Vermont's division of state archives has opened more than 40 cubic feet of records from the now-closed Vermont State Hospital.
Secretary of State Jim Condos says the records cover a history that began with the arrival of the first patients at the Waterbury facility in 1891 up through 2005.
He says the records show how the state's approach to treating people with mental illness evolved over time from isolation and segregation toward de-institutionalization and community-based care.
The Waterbury hospital closed in 2011 after it was flooded by Tropical Storm Irene.
