3,287 Comments for Danvers State Hospital

My mum has spent most of her life in and out of places like this. In the 80's she had a really bad spell and ran head first through a glass door, she survived but was a real mess, after that they changed ALL doors, she also managed to take down the security door. When shes mentally not well she is one powerfully strong , violent(to self or others) woman, it takes five (big) staff member to hold her down and sedate her. But when she well she is the most softest, gentlest, loving person you could meet.
Its a haunting thing to keep watching someone you love, who gave you life go temporaily insane over and over again....
The illness started as depression than manic depressant, so they gave her ECT a few times, now when shes ill she gets depressed than violent. We try to keep her at home for as long as we can (she hates them places begs not to be sent there) but when we cant cope/handle her anymore we have to send her.
It breaks my heart and soul but i know it has to be done before one of us or herself gets really hurt or worse...
Thankyou for taking the time to read this, dont know why but needed to share. :) x

Ooooooo...this is right up my alley, I would LOVE to go in and check this one out!!!!!

Surreal :3

I get this "All hope is gone" type feel with this. Idk maybe because it's pitch black around the frame and then the outside window is all sepia toned. Makes me think of "deterioration" and old and that sort of deal because y'know dirt, fall leaves, old picture ect ect.

Oh simplistic buildings at a Mental Hospital make it for me. Their just so.......... plain but give you the creeps at the same time. But of course I'll take the gothic architect of a kirkbride any day.

I can just picture Mary Poppins type chimney sweeps merrily sweeping along. Fantastic shot :) Brava.
--Rei

I want to give testimony to the incredible kindness and caring of three nursing aids I knew. Nursing aids are the lowest of on the totem pole with the exception of the patients. It was a horrible and rigid hospital with ridiculous and purposeless rules. Every morning we would be roused from bed to eat breakfast. I was so, so lonely and isolated and in so much pain. Nobody liked me least of all myself. Every morning they would go out of there way to give me a special hello. It might sound stupid, but it was so meaningful. It was really embarrassing but this really silly grin would break out on my face. I couldn't help it. It was so meaningful to have such kind people greet me and care for me. They were also hilarious. They were given job duties that were ridiculousness by the head nurse. One day they were assigned posts down the hallway and in the day room and they were to make sure we didn't do anything we were supposed to do. In other words, they were made into guards. They rebelled. They pretended they had walkie talkies to communicate with each other and were make jokes and cracking everyone up. I think the head nurse eliminated those posts after a day. She couldn't enforce it. Those three nursing aids are an example of people in positions where they could dump on the only ones lower than them, and they choose the rise above it and smile. Thank you! I really mean it.

Great shot. It doesn't look real.

So sad that it is gone and the new condos are crappy construction and wil probably be taken down someday as well. A lttle care and maintenance could have saved the whole thing.

Wow, again. This one , comparitively uninteresting photo drew a lot of awesome comments! Everybody must have been holding it in for awhile. This is a great and compelling website. I find it interesting more for the lost architechture than the "horror stories". I do not find the other types of buildings less scary or thought provoking. Horrible nasty things can happen anywhere. How about the industrial accitdents at some of the huge blast furnaces and breweries. Motts goes where he goes and there are a lot of old, abandoned mental hospitals because of political actions.

My Grandmother was a patient back in 1933 after she gave birth to my dad out of wedlock and the father was a married man.. Her family had put her in there after the embarassment...She passed away 15 years later and they released he body to her siblins. I dont know much of her and when they buried her, they didnt put my dad's name on the newspaper clipping. My great aunts and uncles were ashamed of her and my dad. My family came from wealth but we never seen a dime of it. Which..dont bother me one bit because I was my dads daughter...he is up in heaven now with my grandmother. (FYI...my dad was a patient there as well back in 1960s) I wish that i could find records of the patients names...

I am sure the newly renovated areas were not built with the old thick lathe and plaster or concrete block walls. Probably just sheetrock and insulation. Too bad they did not act sooner and could have saved the old and better construction.

Tardy to the party, but I just want to point out the stains on the stokes basket. Looks like it could have been a rather traumatic injury to the last patient. Or not, But it is a mighty stain.

I want more pics. I am going on here again on friday, If I dont see more pics i'll be upset.

I’ve been tyring to get access to the Forum to ask this question for a few days, so sorry for the misplacement. The swimming portion of the endurance workouts from Wednesday, 28 September state:Swim (SS Tue, 3S Mon): 8-12 x 100y on 2:30, hold efforts within 3-5 secondsCan anyone give me some gouge as to what “on 2:30″ means in that context?I appreciate the help!