SCOUTING
FIELD NOTES

Part II: Scouting An Abandoned Mental Asylum – A Visit To The Rockland Psychiatric Center

01/31/2011

This is Part 2 of the Scouting NY tour of Rockland State Psychiatric Hospital, a 600-acre abandoned mental asylum complex in Orangeburg, NY. Be sure to check out Part 1 here!

Construction of Rockland State Psychiatric Hospital began in 1927 on a 600-acre plot in rural Orangeburg, NY. Below, the Male Reception Building in its prime…

…and today:

Very little has changed on the complex since its construction. In most cases, it’s only the overrun foliage that gives it away as abandoned. Below, building 19 then…

…and its twin, Building 18, now:

I love little details from a bygone era, like this TV antenna…

Also hidden behind a tangle of vines…

A sign identifying the building:

During the 1930’s, Rockland State was considered one of the best planned psychiatric hospitals in the world. Its numerous facilities, including a power plant, rendered it largely self-sufficient…

I’m not 100% sure, but the power plant appeared to be in working operation the day I toured the facility (correct me if I’m wrong on this one). I love that the endless smoke tower steps originally went right down to the ground (er, seems like a bad choice for a mental asylum):

And in case you weren’t sure which building this was, a helpful sign:

In fact, during its heyday Rockland boasted a working farm and numerous industrial shops, all of which were staffed by patients. Everything from furniture to brooms were produced on location…

And though most most of the hospital complex is abandoned today, many of the old maintenance offices are still in use…

From an on-site locksmith…

…to plumbing…

…carpentry, roofing, and a tinshop…

…to electric & refrigeration:

Behind the facilities offices, a great old ramshackle building:

I’m taking a guess here, but does this squat structure remind anyone else of a bus station? It’s located in the center of the complex and would make sense as its transportation hub:

One of the most well preserved buildings is the old Administration Building…

…which best exemplifies the Mediterranean-style architecture found all over the complex (sadly, the mission tile roofs are mostly hidden by snow in my pictures):

I love the terra cotta entrance…

Also very cool: two working lanterns on either side of the door. You can just make out the faded initials RPC, or Rockland Psychiatric Center:

Very glad to see the cupola is still in great shape after all these years…

…complete with its original weathervane!

Directly across from the old administration building is one of the last working hospitals on the complex, the modern Rockland Psychiatric Center. Effort was made to match the new structure to its surroundings, but it just goes to show that the old Rockland campus is an artifact of the past.

A side door to a building…

…with a schedule I have a feeling is no longer kept (yes, of course I pressed the doorbell):

Seems like the type of sign you’d see prominently around a mental asylum…

…however, this one was just on the old basketball court, in the center of the complex:

Also, note the building behind the basketball court. Another of my favorite buildings on the campus, this one resembles a stable and especially reminds me of my travels through Spain…

Love the enormous wooden doors and lanterns overhead:

Inside another building…

…a reception area, plus a lone pentagram:

Update! As a huge H.P Lovecraft fan, I can’t believe I didn’t catch this. Luckily, reader CSCottM pointed out a way too coincidental resemblance between the pentagram…

…and Lovecraft’s infamous Elder Sign:

As CScottM points out, very appropriate for an abandoned mental asylum. The other side of the room – looks like it was in use until fairly recently:

A peek into another building…

…reveals a former cafeteria…

…also in pretty good shape.

This facilities-related structure is surrounded by a stone fence…

A crumbling urn on one of the posts:

Inside, a mess. Those look like walk-in refrigerator doors on the right – perhaps a former kitchen?

Another look inside. Would love to know the story behind that playpen…

As I was driving past a far corner of the campus, I noticed a bunch of structures.

At first, I thought they might be graves – mental asylums often had on-site cemeteries for indigent patients:

On closer inspection, they’re just picnic tables!

I’d love to know if this is a newer addition, or if hospital workers used to gather here in the 40’s and 50’s for barbecues:

Sadly, much of the Rockland staff was drafted during World War II, leaving non-qualified workers to take their place. This resulted in just 1 psychologist for every 300 patients. Infection spread, and the hospital soon became drastically overcrowded.

As many of you pointed out, the harrowing conditions were documented in The Snake Pit, written in 1946 by Mary Jane Ward and based on her experiences incarcerated at Rockland State (a movie based on the book was not filmed at Rockland).

The title, according to the dust jacket, comes from an ancient form of psychiatric treatment in which patients were thrown into actual snake pits in the hope that their sudden terror would cure their mental illness.

Though presented as a fictional tale set at the Juniper Hill Asylum, The Snake Pit documents many of the very real forms of psychiatric treatment Ward experienced during her stay at Rockland. These included hydrotherapy, in which patients were forced into baths of either scalding or freezing water, electroshock therapy, insulin shock therapy, and of course, lobotomies.

At the time, very little anesthetic was used during lobotomies; in fact, there weren’t even teeth clamps to prevent patients from biting their tongues. Surgical equipment included drills with 1-inch bits.

By 1970, Rockland was largely an outpatient facility, and with the onset of psychotropic drugs, only now services the seriously ill.

I’m glad to report that Rockland State is not in immediate danger of being razed. A reader updated me that plans to turn it into a senior citizen community fell through last year, and the town is seeking new options.

I really hope Orangeburg decides to follow in the footsteps of Traverse City, Michigan, where an abandoned state hospital was saved through its conversion to commercial and residential space.

It’s unfortunate the sun only stayed out for the first few pictures I took – Rockland is one of those places that looks great when a blue sky backgrounds its red clay roofs…and very bleak under a recent snowfall and overcast skies.

I urge you to take a walk around the campus to enjoy it for yourself someday. It’s public property, so you won’t get in trouble (though entering buildings is illegal), and it’s literally a journey back in time. I promise, your imagination is going to have a field day with this place.

Finally, a look at the windows of Rockland State. I’m always fascinated by windows at mental asylums. For untold thousands of patients, these windows offered what must have been a torturous glimpse at a freedom they could not have.

-SCOUT

PS – Much of my history came from this short 1999 piece in the NY Times, and is definitely worth a read.

Many more posts in the archives!

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Ceil

11/16/2011

WOW ! I have a bucket list now. OH YES they do have a grave yard somewhere on the growns. I sure would like to come to find it..Through genealogy and a mystery letter from the 40’s, turns out a relative,{{John Reynolds Robertson}} A lawyer, who was the author of APPELLATE PRACTICS & PROCEDURE of the SUPREME COURT 1928-29 & in 1936 with a Francis Kirkham co-author. That is still used today, ended up in Rockland State Hosptial sent from Tombs Prison. Death record says he was at Rockland 25 yrs 8 mos 26 days. Still there somewhere.. Of course their more to the story.

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Robbie

11/20/2011

My father, Reynolds Robertson, lived at Rockland from about 1940 to 1966 when he died. Some of you who have responded to these wonderful photos refer to working or living there during the period of his residence. I was a young boy when I last saw my father. If any of you knew him there I would be happy to hear your memories of him. He may have worked in the library. (unclerobbie@comcast.net)

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Phylils

11/22/2011

My family lived near the hospital when I was in elementary school in the 1950’s and early 1960’s. My father, Carl Furth, used to drive by the staff houses to take my friends–Bobby Ann Bleisdell and Dr. Dinah Rochlin’s daughter, Vicky–to school in Pearl River. We used to pass Bobby Ann’s beautiful palomino horse and some of the hospital’s farmed fields on the way to her house. The street she lived on was then called Hog Road. Today, I believe it’s been renamed as Bleisdell Avenue. My parents ran Maywood Swim Club in Old Tappan and my friends would visit in the summer. One even came on horseback to go swimming. In the winter, we spent time at my friends’ houses, just outside the hospital grounds. Some of the patients who were OK but had no families to go home to would take care of the doctor’s houses. We never locked our doors in those days, unless we heard a news report of an escaped mental patient.

One winter, my mother, May, worked as an aide inside the hospital for a few months. Her stories from work were not good. I remember being scared as we rode past the buildings to pick her up from work.

After my father died, we moved to Long Island and my mother developed some troubling symptoms. Long Island doctors said that she was depressed and treated her electro-convulsive therapy. This incorrect treatment probably erased some of her already damaged memory. On a return visit to see my friends, Dr. Rochlin quickly and correctly diagnosed my mother’s problems as signs of early-onset Altzheimer’s disease. The doctors at RSH, obviously were top notch!

If anyone remembers my family or my friends, I would love to hear from you. Phylis Furth

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1. Pete Wodraska
  
  07/14/2014
  
  Hi Phylis,
  I knew both Bobby Ann and Vicky as I lived on the grounds of the hospital while my Dad worked there. Taffy was the name of the palomino. Hope to hear from you!
  Pete W.
  
  Reply
  1. Ralph B.
    
    06/04/2015
    
    Hi Pete, old neighbor! Would love hearing from you and anyone else who shared our Staff Court existence.
    
    Reply
2. Ralph B.
  
  06/04/2015
  
  Hi Phylis!
  Great seeing your post! Hope you see this! My previous post is the one identified with arby347 above. Please contact me!
  
  Reply
rob

11/28/2011

I used to take the bus through there on my way to NYC when I was young. There was a bus stop inside of there. Not much in the way of security..Even at 13 years old..in the early 70’s, the place had a VERY creepy feel to it. Once in a while I would see someone walking about on the grounds that you just knew lived there. Sort of classic mental patient look. Sometimes you would spot someone behind the metal bars and wonder what was wrong with them. Also, a friend and I were playing at the nearby reservoir and stopped some kid that lived there from drowning himself. He jumped in because we were swimming..but he didn’t know how to swim!! We threw him a rope that we used to swing on. My best friend’s mom growing up worked there. I think she was a psychiatrist or at very least a nurse there..She was a VERY somber person. I don’t think I ever saw her smile. Going through there periodically I can see why! It was NOT a happy place.

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Matt S

12/16/2011

I was thinking about filming something for a video project at the abandoned section of the complex and I was wondering how it accessible it really is?
I’m sure it’s probably prohibited but is it easy to get into and is there any possibility of getting caught in there?

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Steven D

12/21/2011

My father was the chief pathologist there in the late 1960’s and early 1970’s. I was born in Nyack hospital during his employment there. I will be planning a trip there for the end of December 2011. If anyone might remember my father during those times, or would like to meet me there for a group visit, please email me: keystoneheights@gmail.com

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Margaret Geer

01/09/2012

What a wonderful find. I was just playing around with Goggle search and by chance did a search on my old alma mater, wow, did that ever bring back a lot of memories. I graduated from Rockland State Hospital School of Nursing. I was very young (17), over protected and quite innocent when I started the program in 1963. We lived in Building 28 and the front of the building faced the children’s unit. I would hear them crying and waiing throughout the night. I remember calling my parents and begging them to come and get me and take me home. When I look back on those days, I’m glad that they were not able to as I came from a small farming area Western New York. Charlotte Oliver was the Director of Nursing at that time and Alfred Stanley was the Director. Our graduating class was 16. The program included a 3 months rotation tour at Willowbrook Hospital on Staten Island before Robert Kennedy and Geraldo expose. I have vivid memories of both places,…. VIVID. I remember many patients but not by name being in the hospital simply because they were gay,… at the time that was high on the list of Mental Illness,… some patients were there because they opted for Rockland as oppose to prison, and it didn’t take much to make claims of insanity. I would love to see more and am now very impressed with your photography talents and your blog.

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Jenny Titus

01/17/2012

I really enjoyed this article. I had a great, great aunt Anna Kunay, who was hospitalized at Rockland from 1940-1957 before being transferred to Pilgrim State Hospital where she died in 1971 and as far as i can tell she was already in state care as far back is before 1930 as there are no census records for her that year and she wasn’t in the USA until she immigrated her from Czechoslovakia in 1923 so i cannot reference 1920 census records. I have a letter that was written to her brother in 1925; assumedly transcribed and merely signed by her. I have a photo of a woman who looks like her in her passport picture from ’23. I have another picture where she looks frail and sickly and old. Like all the life was drained out of her. After thoroughly reading this page and all the resonses I was left speechless. I never would have guessed there was a book published about a patient who roomed there. I bought it today and anxiously await it’s arrival. Thank you scout for all yourh hard work!!!!

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PW – Paulie Walnutz

01/18/2012

As a current employee of NYS OMH (upstate) I was at this location yesterday to give a training – I was amazed at the sheer size of the grounds and the amount of unused buildings. There are also homes on the outskits of the property that look to be of the same era. On one road there our 3 run down and the 4th is lived in and up to date. Very odd to see in person. We drove around for a little while and I couldnt help but think of the people who lived and died there. The amount of wasted space and empty building was also sad in its own way. I hope someone finds the sense to rehab this place into something everyone can use.

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Don

02/02/2012

Yes .. the building with the playpens.. “looks like squatters lived there ” …actually my mother-in-law worked there and they permitted her to use a building for her animal rescue . Have videos and pictures of the actual kennel operation they had set up there . also have some video i took in the late 80’s of the tunnels and buildings.The tunnels were creepy , dark, damp and wet .. you could hear the erie sound of water dripping then echoing from the big long pipes that line the ceiling of the tunnels.It was creepy. The tunnels were so easy to get lost in . There were gurneys and medical files and old medicine bottles .. everything you would see in an old hospital. below is a time capsule . Scout .. you only scratched the surface . Some serious antiques from the bygone days down there . I will post my vid asap. tks scout !

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Angelina Marie

03/04/2012

Must read that book! Awesome post, dying to know more of the history!

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john k. sipple

03/04/2012

My mother was a laundry supervisor at Rockland Hospital. She left and went to Willowbrook and then to Hudson River state hospital. She knew the writer of the Snake Pit. I lived and grew up at Willowbrook leaving when I was 18. My Dad was in charge of the power house at Willowbrook. The buildings are still beautiful. I spent a lot of time with wounded soldiers during WW two. Giraldo’s exposes did not do the hospital justice. Just another reporter looking for stardom.

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Mark

03/31/2012

Great photos- and memories. Grew up nearby- remember when the farms were “working farms” It’s unfortunate, but back then 60’s/70’s we were all scared of the people there- like when the occasional patient wandered out. I believe the photos with the double bay doors was the old fire station/public safety bldg. They had two fire engines. You are right about the bus station. In the mid-eighties I drove for Rockland Coaches and remember dropping off a folks at the bus stop on weekends; likely parents of patients. Same for Letchworth Village in Haverstraw.

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jamie cales

04/16/2012

My name is jamie I’M 61 YEARS OLD.
I was rased up at Rockland State Hospital from the age of 10-17. From 1959-1969
If you want some information about Rockland contact me. I even went back to Rockland 1 year latter as an employee. and I worked for the shelter work shops program for 7 years, then I was terminated do to a back ingery. I was out for a year on compensation. I was also in the Rockland news paper for an incident. I an tell you my treatment good snd bad while i was at Rockland.

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1. shirley
  
  03/18/2013
  
  I was in rsh from 1968 to 1971. And I can say that my stay was not all bad. Yes if you did follow instruction you paid the price. And the punishment made you think trice about doing something worry. Yes we all can tell you some stories. David _Jamie reach out and touch me fasthandevacuation@yahoo.com
  
  Reply
2. NICHOLAS CONSTANTINE
  
  09/30/2013
  
  HI JAMIE IM NICHOLAS I REMEBBER YOU & RUBEN VERY WELL I WAS A PATIENT ON COTTAGE 3 I WAS ALWAYS IN TRUBLE AND GETTING LOCKET IN A ROOM
  
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elizRN

05/19/2012

I went to nursing school at Rockland State Hospital. Back then it was an incredible place to be. On campus there is a beautiful catholic church. I worked in most of the buildings. I’m sorry to see these photos. I received a wonderful education there….

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1. Sherry
  
  06/06/2012
  
  PLEASE tell me more….. I am just learning that my grandfather from Czechoslovakia was there. Can you please email me @ sherrycobbs79@yahoo.com ?
  
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David (Tank) Henderson

06/09/2012

Jamie, I remember you and your brother Ruben. From the original children’s group(in Cottage 3 no doubt)to Building 35 and 37, we both grew up together in Rockland. The last time you and I met,you were working in Rockland.It’s been a long time.I was wondering if this Web site would ever net anyone else who I rember as a patient in Rockland.People have some weird ideas that there were shock treatments and lobotomies going on, not saying that it didn’t happen, it just didn’t happen when we were there – at least as I remember.They did have some strang ways of dealing with us.When we started to misbehave, they would tie us down with icy cold wet sheets. I guess that was their way of cooling us down.The wet sheet thing, I found more humiliating than barbaric. The only physical pain I recieved from it was when the sheets started to dry,I started to itch. Of course, there were the staint jacket and the itchy room but that was it.Do you remember when all of us were left alone during the evening to clean that long hallway in cottage 3? Boy do I remember! We extemely soaped the hallway down, took of our gowns and started slidding down the hallway. We would slide all the way down to the end of the hallway where a hot steaming radiator was awaiting us. We would try to break before we hit the radiator but the soapy floor prooved to be too challenging and we ended up hitting it Buts first.Yep, could anyone imagine, we would have these huge smiles on our faces with laughter as we were slidding down the hall and, as we got closer to the radiator,fear and panic would show on ours faces, right before the inevitable POW!Boy did that sting. We didn’t get caught that day and managed to clean up the mess in time. It wasn’t until the next day when we were taking showers that the nurse noticed that most of us had these two to three lines on our backsides. She immediately called the doctor. I guess she thought it was some kind of contagiuos disease or something.I could go on and on with all the rememberies I had in Rockland. Yes, we had some bad times but we had some good times too and we made the best of it. We were “The Little Rascals of Rockland.” I would truly what to hear from you jamie. Take care.

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1. jim moran
  
  02/16/2014
  
  what year were you there? I was there from 1940 until 1945
  
  Reply
  1. Megan
    
    06/02/2015
    
    Jim, please email me, I would love to ask you some questions! I’m searching for information about my mom’s mother, who was a patient there and gave birth to my mom in 1946. Any information you can give will be REALLY helpful…thank you so much, I hope you see this!
    
    MeganBarron614@gmail.com
    
    Reply
marina

07/09/2012

My mom was a patient at that hospital as well as many other institutes in NY. I remember visiting my mom for weekend visits. One visit she was in a white gown, her hair wild than ever and she was drooling out of her mouth, She looked like a zombie. I will be visiting this abondoned place just for memories sake and to think what it must have been like for my mom. she had also gone under the lobotomy and other sick things

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Jack Dunleavy

07/21/2012

I grew up in N.J.just over the Rockland County line. My first memory of Rockland State was of hearing my parents talking about a “lunatic” who had just escaped from the hospital . I didnt know what a lunatic was at 6 or 7 years old ,but I could tell by the way they acted that I should be scared .My mother eventually used that fear to keep me in line by saying “you better be good or the lunatic will get you ” My ears still go up when I hear that word.As teenagers we would cross the state line and drive the grounds of the hospital “looking at the “lunatics”behind the screened in porches.We drove up to an old gentleman who was sitting on a bench and I asked him how he was doing and he said “Im mindin my business and you do the same”.Words to live by.Thanks for the opportunity to share this memory.

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Dee

07/26/2012

I had friends who lived right across from the hospital. It just gave me the creeps and you could sometimes hear people screaming from the buildings. Your photos are beautiful and I had no idea that the hospital’s architecture was so amazing. What stories those walls could tell. Thank you for your story.

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Mike

10/01/2012

I lived just over the NY border in Rivervale NJ from the mid 60’s to the late 80’s. We could hear the steam whistle from the power plant go off every morning at 7:00AM. We were probably 3 or 4 miles away as the crow flies. In the early 70’s we would go to the Catholic church on the grounds for the Saturday evening mass. The priest always had a dog or two on the altar with him during the mass. Very different from our usual church that was quite a bit more rigid. In the late 70’s I had a grass cutting service and used the open pit dump on the west side of the grounds by the reservoir to get rid of leaves and grass clippings. No trash…just green waste. I found at that time, the well preserved remains of an old boy scout camp with tent plaforms of wood and several out buildings built of cinder block. It hadn’t been abandoned long by the looks of things. There was also a big barbecue pit there and we would go over on weekends and party there, as it was out of sight and well removed from the rest of the grounds. A small cove from the reservoir came right up to the camp and would have been a great place to launch canoes. Many good times had there from the late 70’s to the mid 80’s. Always a fascinating place. Thanks for the pics.

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