605 Comments for Marlboro State Hospital

That is likely just normal HVAC. The large insulated pipe going in the side would have been from the chiller.

They were mostly stone, but yes there were a good number of metal markers.

Exactly Autoguy ! ;-) And it didn't take three paragraphs to explain either.

Sucks...

Great way to start the day!

The people in the graves push the markers up. Hands can come out and grab your leg.

Lynn,

Very good point about the high costs that come with any funeral and or grave stone.
My 19-year-old sister died very very unexpectedly in July '07 and her funeral service was several thousand dollars. My folks are only just now able to order her grave stone nearly half a year later and this too is very expensive. And these are, for lack of a better word, normal people in the way that they live in the community and both my folks have good jobs as an RN for a number of doctor offices my mom and a finance annelist for a well known aircraft factory, my dad. Despite this, I'm very very sure having to come up with thousands of dollars to see my sister decently into the ground put quite a crunch on their wallets nevermind the soul crushing loss of their youngest at such an early age... So it shouldn't really be a shock to see how the state, it doesn't matter what state, they all are quite underfunded when it comes to the support and care of their dependent wards, inmates in the state pen, unemployed people, low-income families, and the disabled/mentally ill just to name a few. Treats those who have died while within the walls of state run places such as this.

Sorry if this has already been pointed out...

On the subject of sunken graves-- Several years ago I read two very interesting books called "Death to Dust: What happens to dead bodies?" by Kenneth V. Iserson and "The American Way of Death" by Jessica Mitford. Both books touch, breeflyy in the book by Ms. Mitford and in painfully vivid detail in the case of Mr. Iserson as to the reason for graves sooner or later, getting that sunken in look.

Over time, even in the case where a body has been embalmed the body and coffen will decompose. As this happens the ground above presses down and sooner or later the coffen will give way and fall in. I'm fairly sure that this is the reason that some, but by no means all cemetaries now use a strong concreet grave volt. More or less a big sterdy box to put the box that holds the remains of your loved one. A box within a box. The valt can withstand the weight of the earth atop it and thus should not cave in. Or if it does, perhaps it will not cave in so much. It makes the groundskeeping less of a pain. Same reason too that you are seeing more and more grave markers that lay flush with the ground, rather then the rounded topped grave stones of yesterday. In fact, don't hold me to this, but I think someplace or other I read that many new cemateries will not allow anything other than a marker flush with the grounds, citing ease of upkeep as the reason.

I do not know, however why a grave would hump up. The only things I could come up with is-- (choose one of the following) A: as the person's body decomposes gas being released as a part of the process of decomposition builds up and causes an upword shift in the already loosened dirt. or B. A shift in the techtonic plates in the earth causes any number of lumps and bumps that previously had not been there. Grave yards as far as the earth and her plates go are no different than any other place so it is just as likely to gain a lump or two over the years... Or 3. Some creature who travels via tunneling along under the ground causes the humps to form as a result of its' digging.

Then again, maybe not.

"In this year [1913] also a crematory was put into use on the hospital grounds and all burials in the Asylum Cemetery were disinterred and cremated."

Oh my God!

Did I read that right?! You mean to tell me they dug up people just so they could cremate them? What ever in the world for? It wasn't like they were bothering anybody. They're dead! What are they going to do? Clamber up from out of their graves and get up to no good?

This is just awful. And sad. God awful sad. It wasn't bad enough that most likely a very large percent of these people, if not all of them, had no peace when they were alive, being tormented by mental illness and for some at least being locked away and forgotten by their family. Oh no, they don't even get peace once they're dead, what with being dug up and all. Just awful, makes you wonder if perhaps the wrong people were put away? Surely there must be something a bit off about whoever it was that said, dig all the grave yard up and dispose of the dead, as if they were nothing more than a pile of fall leaves being burnned in a bonfire.

Also, just think... Who came to the graveside to pay their last respects? I'm pretty sure there were no flowers, there were no songs, no words of comfort to greaving family members, hell no family members in some cases, just a grounds keeper? Trustee inmate who was in charge of the disposal of those who had the piss poor luck to die in the state hospital? I know that it wasn't as bleak a picture as I see here in some cases, but then again, it must of been just as bad for some.

"This is not an Exit"
--Brett Easton Ellis "American Psycho"

"Abandon all hope ye who enter here"
--unknown

Don't you just hate those hard to clean rust stains?

If I were the betting type I'd put my money on this being a shot of the inside of the door. And here is the reason(s) why. First thing I noticed is that this door and more to the point this window set in the door look very much like the door/window combo in the earlier shot, "Room 359" I think it was called? In that picture you could see a room number and in this picture above the door there is no room nunber, or one that we can see. Also, if the marks left were caused by a cup or other circular object being bangged aginst the door it might stand to reason that one would be pounding away trying to get out, not to get in...

I agree with the folks above that it looks like a vacuum press. I'm not sure how it would have been used if that's what it actually is. Some guesses (if it IS a vacuum press) - to be used to do repair of veneering (on doors and furniture) for the hospital so the work wouldn't have to be sent out, to be used by OT staff for arts & crafts projects, to be used by rehab staff to build or repair orthotic devices. All wild guesses, since I don't really know what it is. :-)

Hey, I was thinking the same thing... How the note looks so clean and fresh. So I'd guess it was left there by some people who dropped in for a visit... However -- it could lead one to write one hell of an interesting ghost story or something...

The first thing I thought was a skull under the stone, hehe.... Thank you Motts for sharing yet again :)