Our History!

Established in 1910 as the Belle Mead Farm Colony and Sanatorium by John Joseph Kindred, M.D., its purpose was “to establish and maintain a colony for the care and treatment of sick persons and particularly for the care and treatment of nervous and mental diseases and also all allied diseases.” Dr. Kindred’s Belle Mead Sanatorium provided humane, personal treatment in a restorative farm setting.

Following the death of Dr. Kindred in the 1920’s, his son, Dr. John Cramer Kindred managed the Belle Mead Farm Colony and Sanatorium, and married Katherine Carrier.

In 1951, Russell Neff Carrier, M.D., Katherine’s brother, started working at the Sanatorium as Medical Director. In 1956, Dr. Carrier purchased the Sanatorium and it became the Carrier Clinic.

In the 1960’s, the Carrier Clinic was expanded into several patient units. Dr. Carrier worked on his goal of providing the best care for his patients in a home-like environment.

In 1977, Carrier Clinic became a non-profit organization and was renamed The Carrier Foundation. Specialty units for adolescents and older adults were developed, as well as specialty treatment programs for anxiety, mood disorders, and others.

In the 1980’s, Blake Hall was built, dedicated for the purpose of treating patients with addiction problems. Also, the Carrier Day School (now East Mountain School) was established to serve 9th- 12th graders with serious emotional problems.

The East Mountain Youth Lodge was established to serve adolescents with psychiatric problems who could not live at home or in the community.

During the 1990’s, the behavioral health care field focused on treating patients along a continuum of care from inpatient to outpatient. Carrier Clinic developed several outpatient centers throughout the state.

In the 2000’s, Carrier refocused its priorities on enhancing clinical treatment programs at the Belle Mead, New Jersey campus. The organizational name reverted back to the “Carrier Clinic” as homage to the goals stated by Dr. Carrier.

Through partnerships with the community and state, Carrier Clinic continues to share its clinical knowledge and expertise. In 2000, the NJ Division of Mental Health and Carrier Clinic collaborated on a program to treat state hospitalized dual-diagnosis patients at Carrier. In 2004, the Governor’s Mental Health Task Force cited this as a model program to treat the mentally ill.

In 2002, Carrier Clinic developed East Mountain Hospital, a hospital-within-a- hospital. This 16 bed facility serves patients who have a long history of mental illness and need short-term hospitalization.

In 2007, Carrier Clinic opened the Intensive Outpatient Program for Addiction at Belle Mead.

Today, Carrier Clinic holds true to the values of compassion, respect, integrity and innovation. This is the basis of our actions today and yesterday.