Sanatorio Popolare Cantonale di Piotta
THE ABANDONED HOSPITAL IN SWITZERLAND
‘Sanatorio Popolare Cantonale di Piotta’ was built in July 1905 in the hills around the Swiss village Piotta. The sanatorium was built in a healthy climate and unspoiled nature far from the highly polluted industrial sites.
The sanatorium was originally named ‘Sanatorium del Gottardo’ and was founded by doctor Fabrizio Maffi. The tragic loss of two of his brothers to tuberculosis has persuaded him to fight the disease. The building with 76 hospital rooms was built at a height of 1150 meters above sea level. The project is designed by the Milanese architect Diego Brioschi.
1906
In 1906 the sanatorium ran into problems after growing tension between Doctor Maffi and the management. Because of this conflict, Maffi left and returned to his home country, Italy. The site stayed quiet for a few years, but in 1910 the sanatorium reopened under new medical leadership. During the First World War, the army took over the buildings and used them as a military hospital. After the war, the soldiers left in 1919. Two years later, in 1921, the site reopened as a tuberculosis sanatorium. Dr. Martino Allegrina became the new director, and the complex received a new name, Sanatorio Popolare Cantonale di Piotta.
In May 1962 the staff moved the patients to the Sanatorium of Agra. After that, the sanatorium was left empty and abandoned. Today the site is in poor condition. The elegant Jugendstil paintings peel from the façade and the gutters. Inside, the building is completely trashed. Goats now graze in the gardens around the former sanatorium. I visited Sanatorio Popolare Cantonale di Piotta in 2007.
