Weyburn- Mental Hospital

Pictures above are from my Gesell Photo collection

Hospital was built in 1920

You can read the history of this hospital online on various web sites. So I will not add more here.

My Personal Connection
My Grandfather, Gus Gesell, spent time at this hospital for depression, during the dirty thirties, and ended up staying,
even after he was mentally healthy, living in a dugout, near the bridge, crossing the river, at the edge of the garden area.
He worked in the gardens, using his experience from managing the Prairie Nursery Farm south of Estevan.
The hospital grew all their own vegetables.

When I grew up, mental illness was something you never talked about.
I remember driving with my parents to visit my Grandfather.
I didn't know what kind of hospital it was.
He was my Grandfather, I just couldn't figure out why he was there, but my grandmother lived in Estevan.
It was a mystery to me, but never talked about.
As I got older, and asked some questions, I figured out, more depressed my Grandfather got, the more he drank,
and alcohol became part of the problem.
From what I can find out, he checked himself into the hospital, which probably saved his life.
People committed suicide, and nobody seemed to know why. Depression was, and still is a big thing.
Now it can be diagnosed and treated.

If you suffer from depression, please go get help.

Tell your doctor, and get the professional help you need.

I am glad my Grandfather did!

©