http://www.preservationnj.org/ten_most/ten_most_property_detail.asp?PropID=121

The North Princeton Development Center, formerly known as the New Jersey State Village of Epileptics, was established in 1898 to provide an appropriate setting for the care and treatment of epileptics. Theretofore epileptics were lumped among the “dependent, defective, and delinquent classes,” and many lived in lunatic asylums or alms houses.

The Village was designed to be self-sustaining, complete with agricultural, food processing, and power generating capabilities, with patients providing much of the labor. In the 1930s, the thousand-plus-acre Village housed more than 1500 patients and staff in more than 100 buildings. It was a model of progressive institutional care in the United States, and because the Village demonstrated that epileptics could lead productive and meaningful lives, it is a landmark in the treatment of epilepsy. Reflecting this importance, the Epilepsy Foundation has shown interest in establishing a museum at the site.

As treatment for epilepsy improved, the Village lost its mission. Its closure in 1952 inaugurated several decades of decline, during which the institution served patients with severe psychiatric or developmental problems. In the late 1990s, what was then known as North Princeton Developmental Center closed, the site declared “surplus property.” While some land has been sold, roughly 250 acres and more than 100 buildings at the heart of this site, which is significant in architectural, landscape, and medical history terms, remain vacant, unused, and without a clear future. Montgomery Township would like to buy the property and adapt it to “civic, cultural, educational, and recreational purposes as well as limited redevelopment.” But negotiations with the State of New Jersey have come to a virtual standstill while the condition and safety of buildings and infrastructure declines.

In the last week of April 2005, the State Dept. of Treasury agreed to sell the 250 acre NPDC property to the Township of Montgomery for $5.95 million. PNJ is excited about this development and hopes that Montgomery Township will continue to proactively advocate for the site, taking prompt action to inhibit the continued deterioration of buildings and assess the potential of the properties for future reuse.

Current Status: 09 06 Somerset County awarded $71,500 to the Township for the restoration of Maplewood Farmhouse- a National Register listed building, and part of NPDC property. Maplewood was the first building where epileptic residents lived.