Room 502 is said to be so imbued with negative energy and a sense of overwhelming despondency and sadness that it is impossible to stay in there for very long, and is one of the most haunted places in the whole facility. Here's what residents told us. This is where, according to the stories, people have jumped to their deaths, have seen shapes moving in the windows and have heard disembodied voices that order trespassers to get out.There is a lot of speculation as to what went on in this part of the hospital but what is believed is that mentally insane tuberculosis patients were housed on the fifth floor. The moon light reflected through the building and we had a pretty good sight of the hall up to the point where the hall bent in a slight angle. Why is it that this place should be so amazingly haunted? Waverly Hills Sanatorium is known as one of the most haunted places in America. The idea was to be completely self-reliant and isolated, and indeed everyone who came here, including doctors, nurses, and staff were required to cut off all links to the outside world, say goodbye to those they knew, and remain within this place permanently, making it almost like leaving Earth behind on a one-way voyage to some far away world. Many of those who have come here have claimed it to be the most haunted place they have ever seen, and Waverly Hills has earned its reputation as one of the most intensely haunted places in the country. 2023 Atlas Obscura. At some point between Chris and us, behind Chris and in front of us, 2 bright balls of light shot from one room across the hall and into the adjacent room. Across the Atlantic in the United States, and out of his own triumphant experience with the disease, Edward Trudeau would establish the first sanatorium in the country at Saranac Lake, New York in 1884. The roof of Waverly Hills is also said to be rather intensely haunted, and one dramatic encounter was related on the site True Ghost Tales, by a witness who says: My friends and I went out on the roof and just hung out thinking about the stories we heard about the place when we began to see figures moving around in the dark inside the area of the 5th floor where the patients were bedded outside for air. One of his best experiences is walking barefoot on forest trails.. But it wasnt a silver bullet. Some time before the property was purchased in 2001, a story circulated about a group of teenage boys who snuck into the sanatorium. #haunted #ghost #podcastLIKE and SUBSCRIBE!! To this effect the original facility consisted of two open-air pavilions which housed 40 victims of the disease. However, while the building and medical equipment were impressive, the treatment outcome was anything but. He hired a woman named Lizzie Lee Harris to teach at the school. A new wing was built that year to accommodate those patients in advanced stages. Biology, nature, and cryptozoology still remain Brent Swancers first intellectual loves. Vce o serile. As such, Waverly Hills was largely self-sufficient; they grew their own food and raised animals; they had a post office and a water treatment facility. It was thought that doing so would close up the small holes that tuberculosis causes. A chute was built to aid in disposing dead bodies in such a way that the sick did not have to see them leaving. When the visit was over, the visitors left Waverly and ventured back out into the community. . 4 min read. None of the episode was actually shot at Waverly Hills. Since the new home was far away from any existing schools, Mr. Hays decided to open a local school for his daughters to attend. The management allows tours that can only take place by way of prior reservation. She decided to help them create their bomb. Originally, Waverly Hills Sanatorium was a two-story frame building with a hipped roof and half-timbering. Perched upon a hilltop in southwestern Louisville/Jefferson County, Kentucky, is the former Waverly Hills Sanatorium, a looming, monolithic building that looks like something out of a dark gothic fairy tale, and in many ways, it sort of is. Waverly Hills Sanatorium in Kentucky opened in 1910 as a facility for treating tuberculosis patients at the height of the early-twentieth century outbreak of the disease. See production, box office & company info, Self - Fmr Dir, Waverly Hills Historical Society. A Q&A with the man behind the show, Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. Here's what residents told us, Here are 300+ haunted places to explore in Kentucky and Indiana, How did ignorance help create Thunder Over Louisville? :The bitter feud over Louisville's most famous haunted site. Since then, theyve worked with the Waverly Hills preservation society to restore the building. A couple bought the property in 2001 andtogether with the Waverly Hills Historical Societynow runs regular ghost tours on the premises. Since Louisville was experiencing a surge in cases that swamped its other facilities, Waverly Hills was constructed to pick up the slack, and in its day it was considered a true marvel. As the outbreak spread, the facility needed to be expanded and, in 1912, the larger building was built and patients from a number of surrounding hospitals were transferred to the facility. Follow us on Twitter to get the latest on the world's hidden wonders. The Board of Tuberculosis Hospital went looking for a suitable place on which to put up a sanatorium. NASA's Photos From Mars: Don't Tell Me the Red Planet Wasn't Once a Thriving World! Over the next few decades, Waverly Hills would fall into more dark times. Its believed that, at one point, he hospital was tending to as many as 140 patients. It is listed on the National Historic Register and faced the threat of being torn down. The Waverly Hills Sanatorium was built as a self-sufficient community, with its own ZIP code,post office and farmland. Previous property owners had no desire to maintain the luster of the building and did little to stop people from slowly destroying her. Waverly Hills Sanatorium - Haunted Tuberculosis Haven | Paranormal Review Watch on For instance, doctors would surgically remove up to seven ribs in the misguided hopes that a patients lungs would inflate to fill the space. Waverly Hills Sanatoriumis a hospital in Louisville, Kentucky, used in the 20th century for people with tuberculosis. This company operated the nursing home facility until 1982 when it was closed by the state for violations and the mistreatment of patients. In 1962, the building reopened as a nursing home that eventually became known as Woodhaven Medical Services, a geriatric facility. Open air, sunshine, heat lamps, a hodgepodge of various medications, and hope and prayer were the most common ways, but these unfortunately didnt work. As I tried to calm him down something crashed against the wall near where we stood. This original building was meant to hold 40-50 patients at one time, roughly half male and half female. At the time, Tuberculosis was a very serious disease. Lately, the southwest Jefferson County site has been at the center of a lawsuit between its owner and the Waverly . It also shows a special department where the (presumably uninfected) children of adult sanatorium patients lived and were taken care of. US residents can opt out of "sales" of personal data. But even before protesters showed up this month at the gates on Paralee Drive, Waverly Hills has always been a well-known Louisville landmark first as a tuberculosis treatment center in the early and mid-1900s to its more recent "haunted" history. Even with many new procedures available, it was impossible to save everyone. Brent Swancer is an author and crypto expert living in Japan. The tunnel is an attraction. Louisville's Waverly Hills Sanatorium has been called "the most terrifying building in America," with an infamous history that draws paranormal thrill-seekers from all over the world. Bodies were not dumped but rather carried down the tunnel to the bottom of the hill, where they could be collected by a hearse, as there was no cemetery at the hospital. In 1962 the hospital was purchased by the state and used as a nursing home. The original building only housed around 40 people, but by 1926 it had expanded to treat over 500. With its hospital settingwhere death lurks in every shadowWaverly Hills association with ghost stories would not be improbable. Not all people believe ghost stories such as the ones that have plagued Waverly Hills. The Historical Society and the family that owns the property hold fundraising events throughout the year. Even so, the CDC reported 9,557 cases in the United States in 2015. He hired a woman named Lizzie Lee Harris to teach at the school. No matter the good vibes the site espoused, it still ended up as place to scare people. The first Waverly Hills Sanatorium building opened on July 26, 1910. Waverly Hills Sanatorium opened its doors on July 26, 1910 and housed thousands of patients suffering from tuberculosis. Rate. Lately, the southwest Jefferson County site has been at the center of a lawsuit between its owner and the Waverly Hills Historical Society, a group leased to take care of the property. A quick search revealed that no one else was in the building and there was certainly no one cooking anything in the kitchen. This is the building that still stands to this day. Out of room, the hospital had to house these patients on the grounds, under tents. The Waverly Hills Sanatorium started off as a one-room schoolhouse in the late 1800s. People who were afflicted with Tuberculosis were isolated from the general public and placed in an area where they could rest, stay calm, and have plenty of fresh air. The number of shrouded bodies being taken away from the building began to have a dramatic effect on the morale of the victims, which was hugely problematic since this was the cornerstone of treatment. Due to Miss Harris' fondness for Walter Scott's Waverley novels, she named the schoolhouse Waverly School. Mostly I saw the shadows surrounding us, banging that seemed to come from everywhere, the ceiling, floor, and walls. 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