{"nrhp_refnum":"97000829","name":"Agnews Insane Asylum","other_names":["Agnews Developmental Center"],"category":"district","location":{"address":"4000 Lafayette Ave.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Santa Clara","county":"Santa Clara County","state":"CA","lat":37.39383245800008,"lon":-121.9537858979744,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1997-08-13","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Landscape Architecture","Architecture","Social History","Health/Medicine"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A campus-style state hospital district at 4000 Lafayette Street in Santa Clara, California, with Mission/Spanish Colonial Revival buildings rebuilt after the 1906 earthquake, plus a separate cemetery. It covers about 80 acres.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the hospital was a model psychiatric institution under Dr. Leonard Stocking, who eliminated most physical restraints and tied treatment to research. It also cites the reinforced concrete buildings, designed by the State Architect's office, and the planned landscape of palms, pepper trees and lawns. The site is described as nearly unaltered since 1911.","narrative":"Agnews Insane Asylum, later known as Agnews Developmental Center, is a hospital campus of about 80 acres in Santa Clara, rebuilt after the 1906 earthquake destroyed the earlier buildings. Its reinforced concrete, stucco and red tile buildings follow a Mediterranean-style design and sit in a formal landscape of palms, pepper trees and wide lawns. Palm Drive leads to the administration building and the clock tower buildings, and nearly all of the main structures were drawn by Sellon and Hemmings for the State Architect. Reinforced concrete was still a new method at the time. The district was recognized for its health and medicine history and its social history. Dr. Leonard Stocking, superintendent from 1907 to 1931, ran the hospital as a model institution, removing most physical restraints and promoting research alongside care. The site also reflects early twentieth-century architecture and landscape design, and it has changed very little since about 1911. A separate cemetery is included.","period_of_significance":"1906-1941","architect_builder":"California State Architect, Office of the (drawings for many buildings by Sellon and Hemmings)","architectural_style":"Mission/Spanish Colonial Revival","criteria":["A","B","C"],"status_note":"Current function is listed as a hospital (healthcare); some buildings now house other offices and programs. The buildings are described as sound and sturdy.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:54:27.59106-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_CA/97000829.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/97000829/4573dfa4e7-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/97000829/4573dfa4e7-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","author":"EugeneZelenko","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:USA-Santa_Clara-Agnews_Developmental_Center-Clocktower-5.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">EugeneZelenko</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 4.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:USA-Santa_Clara-Agnews_Developmental_Center-Clocktower-5.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/123861635","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agnews_Developmental_Center","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4693186"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/california/santa-clara-county/agnews-insane-asylum-97000829/"}