Building 93 (Infirmary)

Probably the most recognized building of all Long Island state hospitals (but not the tallest; at 159 feet high, nearby Edgewood Hospital rose to170 feet), Building 93 is an interesting relic of state hospital architecture. Built in 1939, this twelve story building was used as a geriatric infirmary and a drug treatment center. Despite its height, the structure has a very small footprint, to give every possible room and hallway access to sunlight.

Bedridden patients were placed on the topmost floors, and the more ambulatory residents stayed on the lower floors. The reason for this is because the building is stepped outwards on the bottom floors, creating day rooms for patients to exercise in if they were able-bodied enough. When the hospital began its mass release of patients in the 1970s and 1980s, the upper floors were closed, and the abandonment slowly worked its way down until the entire building was shuttered in 1996.