Curved Wing Exterior, Fergus Falls Kirkbride Building, Minnesota

The Kirkbride Building at the former Fergus Falls Regional Treatment Center was built in 1890 to a design by architect Warren B. Dunnell, following the linear, staggered-wing plan developed by psychiatrist Thomas Story Kirkbride for state asylums. The curved wing on this facade is a rare architectural feature among Kirkbride-plan hospitals, most of which used straight, angled wings to maximize light and ventilation in patient wards. Built of cream-colored brick with a rusticated stone base, the complex once housed thousands of patients before the state shifted to community-based mental health care in the late 20th century. The building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and has sat largely vacant since the hospital's closure.

Photo taken in June 2014.