3,698 Comments Posted by Motts

Yes, Mitchell Building I believe.

Yes, quite a number of rooms had EXIT stenciled on the bottoms of the walls - presumably a way to find your way out while crawling through thick smoke, without using electric signage.

Wallpaper added!

The banisters only remained on the flight leading up to the top floor, which is in the background.

Nope... too far away :-)

Thank you for the kind words! Although the comments from various visitors range from extremely insightful to just horrendous, I think the latter gives one an interesting perspective on the stigmas still associated with mental health in modern USA.

Also, perhaps you and anyone else who have lived/worked at NSH, or are interested in more about the hospital, might want to try to pick up a small book called "The Life and Death of Northampton State Hospital" by J. Michael Moore (1993). It contains some great history and also details the closing quite well... it may be hard to find though.

I believe the barrel vault design keeps the bricks together using the pressure exerted by the weight of the materials above.

Yes, that is the same one - this central staircase led right into the reception hall. Good eye!

Yes, most of the ceilings were barrel vaulted brick - http://www.contractort...gh-17974/#post192002

I'm pretty sure they were just decorative, or used to hold some potted plants perhaps...

Probably from previous visitors gaining access to the building.

It's been a long time, so I'm not sure. Perhaps it was hidden in the weeds; we were trying to stay inside to avoid footprints in the snow.

True, perhaps they served both purposes...

It was duplicated by pulling out the drawer adjacent to the one that was previously spilled... only these two had a considerable amount of water collecting in them.