Dorothea Dix Park, Part II: Park buildings

It’s difficult to present a post on all the buildings on the Dorothea Dix Park campus, because for one, there have been as many as 80 of them on the 305 acres at one time or another. 

To be fully informed enough to share the park buildings’ full history here would have required me to invest hours of reading and study, and this post probably would have needed far more words — and probably a couple of homemade maps as well — than the pictures I intended to present. 

I wasn’t prepared to do that, but I did spend at least a couple hours researching as much of the critical information I felt I needed to provide background for my pictures here.

After opening in 1856, a psychiatric treatment facility under the name North Carolina Hospital for the Mentally Ill operated at the site about a mile southwest of downtown Raleigh until 1959 (I’ll skip mention of the several politically incorrect other names the facility was called in those early years, but you can find them by following the link in the second paragraph below.  

Dorothea Dix, born in Maine and raised in New England, made a lifetime project of advocating for all people suffering from mental illness everywhere. Her campaign focusing on North Carolina brought her to the Tar Heel state in 1948 after learning that North Carolina was one of the few states without a state-run institution to treat mental illness. Construction of such a facility was authorized the following year, and the first patient was admitted in 1856.

In 1959, the hospital was renamed Dorothea Dix Hospital in her honor. It closed in 2012, after which the hospital’s services were transferred to Central Regional Hospital in Butner, N.C. The city of Raleigh purchased the property from the state for $52 million in 2015.

Since then, the city has strived to convert the property into a premier city park. At least 25 buildings have been torn down, another four are undergoing demolition right now, and supposedly 20 more structures will meet the same fate in the not too distant future. Another 20 buildings will be “upfitted” (renovated) and used for new purposes. There is a 10-year master plan for the park’s development that is in its early stages. 

The keystone structure on campus is the Central Building, known today as the McBryde Building. It is 726-feet long and has a four-story central pavilion and two three-level wings on either side of the pavilion. In the years after the hospital closed, McBryde served as headquarters for the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services. The DHHS has since moved to new quarters at the corner of Blue Ridge and Reedy roads across the street from the North Carolina Museum of Art.

One of the houses on the acreage had served as the hospital superintendent’s residence. It is a 100-year-old stone building, renovated in 2023 (see lead-off photo above), that today is used as the headquarters and office space for the Dix Park Conservancy. Next door to it is the house used by the former psychiatric hospital’s physician (see first photo below). Today this structure is used as a hub for community engagement, hosting the Dix Park Artists in Residence program. This 1920 building was renovated in 2024.

To view a full gallery of images from the buildings portion of my shoot at Dix Park, follow the link in this sentence.

Above and below: Central Building, or McBryde Building, was designed by renowned architect Alexander J. Davis. The structure was modeled on design principles of Dr. Thomas Kirkbride, who believed that exposure to natural light and fresh air were key components of healing mental illness. 

Above: Not far from McBryde Hall is the Greg Poole Jr. All Faiths Chapel, which is surrounded by what is referred to as a “healing garden.” The 1955 chapel was remodeled and rededicated in 2021 with the Poole name. Poole, a Raleigh businessman, was a Dix Park visionary and advocate who died in 2018. The first eight photos below were taken in the healing garden. 

The Royster Buliding (above) and Lineberger Building (below). 

The Kirby Building (above); unsure of the identify of the building below. 

Above: The Anderson Building. In the background at left is a portion of the newly constructed mixed-use development known as The Weld.

Above: I believe this is the Brown Building on the far eastern end of campus near the Gipson Play Plaza.

Above and below: Two sides of the House of Multiple Porches Market, where people can seek out refreshments (coffee, soft drinks, beer and wine) and light edible fare such as sandwiches, snacks and selections in vending machines. After choosing their fare, visitors can sit on the porch or in the open area on all sides. This structure also is near the Gipson Play Plaza.

Dorothea Dix Park, Part I: Gipson Play Plaza

In 1856, North Carolina’s first state hospital for the mentally ill opened in Raleigh, the state capital. The individual most responsible for advocating for the hospital’s construction was Dorothea Dix, a journalist, columnist and fierce national advocate for women’s suffrage in the United States.

Today, many buildings still stand on the 308 acres of land where the hospital once operated, but today, the property serves as a park for the city of Raleigh.

In recent years, the city composed and launched a long-term comprehensive plan to make better use of the property, and today, in some portions of the park, some of the plan’s objectives have come to fruition. In other areas of the park, constructions crews, warning signage for motorists and construction tape sprinkle the landscape near buildings that are being “upfitted,” or renovated for contemporary purposes. The future is not as bright for buildings on the far northwest corner of the property. All of those are targeted for removal as part of the long-term plan. 

One of the crowning jewels accomplished so far is the Gipson Play Plaza, 18.5 acres of land dedicated to modern play facilities for children. But the area also is professionally landscaped to make adults appreciate the time spent with their children or to allow photographers like me to indulge their craft.

I spent several hours in the park Tuesday roaming the expansive acreage, including the play plaza but also much of the central park area, making more than 250 total pictures. In its southeast corner, the park abuts the popular State Farmers Market property. As one traverses the Dix Park so-called “big field,” he or she can see in the distance the bright orange roofing of the last row of farmers market vendor stations. 

I did manage to reach the big field, which has been used for outdoor concerts and festivals (there was no activity going on when I was there). But I did not reach the cemetery or the popular area where sunflowers grow annually in season (it’s not their season ... yet ... so it’s not like I missed a great photo opportunity. If it had been in season for them, I’d have made a point to get to it, I assure you!). 

Today’s post is devoted to the Gipson Play Plaza, named for philanthropists Tom and Pat Gipson, a Raleigh couple who donated $10 million for use in the first phase of the plaza’s development. Tom Gipson is founder and CEO of Thomas Gipson Homes and a member of Habitat for Humanity. 

The lead-off photo shows probably the most conspicuous piece of playground equipment there. But this post will be as much about (if not more) landscaping at the plaza as it will be about playground infrastructure.  

I’ll come back with a second post to feature the buildings I came across in the park, and then do a third post on the park proper ... at least as much as I was able to reach on 300+ acres before tiring.

To view a full gallery of images of the Gipson Play Plaza, click on the link in this sentence.  

The circular area in the photo above is sort of the plaza centerpiece. A colored-stone stairway (foreground) leads to the circular area.

 

There is a lot of structural landscape using colorered stone, as shown in the photo above and the first five photos below. 

Above: the park has some installment art like the one above. Meadow of the Deer, by Mark Reigelman II.  There is a third deer that is part of the sculpture (below). 

A pond (above) with a closeup (below) of the heron figuring. 

Above and below: There are a lot of tables with umbrellas ... for picnicking or simply to get out of the sun and sip on a cold drink on those hots days.

Above: I don't believe I ever saw grills clustered in threes before ... but if you use one of them, at least you know what you should do before leaving (below). 

On the north fringe of the plaza, this concrete walkway leads to a path alongside a building called The House With Multiple Porches, where people can seek out refreshments (coffee, soft drinks, beer and wine) and light edible fare such as sandwiches, snacks and selections in vending machines. Indeed, I approached the house from several sides, and saw a porch on every one.

Ordinarily, I strive to avoid including children in my photos unless I have a parent's permission. But this shot moved me so much, I decided to grab it and use in a post. The child was making the most of an area that appeared to be set aside for quiet and meditation. 

I'll end with one last look at yet another slab of stone in these gorgeous colors.