. Viola May Coe, one of the owners of the sanitarium.

“The sanitarium is inspected by representatives of the government twice a year,” said Dr. Coe, “and the patients are well cared for. We have accomodations for 200 patients and at present there are but 98 there, so the charge that we are overcrowded is untrue.”