Abandoned Asylum

I have this weird obsession with old, abandoned, industrial, or hidden places, such as the subways (which is why I produced a multimedia story about them). I do not know why I am drawn to these places, but I know whenever I hear of a new location, or walk by an abandoned warehouse or building, I want to explore it.

I heard of Letchworth Village many years ago and always thought it would be fun to explore it, but never actually planned to go there. That changed, however, when I heard that many of the buildings are soon going to be torn down. I knew this was a sign that I needed to go and investigate before they would be gone forever.

I'm not going to go into too much detail about how we got there and got in (we did not have permission to do everything we did), but I hope the photos show how eerie and unsettling this place is, and was. (It was originally a state institution named Letchworth Village Home for the Feeble Minded and Epileptics.) Through the photos, I attempted to show what it was like walking in those dark hallways and empty bedrooms with peeling paint covering the walls, ceilings, and floors, always with the thought of what had happened in these exact spaces from 30 to almost 100 years ago. Looking back on them and having been there in person, it still brings chills, and a sense of being watched.  (To see more photos I took there, click here)

 

In all, this was an eye-opening experience and one that I will never forget. There are over 130 buildings, out of which we only got to explore 5 due to time. I truly hope that the town of Haverstraw does not tear all of them down, since this property has important historical significance...and I'd like to explore more of the buildings in the future.

To see all the photos click here.