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I've been exploring abandoned buildings for many years. I started doing it when I was just a child. Back then there were a lot of abandoned houses with all the contents still in them. It was fascinating to me. Unfortunately I didn't start taking photographs of the places I visited until a couple of years ago. Now it has become an obsession. There are many other people out there who share in this obsession.

There are quite a variety of places worthy of exploration. They include abandoned factories, hotels, amusement parks, theaters, hospitals and houses. They can be in urban or rural areas. We urban explorers photograph them with respect. For some reason the cold, empty feeling of an abandoned building is very enticing. There is beauty in the stark hallways, ugly machines and peeling paint. The buildings talk, they tell the stories of their past lives. They wait for a visit from an explorer with camera in hand to tell these sad tales. I would like to think that people such as myself have given some life back these old places through photographs.

New Hospitals, Asylums and State Schools

	Gladstone Park Psychiatric hospital Once upon a time this was the largest building in the United States until the Pentegon was built. It is a Kirkbride building and it is in very bad condition s it's fate is uncertain
	Norton State Hospital This was one of the largest complexes in the country. It is built in the cottage plan. There are over 75 buildings on this site and thier ages range from the 1800's through the 1950's. The entire place was closed in the 1980's.
	Westingham State Hospital As mental hospitals closed their doors to the psychiatric patients other uses were sometimes found for the buildings. Because the buildings were very secure many became prisons. This is one such place.
	DC Children's Children's Center One of the most notorious of state schools in the country. Also called Forest Lawn. The facility was understaffed and over -crowded resulting in many cased of abuse and neglect.
	Linton State Hospital This was a tuberculoses hospital but as tuberculosis was irraticated in the United States it was no longer needed. There was also a laboratory here that was used to study diseases spread by insects.
	Belcher town State School This State school was closed in 1992 because of over-crowding and poor living conditions. The building are to be demolished and condos will be built.
	Spector State School Another notorious state school. Patients here at this school were inadvertently exposed to large doses of radiation and iron to study the effects. More info
	JN Munster This obscure hospital in western New York started out as a tuberculosis Hospital. After tuberculosis was eliminated it became state school.. It is now vacant and seems to stand only to attract the curious so they can be arrested by the local police.

	Centerville State Hospital Not much history is available about this place. It apparently houses recovering drug addicts and alcoholics. The money to keep them operating is almost gone and it is scheduled to fully close.
	Haden's Psychiatric Hospital This psychiatric hospital is very low key, very small and mainly active. Thier main focus in the present day is with women with eating disorders. There is only one abandoned building on the property.
	Northampton state Hospital Northampton began in 1855. Old main was built following the kirkbride plan. The complex grew rapidly upthrough the 1950s. In 1978 when deinstitutionalization began it was ordered to be closed. It was destroyed in 2006.
	Grafton State Hospital Grafton state hospital was a farm colony for Worcester state Hospital. Many of the buildings are still in use by Tufts University. There is a write up about it here: http://www.1856.org/grafton/grafton.html
	Hudson River Psychiatric Center It took almost decade to build this mammoth kirkbride. Over several decade more and more buildings were added to this complex. One by one they closed and eventually a fire destroyed one side of the Kirkbride.
	Tapestry State Hospital Founded in 1848 this was the first public mental hospital in one state. It was built in the Kirkbride plan and housed 86 patients in it's early years. It grew over time and afer it was closed to psychiatric patients it became a jail.
	Metropolitan State Hospital This hospital was built in 1928 to relieve the ever growing population of mental patients. I was closed after several complaints and a law suit which involved a patient killing, dismembering and burying another patient on the grounds. He keep 7 of her teeth as a suvineer.
	Odensville State Hospital Built like a fortress and designed like a resort it watches out over the St. Lawrence River. Like many other insane asylums this one was also transformed into a prison. However the main building and some out building remain unused

New Industrial Sites

	Eagle River Power Station This is a one of a kind place. Not only was it functional in it's day but it was beautiful too. Unfortunately it is very dangerous as pieces of concrete the size of cars fall from the ceiling
	Wollensac Optical A division of the 3M company wollensac was a manufacturer of camera, lenses and optical equipment. The optical division went bank rupt in the 1980's and the factory stood untouched until recently.

	Bee Bee Power Station Another large coal burning power plant. This one is composed of many tunnels and bridges connecting several large buildings
	St. Nickolas Coal Breakers This was the largest of all the coal breakers at the time. It was in operation until 1978. It's soul purpose was to break large pieces of coal into smaller pieces of coal

Miscellaneous Sites

	The Church of the Transifguration A lovely church that has been neglected for many years. Though the current owner was suppose to restore the church it never actually happened or ever will.
	Essex County Jail This jail was built in the 1800's. It was in use until the 1980's. It is in the process of being torn down and the land used for condos.
	Holley High School All I know is that there is a much newer, larger high school in the town of Holley now. I also know that this doll is thier new mascot.
	Staten Island Boat Yard A place where all old boats from the New York City area go to die. Many of them are to be sold off as brake waters to area marinas but many just sit here and rot.
	Two Philedelphia Churches One church, the Transfiguration, was closed because lack of funds. The other, Eden Hall, had been restored and schedule to open Christmas Eve of 2006. Vandals set fire to it and destroyed the entire building. It is now demolished.
	Sulpher Bath Houses There was a time when sulpur baths were considered medicinal. Once it was found to have no real benifits places like this closed.

	Seabreeze Amusement Park This amusement park isn't really abandoned, it's just closed in the winter and it makes for a fun exploration.
	The Catskill Mountains Up until airfare became cheaper these resorts and hotels were where many rich folks, manly jews, from New York City went to vacation. Once it was feasilbe to fly to distant places they all closed. Practically over night.
	The Astair Hotel Located in the foot hills of the Catskills this was once a famous resort that people went too to cure ailments because of the sulphur springs. Once sulpher springs were no longer considered beneficial, this place fell out of favor and closed.
	The Heiden Hotel One of the resorts in the Catskill Mountains. It is so lovely that it deserves it's own gallery.
	Two Nursing Homes. There isn't much to say about these. They are two nursing homes in Niagara Falls a few blocks apart. Oddly enough they were both called St. Mary's.
	The Police Station There is no doubt that this police station was closed because of a mold and fungus problem.

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