Descending Spiral Staircase, Fergus Falls Kirkbride Building, Minnesota

The Fergus Falls Kirkbride building, once part of the Fergus Falls State Hospital, opened in 1890 under the Kirkbride Plan, a 19th-century model for asylum design developed by Philadelphia psychiatrist Thomas Story Kirkbride. Architect Warren B. Dunnell designed the complex, which used staggered wings to maximize light and ventilation for patients. Cast-iron spiral staircases like this one connected the building's sub-basement service tunnels to upper floors, allowing staff to move between mechanical spaces without crossing patient wards. The hospital operated until 1999, after which the building was left vacant, and it was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2005.

Photo taken in June 2014.