Broughton Hospital Historic District
Also known as: See Also:Western North Carolina Insane Asylum
Why it's listed
Broughton Hospital is a large state mental hospital campus just outside Morganton, opened in 1883 after a decision in 1875 to build a new institution. Samuel Sloan, an architect known for asylum design, placed the massive brick Center Building on the highest ground and planned it on the Kirkbride system, with a central administrative core, wings for patients, separate male and female sides, and broad landscaped lawns. Later brick wards, including the Colonial Revival Morrison, Hoey and McCampbell buildings, extended the crescent-shaped layout. Superintendent Dr. Patrick Murphy introduced work therapy, a Colony Program of small homelike patient housing, an experimental farm, separate tuberculosis wards and an infirmary. Federal PWA crews added buildings such as the laundry and Saunders Building in the late 1930s. Staff cottages, farm barns, a patients' cemetery and a greenhouse complete the district, which holds sixty contributing buildings across about 337 acres.
Significance in brief: The district is significant for the state-supported mental hospital for the western counties and for the progressive treatment methods of Dr. Patrick Livingston Murphy, including the Colony Program and an experimental farm. It is an example of the Kirkbride System of hospital design, with a Center Building by Samuel Sloan and work by his protege Augustus Bauer. It also reflects Depression-era PWA construction.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 87001918, listed November 9, 1987. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | Roughly bounded by Broughton Hospital campus, NC 18, Bickett St., & Enola Rd., Morganton |
|---|---|
| County | Burke County |
| Listed | November 9, 1987 |
| Reference number | 87001918 |
| Resource type | District |
| Period of significance | ca. 1878-ca. 1940 |
| Architect / builder | Samuel Sloan, Augustus Bauer, other various, unknown |
| Architectural style | Kirkbride System institutional plan; Victorian eclecticism (Center Building); Colonial Revival; Art Deco influence in PWA/WPA buildings |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture, Social History |
| Level of significance | State |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | The campus remains an operating mental hospital. The form lists it as both occupied and unoccupied, and notes that modern buildings and interior alterations have not destroyed its integrity. |
| Acreage | 337 |
| Coordinates | 35.72401, -81.67789 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
This is a historic district. Buildings within its boundary are either contributing (they add to the district's significance) or non-contributing. Owners of contributing income-producing buildings can claim the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit; homeowners should look at state credits. National Register districts impose no design review by themselves; a local historic district ordinance, if one exists, does (the difference explained).
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 87001918.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.