In the middle of a residential neighborhood, sits Eastern State Penitentiary. It fills a whole square block, sitting in a state arrested decay. Having been closed for decades, it towering brick walls stand as a reminder of the harsh conditions it was known for.
Small Hospitals have struggled for decades. Declining rural populations combined with increasing expenses has sealed the fate of many hospitals. With numerous hospitals within 30 miles, this hospital wasn’t able to continue operating. Closed for nearly 20 years, the hospital, and other buildings on the grounds are in poor condition.
Tewksbury State Hospital was once a home for people with developmental and psychiatric issues. It’s been repurposed for substance abuse treatment, a much needed service these days. With the changes, several buildings on the property are no longer used. These photos are mostly from the Violent Womens’ Offenders building. Women were housed in this building in small rooms. Their desperation can be felt years later in the scratch marks they clawed into the doors during their years of confinement.
Prior to modern antibiotics and other medicines, fresh air was thought to be a cure for respiratory ailments. Many communities built Tuberculosis asylums out of town, in the country or in the mountains. This asylum originally opened in the 1910’s. The current brick building was built in the 1930s. By the early 1960s, Tuberculosis could be effectively treated; the facility was converted to a nursing home. It closed in 1972, and has been vacant since. It was put up for auction in August 2019, and it’s future is uncertain, and not likely bright.
This prison started its life as a Tuberculosis Sanatorium over a century ago. In the 1980s, modern prison buildings were constructed on the property and, for about 20 years, it served as a high security facility with a mental health unit. The mental health unit was known for its poor treatment of inmates. Due to declining prison populations, it was closed a few years ago. The owners requested that the location not be disclosed. Photographed in spring of 2018.
Many cities, small and large, once had ornate Armories with large drill sheds. Over time, most have been sold to private interests for new uses. The Schenectady Armory is currently owned by a development company. The Drill Shed is used for sports and other events in the winter. Most of the rest of the building is unused and untouched, some areas for over 20 years. Photographed in November of 2017.
As incarceration rates have dropped over the past decade or more, correctional facilities have been closed. This Facility once house troubled teens, featuring a gym, indoor pool, auditorium, and job training center. Since it’s abandonment, it’s been subject to some vandalism, and likely will be demolished, as several building on the property have been. The area is being redeveloped as a business park.
Mid-Orange was a low security residential facility, inmates lived in bunk houses spread around the grounds, and participated in job training programs on the campus. Closed in 2011, much of the site is unused. Parts have ben redeveloped, including use of the quad for sports programs.
