15 Comments Posted by drBob

Those files were all over the place. Last time I was in there, the confidential paitent files were there for the taking. Someone locally here just got in trouble for trying to sell a Patients file on Ebay. Some rooms were knee-deep in files. Ask anyone around Danvers, from regular citizens to the State Representatives, they all knew about the file . . .

This is a view in the actual Kirkbride Building, the most center building that Avalon Bay agreed not to tear down. The bat-wing buildings all had metal railings / staircases, but the Kirkbride is the only one made of wood. We used to run up these stairs all the time, because the elevator was always busy.

When I worked at Danvers State, was on this room many times. A security guard gave me a master key so I could go anyplace we wanted. Also, Session 9 filmed one of their scenes on this roof . .

The developer has agreed to "save" the center core of the Kirkbride building. The entire complex is designated historical, but the engineers deemed it all unsafe. But, to show good faith Avalon Bay will restore the Kirkbride building, so they say. I will make a prediction. Once they get into the supposed restoration they will bitch and moan about how it's rotten and falling apart and will cost more than 4 times what they projected to restore.
Then I predict the wrecking ball will finish it off. When my son went in there he said the floors were all caved in from the third floor all the way to the basement. It was just a shell hanging on by a thread. Basically the place is waiting to fall into itself.
If the wrecking ball doesn't do the job, it just may implode into itself from heavy equipment moving around it, and that's that. But, if the developer does it right and shores up the building from the inside before removing the wings directly to each side, it should not cave in.
Time will tell lets see what happens.
To answer your other question, yes the whole hill is haunted. People were buried all the time in unmarked graves, and the graves that are marked are by a small block of granite with a number on it. Those markers are all overgrown. I hear the list of deceased owners of the numbers is lost long ago.
The hill was self-sufficient with a working farm and dairy. And you figure the first 50 years the hospital existed there was no electricity; they hat it rough. The souls of adults and children who worked and died on the farm still persist to occupy their territory.
Not to mention all the mental illness' living hell pre-medication, that the patients suffered since 1860's. In that newspaper article the developer said people will be pleased with what they see. He said it will be so much different for townspeople to look up and not see the castle, but instead cookie-cutter condo's and apartments. And the lives of all lost during the construction back when horses and cars lugged the Danversport clay brick up that hill and masons layed one brick at a time. I shutter to say how haunted it is up there.
Let's hope the spirits are not angry or those new condo owners and apartment renters will never have a good night's sleep ! Bob
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Lynnieburd, I've lived in Danvers all my life (except in college) so always saw this hospital when driving by. There was a time you can sneak in, but the security is very tight and they are arresting people now. See my other posts in different pics, I have legnthy comments there . .

jFlorida, the Auditorium was above the Kitchen. Early on they used to have shows but with budget costs that all stopped. I remember the day Govenor Michael Dukakis was there looking things over, that was in 1974. Brad I may have known your mother and brother. Contact me at: Danvers88@aol.com if you want to talk. deafangel these pics would definately bring back memories, it has for me today. I was not a patients, but an employee who loved the patients, I would do anything for them. I wanted to give them all an "E" key which was a skeleton key, it opened the wards doors. It was only a dream but if they could get out and be helped, it would stop the degeneration. When I quit in '75 to start college, the SAME patients were there with the SAME illnesses. They were no better and it really amazed me how they could just rot there for dozens of years and get no better. This also makes me think of how many empoyees started acting like patients. The longer you worked there, the more they acted like patients; like it was rubbnig off on them. I would have bought the place off the State and had it restored if money was no object. It's a true shame it's getting torn down. They better keep the center Kirkbride Building as promised. I think once they start tearing down, then they'll tell the State and Town of Danvers it's too dangerous and should really remove the Kirkbride building too! What do you think, will that happen or not? Time will tell...

Motts, pmichael, Mari, Truckie, you guys are right on track. This pic is part of the tunnels which in fact did have railroad track type tracks to move the food and supplies from the kitchen and maintenance depts to the bottom of each section of the outer buildings. Then there were elevators to wards like J1, J2, I1, I1, etc that went up to floor 1, 2, and 3. You had to climb stairs to get up to the attic. The railroad tracks were cemented over but the tops could still be seen, when they bought an electric "pull" machine to move the food trucks thru the tunnels. Watch the movie "Session 9" this is where the guy digs thru the wall and finds the gold teeth and silver dollars fall thru the wall. By the way there was NOT a cremation room next to these walls as the movie shows., they just put that in to show where the silver dollars may have been in the pockets of some patients. Jackie I think I knew your uncle. I worked in the Kitchen and Housekeeping in '73 - '75 before I started college. The movie "Session 9" shows alot of views of the Kitchen. Even the original buillitin board is on the wall in the movie, where they posted our schedules each week. Int he movie, where the kid is removing the tiles from the floor, is the main dining room where we used to feed the patients that could come out of the Wards. That big overhead steel roof used to cover huge aluminum cooking pots (not shown in the movie probably stolen) and they made soup and cooked vegetables. Darklady I'm sorry you will never get to walk thru the place. I have a friend named Fred who worked there like 35 years. Even tho there was a law against cameras, he said fuck-it and for like 3 days he Video'd the whole place from top to bottom. I forget how many tapes he made but he has the whole collection. It shows everything from the basement and tunnels up to the Attics. We tried to get one of the WeatherVanes off one of the towers but was afraid to fall so never did. I wonder if Avalon will salvage those or just tear them down? Brad when you mentioned the screams it reminded me of my great-grandfather who was a carpenter there (and his father too) who used to hear screams constantly. On Sunday afternoons back in 1900 - 1920's people would take the horse and buddy and have a leisurly ride up the hill, around the hospital, then back down again. My grandmother said she never liked it because you would always hear the SCREAMS from patients day and night (before medications). Contact me at Danvers88@aol.com if anyone wants to know things. I know everything about that place. Mari maybe I can give you info for your book too. I remember the Laundry and Farm, the hill was really totally self sufficient, grew their own vegetables, milk, eggs, etc. There are other state hospitals around (I think they are closed too with de-institutionalization) that look like Danvers State Hospital, with the big towers and gothic architecture. Besides my friend Fred owning the VHS movies, my son and his friends made a movie for his High School project. They snuck in thru the Grey Gables building and then thru tunnels up to the Castle at top. Great movie showing the peeling paint, floors caved in, rotting wood, broken windows and views of Boston from some windows. I think those Condo's and apartments they are going to build will be haunted. If you're into the supernatural at all it's inevitable!! How can you disturb so many spirits and not expect they to rebel and attack the intruders; think about it !!

Guys, this is a pic of the TUNNELS which traveled all under the hospital, and to all outer buildings. They were all made of brick and used to transport patients from the Laundry to the Farm to the Male and Female building so they wouldn't try to run and escape. They also housed huge steam pipes that brought heat to each building from a central furnace located at the bottom of the hill. The engineer told me every day a huge oil truck had to come to deliver enough oil to keep the whole hill heated. Employees used the tunnels too in bad weather. We'd find dead cats and rats down there, the lighting was poor and I had to duck, I am 6' 5" and used to hit my head sometimes. The tunnels were all hand dug then built up with brick, then buried. I'm sure Avalon construction CO will come across these tunnels and probably some of their heavy equipment will cave-into many of them unsuspectedly. I hope they leave the Cemetary alone for respecty of the dead. I saw the DEMOLITION permit applicationin the paper, so I guess they are moving forward to destroying our beatiful landmark! :-(

Kathie I had a big set of keys too. It was wierd, we'd use the E key to get into the wards. It was such a simple key, but the unfortunate patients didnt' have the skills to duplicate them. Remember the elevators that went from the bottom tunnel, to the 3rd floor? We would deliver the food trucks to the wards. When we got back into the elevator some of the patients would want to come, to escape with us, I was always sorry for them. Remember the 58 and the 96 key? I still have mine someplace, when I quit to start college I just went home, and noticed my keys on my belt. I remember they never allowed cameras but now I wish I smuggled mine in to get pictures of the friends I met, I mean the patients. We were always good to them brought them cigarettes and candy, made them smile.

Once the State shut off the heat, the paint started to peel like this. Back in the day, the Painters at the hospital took pride in their work; they were painting all the time, the place looked great from top to bottom. These peeling paint pics disgust me because I know how CLEAN the place was before it was let go into this dump. I'm sure the painters are pissed too, if they are still alive and know what it has turned into.

Mari, the movie was called Home Before Dark. One of the patients told me about how they filmed at Danvers State Hospital 1958. Based on a woman who was from Marblerock (Marblehead MA) and her insanity. There are many outside shots of Danvers State in the movie, you guys should rent it if you can, excellent movie!

Mari I worked there '73 - '75 in the kitchen and housekeeping. Remember the tunnel from the Kirkbride Building to the Bonner Building? We used to push the food trucks thru there every day. I'm sure your book will be HUGE with so much to say. I should write a book and I only worked there 2 years before beginning college. I still can't believe they are tearing this down :(

When I worked there us housekeeping staff would polish that stairway until it shined like gold. The walls were always freshly painted, nothing was let go at all. The staff took pride in the place, mopping floors, cleaning. We used to get help from the patients too! I'm pretty sure that is the stairway that will not get torn down (is in the Kirkbride center building). Hope they restore it with feeling . . .

Bill that woodwork was all done by hand. My GGgrandfather helped build it. No electricity, no modern conveniences. Those support beams are monsterous, big heavy almost no knots in them. They used the best supplies available. When I worked there I had the master key so we used to go up into the peaks and smoke, they had chains where they would restrain patients (way before medications). How many souls will be awakened when they tear this down? Will be like the movie Ghostbusters !

I worked there for two years in the Housekeeping and Kitchen department. I had the master keys I got from a guy in Security, to all the "tunnels" and got into wards that almost no one could go into. Patients records from the 1860's still in boxes, totally creepy. Now some wrecking ball is going to ruin all that Danvers brick (all bricks made right in Danversport and hauled by horses). The watertower was shown a few times in the movie "Session 9" hey rent that movie it shows the kitchen where I used to work.