Administrators begged the state for money to build more rooms and hire more staff, to no avail. Photo Credit: Patrick Rohe / Flickr (CC) Haunted Hospitals. 1) The Danvers State Hospital is believed to be an inspiration behind the infamous Arkham Sanatorium from H.P. Patients walked around in a drugged, hellish daze. Looking for a ghoulish true story this Halloween? By 1900, Danvers State Hospital employed 125 people and had treated more than 9,500 patients since opening. Lovecraft's horror stories and Batman's Arkham Asylum is now a condominium complex. Visitors to Danvers State Hospital in the early 1940s reported lobotomy patients wandering aimlessly through the halls of the hospital. It was designed to be self-contained and somewhat self-sufficient in wintertime, thanks to its own steam power plant at the bottom of the hill. Sometimes the patients died out of the staff members’ sight, and weren’t discovered until days later, rotting away in some forgotten room. Lovecraft used Danvers as the inspiration for his Arkham Sanitarium. At its peak, the facility had 40 buildings and maxed out at 450 patients. The administration building measured 90 by 60 feet, with a tower 130 feet tall. Danvers State Hospital was a psychiatric hospital in Danvers, Massachusetts, USA and opened in 1878 at a cost of $1.5 million. The population of the hospital swelled to 2,360. Abandoned Places. Medical science saw lobotomies as a cure for anyone’s insanity, and as a way to stop the deaths. Danvers State Hospital was one of the most notorious asylums during its time. American Horror: 5 Most Haunted ... the facility was shortly renamed the Pennhurst State School and Hospital. Danvers State Mental Hospital was built by prominent architect Nathaniel Jeremiah Bradlee from Boston, in an extremely rural, out-of-the-way location called Hathorne Hill. Michael grows desperate when his warlock allies are slaughtered and enlists the help of unlikely allies in his quest to start the apocalypse. The renovations turned the once-macabre lunatic asylum into Avalon Danvers Apartments. He thanks you for reading his content. on History of Danvers State Hospital. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. The overall design, as seen from the air, looked like a bat in mid-flight. If the name Arkham sounds familiar, DC Comics latched onto the name and created Arkham Asylum as the backdrop for where Batman’s ultra-psychotic villains come from. While some patients certainly saw stunning benefits from this so-called miracle treatment, many others had adverse effects. The Danvers State Hospital, also known as the State Lunatic Hospital at Danvers, The Danvers Lunatic Asylum, and The Danvers State Insane Asylum, was a psychiatric hospital located in Danvers, Massachusetts.It was built in 1874, and opened in 1878, under the supervision of prominent Boston architect Nathaniel Jeremiah Bradlee, on an isolated site in rural Massachusetts. This counts for the shows visuals and storylines as much as its themes. It's no surprise, then, that best sex scenes from AHS get us hot, skeeze us out, and make us think—sometimes all at once! Construction faced delays in 2007 when a mysterious fire broke out and burned a majority of the new construction and some trailers. Portions of the hospital were shuttered starting in 1969, with most of it closed by 1985, and the entire campus shut down in 1992. The thinking was that jolts of electricity could either alter a patient’s brain or make the patient afraid of shock therapy and scare them into submission. Constructed at a cost of $1.5 million, with the estimated yearly per capita cost of patients being $3,000 the hospital originally consisted of two main center buildings, housing the administration, with four radiating wings. Directed by Bradley Buecker. The Kirkbride building’s facade was used as part of the new Avalon Danvers apartments. The American Horror Story: Asylum inspired story covers the following haunted asylums that may or may have not inspired Briarcliff Manor: Worcester State Hospital - Worcester, MA. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience. Unfortunately, as the decades wore on, Kirkbride’s influence touched nothing more than the main building’s floor plan. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. Some of the campus’ tunnels, the cemetery, and facades of a couple of the other buildings remain, but the “modern ruins” version of Danvers State now exists only in photographs and videos. Danvers State Hospital - Danvers, MA. The Massachusetts facility, the State Lunatic Hospital at Danvers is actually quite famous in horror. In the first episode we're introduced to various residents, including Kit Walker, a white Massachusetts man suspected of murdering his African-American wife and other local women. Horror novelist H.P. The Danvers State Hospital, also known as the State Lunatic Hospital at Danvers, The Danvers Lunatic Asylum, and The Danvers State Insane Asylum, was a psychiatric hospital located in Danvers, Massachusetts.It was built in 1874, and opened in 1878, under the supervision of prominent Boston architect Nathaniel Jeremiah Bradlee, on an isolated site in rural Massachusetts. However, the building’s dark past make it one of the creepiest monuments to insane asylums in the world. The American Horror Story: Asylum inspired story covers the following haunted asylums that may or may have not inspired Briarcliff Manor: Worcester State Hospital - Worcester, MA. Danvers was a success at first. The facility that once housed Danvers State Hospital is now home to a residential community featuring fully renovated apartments. That is, if patients could express their thoughts after having a portion of their brain ripped out during surgery. American Horror Story: Asylum is easily one of the darkest seasons of the anthology TV series, and several of its twisted storylines are actually based in truth.. Before Kathy Bates, Angela Bassett, and Lady Gaga starred in the series, American Horror Story: Asylum boasted some of the biggest and best actors the series had seen.Jessica Lange, Sarah Paulson, Evan Peters, Lily Rabe, and … Finally, the state intervened. Built in the 1880s, it served the noble purpose of helping mentally ill children. Danvers State Hospital - Danvers, MA. Session 9 is a 2001 American psychological horror film directed by Brad Anderson, written by Anderson and Stephen Gevedon, and starring David Caruso, Peter Mullan, Stephen Gevedon, Paul Guilfoyle, Josh Lucas, and Brendan Sexton III. The exterior even appears in the asylum level of the game Painkiller. Buildings fell into disrepair, which made conditions worse. Season 2 of FX's American Horror Story centers around the patients and staff of a Massachusetts mental institution, Briarcliff Manor, said to be inspired by Danvers State Hospital. The story of Danvers State Hospital, however, is so horrifying that it inspired the Hollywood movie Session 9. This website uses cookies and some data tracking to improve your experience and serve adverts, We assume you're ok with this, you can opt-out if you wish. Like most asylums and hospitals of this type and age, it has a complicated, sad, unbelievable, and depending on the decade, even a criminal history. Their symptoms got worse. Actually, when the hospital was constructed in 1887, it was designed (by Nathaniel J Bradlee) according to the theories of mental health advocate Thomas Story Kirkbride, who believed in the compassion care and treatment of the mentally ill. That meant ornate interiors, private rooms, and long, rambling wings that would let the sunshine in. Click on my other videos in the video response section down below. At its peak, the facility had 40 buildings and maxe… People weren’t being cured. The only remnants of the horrific practices that went on in Danvers State Hospital are the gravestones in two nearby cemeteries, which contain 770 bodies. Foxborough State Hospital - Foxboro, MA - Tom Brady's favorite insane asylum. Discover Danvers State Hospital in Danvers, Massachusetts: The inspiration for H.P. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. The Massachusetts facility, the State Lunatic Hospital at Danvers is actually quite famous in horror. 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