A lobotomy is when they actually remove part of the brain to try and cure mental illness. The hospital is also notorious for the accidental poisoning of several patients in the 1960s. When it comes to insane asylums, London’s Bethlem Royal Hospital — aka Bedlam — is recognized as one of the worst in the world. Apparitions include Timmy, a boy who likes to play with rubber balls who's been caught on tape; the nurse who hanged herself in room 502; another nurse who fell from the same room’s window;and scattered screams and footsteps.
Danvers state hospital featured all the nightmarish trademarks of asylums: straitjackets, solitary confinement, electroshock therapy, the list goes on. In 1998, the notorious child molester Jimmy Savile was appointed chairman of the hospital. No one really questioned why a young girl was allowed to get so close to so many dangerous serial killers. In fact, anyone could be taken to Bedlam – including political prisoners. During over 118 years of operation, Topeka State Hospital gained a reputation for being the worst asylum in the world.
They would attempt to beat it out of them, or shock it out of them with freezing cold water. You can now visit the Trans-Allegheny with one of their ghost tours--maybe don’t stay overnight, though. And just like a prison, sexual and physical abuse was a common sight.
Paranormal activity in the 53,000sqft building includes screaming, doors slamming, and apparitions, most famously of Roy Crouse, a 7.5-ft giant who died there in 1942. Either way, there's enough nightmare fuel in this place to last you until next Halloween.
Danvers was given the less-than-prestigious title of the birthplace of the lobotomy. They are inherently creepy. After he died, allegations that he molested children inside the asylum were made by both patients and staff. Louisville, KYWith an alleged 63,000 deaths taking place inside its walls, this place is up to its eyeballs in spirits, not surprisingly topping lists of America’s most haunted spots.
It was more of a prison than a hospital. They were neglected, restrained, beaten and raped by staff on a seemingly regular basis.
It was back in the 16th century that Bedlam was first used to house what they then called “Mad Folk.” They could have been seriously schizophrenic or just have had some kind of physical deformity. Thousands have claimed to hear voices telling them to get out. The children were not told what they were actually eating. Sign up for The Lineup's newsletter, and receive our eeriest investigations delivered straight to your inbox.
It comes as no surprise that a few people lingered after death.
The Serbian mental health facilities have become the most notorious asylums to still exist in Europe. Any positive stories were completely overshadowed by tales of the abuse suffered by patients housed there. Their solution was essentially to torture the patient until the evil spirit would decide to leave them. They grew suspicious of him after they found her teeth in his possession. Sophie-Claire Hoeller is Thrillist's über-efficient German associate travel editor, and has had frequent flyer status since she was born in a Lufthansa terminal. According to local lore, patients here began dying mysterious deaths, one after the other, forcing the facility to shut down. In Serbia, the mentally ill are made to live in terrible conditions from childhood until death.
In order to do this they decided to experiment on children at the school. And these were used more as a punishment than as a treatment for anything. And as if that weren't enough, Danvers used to be Salem Village – yup, of Salem Witch Trials fame. There has been some change to the institutions since then but they are still terrible places. Follow her @Sohostyle.