Thank you for sharing this!! My mom had an undiagnosed mental illness from the time she was 12 years old. She had been in several mental hospitals. Even so, she did marry my dad. But, went downhill and 2 more mental hospitals. The last one was the State Mental Hospital in Napa, California. It was a horrifying and terrifying place. Worse than any nightmare!! As a kid, visiting mom, I was terrified of the place. I convinced grandma to drive down from Oregon and bust mom out of that place, and take her back to Oregon. All these horrifying places did was give mom Electro-Convulsive Therapy (Shock Treatment). Which did nothing for her. Mom eventually was diagnosed with severe Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. She went to various support group meetings and had an Uncle with the same condition teach mom his coping skills. She ended up living a fairly normal life. My sister and I helped her, as needed. All the horrifying Mental Hospitals accomplished absolutely nothing.
@teresat.6386 Жыл бұрын
My heart goes out to you and your family. I can't even begin to imagine what your mother must have gone through, and your family as well. I have a brother who is very mentally ill and has severe diabetes. He was diagnosed late in life and it is very hard to see him continue to go further into a downward spiral. We share the same birthday, but 12 years apart; I'm the younger one. Sending you hugs and prayers. ❤🙏
@alandickerson3379 Жыл бұрын
@@teresat.6386 Thank you very much! I am sorry to hear about your brother. Sending hugs and prayers back to you!!
@naomisgram1 Жыл бұрын
😢
@emilyflotilla931 Жыл бұрын
Blessings to you for all you did. I'm grateful your mom was able to live a somewhat normal life! ❤️🕯🤗
@alandickerson3379 Жыл бұрын
@@emilyflotilla931 Thank you!!
@LittleBird8882 ай бұрын
I was actually a patient in the old Anoka Asylum twice back in 1994 and in 1996. It was actually called Anoka Metro Regional Treatment Center when I was a patient there. I was in the Trauma unit for 5 months from 1994-1995 and then Vail 2 unit for 6 months from 1995-1996. I had 10 forced shock treatments there and before I had the shock treatments I was forced to be on liquid Haldol and Prolixin shots. It is exactly how I remember it. The way they treated me there and other patients and the things I saw and went through there still haunt me to this day. I have also been through one of the under ground tunnels as a patient. My doctor took me down there to get my records. I have visited it a few times since then and plan on going back to visit again and see how it affects me as a visitor. Thank you for this video. It made my heart skip a beat and think I could be brave enough to go visit the grounds again.
@carolk5770 Жыл бұрын
I had an aunt who was put into one of these “feeble minded” institutions, in the very early 1900’s. Medical science could not figure was what was wrong with her..and why she would have several “fits” every day. Later on they DID diagnose her for plain old Epilepsy. She never had anymore attacks after she got the correct medication. But by that time, she was ruined by being locked up so long. Her family says she was SO beautiful she would turn heads where ever she went before being sent to this place. RIP Aunt D…you are loved. 🥀♥️😢😔
@naomisgram1 Жыл бұрын
How sad! 😢
@eileenallen1986 Жыл бұрын
I had an aunt who's husband tried to commit her. My mom and dad refused to allow it.. She went on to have a very successful life.
@shazza4 Жыл бұрын
Wow what a sad story hope she's happy in heaven now
@danw4471 Жыл бұрын
That's horrible. Sorry to hear about your aunt. Even what Alan Dickerson said above about his mom having OCD. Conditions that are curable today were considered a mental illness back then. So sad.
@Monkey114 Жыл бұрын
So sad 😢
@thejourney1369 Жыл бұрын
As a lifelong sufferer of depression, I’m so thankful for the advances made today. Not enough, but better than it was in my Grandma’s time. I have a family history of depression, Grandma, Mom, sister, niece, son, and myself. Looking back, I realize why my Grandma kept her depression to herself. She told me about it one time and never spoke of it again. And my Grandfather would have been the kind of man to have her locked up.
@andrewmorton395 Жыл бұрын
I have all so suffered with anxiety and depression all my life, 66 now.
@rubysmith8818 Жыл бұрын
❤️
@rubysmith8818 Жыл бұрын
@@andrewmorton395 ❤️
@chelimartinez9999 Жыл бұрын
Seek the Almighty God and physician Jesus Christ for He is the Savior and He can help with anything including depression. He’s the creator. God help and bless you!!🙏🏻🙏🏻
@thejourney1369 Жыл бұрын
@@chelimartinez9999 if it wasn’t for Jesus, I would not have made it for these 65 years. He never promised us that the road would be easy, but that He would be there with us.
@arliesamuelarlies7660 Жыл бұрын
Your respect for those who've passed is wonderful
@jamesbartlett4935 Жыл бұрын
Welcome to Minnesota! There’s another state hospital in Rochester Minnesota with a similar past! At the height of the hospital, there was 1,700 patients! The cemetery has 2,100 graves that was numbered and replaced with markers. The hospital opened in 1870 and sat on 500 acres. The patients were used as farm laborers on the site! There’s also a cave system that was dug out of sandstone by 6 patients and was used as a root cellar for the vegetables grown on the farm! One of the patients was a poet and some of his writings is said to be etched on the walls in the caves! 😬😢
@jeanoch8125 Жыл бұрын
How about Fergus Falls too I believe there was a State Hospital there too at one time.
@karenbridenthal3180 Жыл бұрын
St. Peter is still open here.
@sueaddison9958 Жыл бұрын
😢😢😔🌹
@trevorrodgers777 Жыл бұрын
Willmar as well
@cathysummers7558 Жыл бұрын
💯%heart touching and lots of heart aches. May all the people r.i.p. To be a number so sad 😢. Another great story and I live a few miles from a place like this very haunted and a person feels the vibes even on the road. . Take care Sir and The gang!❤️🇺🇸
@meghananderson279 Жыл бұрын
Back in 1998 when I was in nursing school I did a clinical rotation at the Anoka State Hospital, The Cronin Building. It was just as creepy as you can imagine and I will never forget my experiences there. Got to see the tunnels. It’s quite the place. You did a great job telling the story. Cool to see you in my home town!
@lesliehodges2419 Жыл бұрын
My great uncle suffered brain damage from car accident in early 1920s. Was committed because people thought he was crazy. He could not tell amyone who he was for family to be called to him. He was lucky Grandpa didnt stol until he found him and took him home. God rest their weary souls
@ashleywilcoxfotfmod Жыл бұрын
Reminds me of pennhurst. My grandmother worked there before it closed down after a news anchor exposed the horrible treatment and conditions. The patients were just let loose and one actually now helps with tours during Halloween.
@cliffordfreeman7829 Жыл бұрын
Remember that when the story broke.
@ginettehb Жыл бұрын
My mother and my brother worked at Pennhurst and I've been there many times before and after closing... scary place
@PhillyGirl-pt3vq Жыл бұрын
I think that’s terrible that they continue to say it’s for the insane. No! It was initially for mentally handicapped , developmental disorders , physically handicapped.
@ashleywilcoxfotfmod Жыл бұрын
@@PhillyGirl-pt3vq that is a very outdated term. It was for lots of different conditions from hydroencephaly to IDD to behavioral issues which was probably forms of autism. So sad.
@PhillyGirl-pt3vq Жыл бұрын
@@ashleywilcoxfotfmod yes! That’s exactly right. My oldest has HFA and a little milder behavior issues and I can’t imagine him in a situation that was detrimental for him. 😔🙏🏻
@susienierhaus7007 Жыл бұрын
It’s nice that you where able to find some photos of the lost. I often wonder when seeing these, how many of these people where locked up to convenience someone else, not because they truly had issues. Its nice that they gave them tombstones. May they Rest In Peace.
@c.w.johnsonjr6374 Жыл бұрын
Another wonderful video, Ron. A few years ago I visited Traverse des Sioux in Nicollet County, near Mankato. There was a room dedicated to one of asylums. One of the things that stood out to my family and myself were the pictures of unmarked graves of “inmates” whose bodies were unclaimed by their families. Glad to see people are now “adopting” them so they’ll be remembered. My family discussed how understandable it was that people would have mental anguish after enduring immigration across the Atlantic and hardships and boredom of the frontier, then perhaps losing family or their lives work. As someone whose PTSD and learning disabilities would have resulted in me being put in such a place if I had lived then, I greatly appreciate you making sure this history is unforgotten.
@Corgis175 Жыл бұрын
You are right lots of distressed energy in the cemetery and all those bldgs. RIP to all who suffered and whose mortal remains are in the cemetery and those that aren't.
@kimberlyphillipssmith7956 Жыл бұрын
I was required to tour the lunatic asylum in Athens Ohio to pass my Abnormal Psych class. It's architecture was that of the mid 1800s which made it even more creepy. There's a blood spot on the floor that can't be removed. Last I heard, the Ohio University was to make offices. There's no way in hell I'd keep an office in such a place. I love your videos. I'm a huge cemetery buff.
@michaelhoodlebrink8995 Жыл бұрын
My sister went to OU! Athens and the university are such amazing places!
@elainecresie7913 Жыл бұрын
I had two relatives die in the Athens Lunatic Asylum. They both had TB and were put in a separate building up on the hill. One was my great grandmother that died in 1926 and a great aunt that died in 1936.
@katypeterson2251 Жыл бұрын
I was in Anoka State Hospital for treatment for substance abuse. It was over 40yrs ago. Still clean and sober today. I lived close to this place. We went swimming there as a Girl Scout in the 60's. There was an unwed mother's home. The list goes on and on. I've people who worked there, who were patients, who left, like me. It's often been a memory that is good. Those cottages were once beautiful. It was amazing to see this today. Thank you.
@nicolaxoxo1 Жыл бұрын
So you are saying it was a good experience? Did they segregate the mental patients and addiction patients? What was it like?
@katypeterson2251 Жыл бұрын
@@nicolaxoxo1 being in Treatment sucked. But I must have something out of it. I haven't used since. It was aa terrible situation for the Mentally Ill. But there wasn't the medication and treatment there is today...it's how society views their Mentally ill citizens. But growing up there were many interesting changes going on there..and still are. It once was had a shelter for the unhoused. It's not be just a "Loony Bln" as it once was called. And I know of people that were committed by got out. There is hope.
@FacesoftheForgotten Жыл бұрын
40 years ago = 1980's, they turned things around there in mid 20th century. I am sure it was a better experience. like most states - these institutions were revamped or shuttered by then. Today it thrives, a good place. But the old abandoned structures remain as a sad testament.
@lisastevens2431 Жыл бұрын
Congratulations on your continued recovery. A wonderful accomplishment!
@redrooster1908 Жыл бұрын
Thank you for sharing. Congratulations on your sobriery!!🎉🎉
@shadetreeforge Жыл бұрын
My late wife used to work in a nursing home where the feeble minded and others that were not aware of where they were were segregated, and in another wing away from the others. She was a STNA and one day while caring for a patient the patient passed away! 😞What rattled her nerves was the fact she had to bathe and get the patient ready for pickup, she quit that day.
@PhillyGirl-pt3vq Жыл бұрын
Those poor people the way they were treated over something they had no control over, is so sad. God rest their souls. No more pain. 😔🙏🏻🕊🌷💐
@jacquie5292 Жыл бұрын
I was 16 when I started working at a Psychiatric Hospital just like this one. I often went into the tunnels to get from one location to another. Many stories I can tell.
@chrisadams416 Жыл бұрын
Plz do tell
@wendelljohnson760 Жыл бұрын
☹️
@felishathemom7393 Жыл бұрын
what the heck
@TommyTheCat42 Жыл бұрын
This is like the Ladd School here in RI. The late 1800’s Joseph Ladd opened a place just like this where people would drop off unwanted children without question, etc… Since Ladd got paid per patient he grossly overpopulated the campus and it was the same thing, torture. When it closed in the 1990’s my friends and I would go into the hospital, play with the X-Ray machine, stole a straight-jacket that was left behind and go to the morgue and lay in the drawers. I have many pictures before it was tore down. Possibly the most haunted place in RI.
@conditionallyunconditional5691 Жыл бұрын
Sounds awesome!
@patchgen Жыл бұрын
Themodern day version of this is the Judge Rothenberg Centerin Canton, MA. Shock treat on a who new level, even has been condemned by the U. N. Human Rights Commission, and the World Health Organization, yet Massachusetts won't have it shut down
@19ADAM80 Жыл бұрын
What would you take for that jacket?
@carlitasway2477 Жыл бұрын
I have a friend who is a heavy equipment operator He excavated land where a former asylum stood to make way to build something else and he said he didn’t how people were buried in mass unmarked graves until then He said he churned up skeletons 🙏🙏RIP in Jesus name 🙏
@pennykeller583 Жыл бұрын
😢
@redrooster1908 Жыл бұрын
Wow. Incredible shock, no doubt!
@gogo-word Жыл бұрын
I wonder if the people aged 60 and above were put in these institutions because they had developed Alzheimers/dementia? Would it be less expensive than a nursing/rest home? It would be interesting to know when people entered. So tragic! You still hear of inhumane deaths happening to elderly in state homes. Rest in peace to all who suffered.
@paulrickson9796 Жыл бұрын
Look at the dates on the grave markers. I think you may be onto something.
@hildachacon001 Жыл бұрын
Wow, so true! I hadn’t thought about that til I read this.
@polinascroggins3521 Жыл бұрын
That time put for everything Woman can be even with just hysterics. And another behavioral problem. All patients using like a experimental material
@rachelbennett1185 Жыл бұрын
Many years ago I use to look after a lady who had been in a mental hospital she had a diary of that time. At the start every day filled in. They said I can home today and the name of people visiting as the year went on it got less and less entries till their was nothing. I worked in a home for dementia and this is where I met her so yes completely what happened they was put into mental homes as no one knew what it was
@redrooster1908 Жыл бұрын
Right up there with the stealing inheritance theories too. Commit a middle aged relative and take their money & possessions. It surely went on in those days😕
@WestTNWeather Жыл бұрын
I have a child with mental problems and its far from easy but thank God for better understanding of mental illness now days. It's no different from many other illnesses. My Grandmother was bipolar and so is my brother. My Grandmother went into a couple of places but thankfully medicine came along as well as better understanding mid way in her life and she led a productive life the second half. We all loved her dearly. My brother is the best you could be around and he has a wonderful job and family. It's just like a chronic physical illness like diabetes or high blood pressure. The brain can be treated as well with certain medicines that put things back in balance. I'm so thankful these types of places or at least hope none of these type systems exist anymore. Many of the patients had manic depression (now called "bipolar disorder") which is treated well with lithium (a salt that levels out the off balance chemicals in the brain). Many of these brilliant, smart, and wonderful people live more normal lives today. God bless these poor souls that suffered horribly years ago due to what was then ignorance in our society to mental illness. Thanks so much for remembering these precious people. We love you Faces Of Forgotten!!!!@
@kayevans2964 Жыл бұрын
Ron, I know it's nearly Halloween but enough with the faces! The one in the window made me drop my phone 😂😂
@FacesoftheForgotten Жыл бұрын
Lol
@5wanderers8 Жыл бұрын
Me too!
@daniellakarenina8634 Жыл бұрын
Me too 😄
@1Grandma62 Жыл бұрын
I loved it I find it funny
@jennifergray6433 Жыл бұрын
I yelped a little, lol!! Yikes!!!
@scottrider641 Жыл бұрын
So tragic, but so well done. You are a master storyteller. This is one of your best. Thanks so much
@redrooster1908 Жыл бұрын
I agree. Enjoyed the photos at the end. What a special treat!
@dawntaylor239 Жыл бұрын
What a horrible life these people had to live may each one rest in peace thanks Ron for sharing their pictures
@mcwatersd Жыл бұрын
It was terrible how people were treated back then sometimes for a lack of understanding . I know of reports of husbands commiting wives they were tired of and the deaf and blind also. Can you imagine how it would be to be just deaf and of sound mind but to be locked away. I am so glad someone has fixed up their final resting place. No one should be just a number. Great video Keep Safe ❤Keep Well❤
@AnneEloiseOfCNY Жыл бұрын
That face in the window gave me body-covering goosebumps! By the end of your broadcast, I was weeping. Thanking you for remembering these poor souls. May they rest in peace. Not so much for those who tortured them!
@nancyvolke237 Жыл бұрын
Very sad 😢 they will live in those places until. You remembered them by showing their pictures... Thanks Ron for never forgetting!!! RIP to those souls!!!!🥺😔🙏🏻
@ruialbertocosta1886 Жыл бұрын
No, they are not forgotten now , Sir! You kind of give them more resting peace by visiting them. You enthusiastic , devoted purpose of paying respect at cemeteries uplifts and lightens up the morale of lots of viewers.Thank you.
@nastybigJim Жыл бұрын
loved the end with the peaceful music showing some of the "inmates" and then cut to uncomfortable music showing the staff. great stuff.
@FacesoftheForgotten Жыл бұрын
thanks Pal JIM..thats the effect I was after. 👍👍
@nicolaxoxo1 Жыл бұрын
@@FacesoftheForgotten great video! One thing seems odd to me, the photos of patients appear that they weren’t poor. They were well dressed and well groomed mostly, many with spouses. So why weren’t they in a more upscale “sanitarium “ rather than a state facility?
@nadiabrook7871 Жыл бұрын
What a HORRIBLE, grim looking place, even now years after it had been shut!! It must've been a million times worse back in the day when it was still in operation!! I also feel VERY depressed that more people were committed there, than those that were discharged from that hell-hole!! Looks like the staff were more concerned about torturing the inmates than actually helping to treat and heal them!! I'm sure there must've been some kind staff members, but it appears that those were few and far between!! No wonder the place is haunted!! Your drone footage is SOOOOOO BEAUTIFUL!! May those poor unfortunate human beings who died in that mental asylum RIP!! XXXX 😢💔🌹
@annemariecronen9096 Жыл бұрын
I grew up 20 miles from there. People would say if someone had committed a crime nearby or acting crazy that "they must've escaped from Anoka". Later on in 1990 when it was mostly closed down(only a building or 2 was open), I had a friend whose mom worked there and one day she needed to go see her at work. I stayed in the car, I heard so many stories, no way was I going in!
@Moolarkey Жыл бұрын
The pictures at the end are just haunting. Then the pictures of the employees. They look pleasant yet at least some, probably not all, were torturing these human beings. It is just so hard to comprehend. Those who tortured were more sick than this kept at this institution.
@saries54 Жыл бұрын
Bless you for highlighting the lives of the forgotten in our society! Thank you! This really hits home for me because my precious son, Michael, died in a mental hospital almost three years ago. Autopsy showed cause of death by an overdose of a phyciatric drug they were giving him and it was not suicide. Hospital is notorious in Phoenix and behavioral health workers as a place, "I wouldn't put my dog in." No investigation of the hospital by the state of Arizona. Folks, its still going on! Abuse and neglect in these hospitals is still a thing. This also happened to a small boy in my family in the very early twentieth century in northwest Iowa. An eight year old boy was committed by his uncles because he was "disruptive". He died soon after of a communicative disease. My mother remembered the boys mother in 1930. The mother still cried for her little boy. Thank you again. ❤
@lindajung9642 Жыл бұрын
Wow, the branch falling had to be paranormal!! Very sad for all the people who had to reside there.
@twilightpurpleglow Жыл бұрын
It is sad to think back then "asylums" for the mentally handicapped; it was hard on the workers and the sick. I am sure (the sane ones) hell on earth. Now they the "sick" walk amongst us, with weapons and crazier, I keep hearing it on the news everyday it is frightening. Ron did someone just tried to send you a message at 17:38 ? scary. I loved the drone and music you added. Thank you for the walk back in time. Cemetery is kept very well. Rip all those souls.
@FacesoftheForgotten Жыл бұрын
maybe a message!!!!!!
@monsterglo Жыл бұрын
This is so sad May those poor souls rest in peace watching this brought back a memory of when I was a little girl growing up in Pennsylvania I remembered my granny talking about Wernersville State Hospital which was the same type of hospital she said it was for the people who didn't have their minds the same as ours, She told me this was in the 60s early seventies that people would get mad at relatives or family members and have them committed to Wernersville State Hospital saying that they had threatened to kill themselves or whatever and it was very hard to get out of there. My parents moved away with me many years ago from Pennsylvania so I hadn't really thought about that anymore so I looked it up and it is still an operational State Hospital for mental patients I hope that they're being treated better than they were many years ago.
@linabeever2989 Жыл бұрын
It’s a sin how these poor people were treated but in another way if it wasn’t for the cruel treatment they received we would not have the technology on how to treat some of the mental health disorders that we have today. May God bless them.
@PhillyGirl-pt3vq Жыл бұрын
True, we did make some progress but still mental health treatment is still broken. 😔🙏🏻
@christinalock9937 Жыл бұрын
@@PhillyGirl-pt3vq I was 15 years old in 1974. I lived in a village with a huge hospital, of mentally ill as it was called back in the day!!! A get out of school day was volunteering to , what was called work experience?? The patients were absolutely looked after, in health,and diet. They were also if smokers provided with their ciggys. I will never forget a lady called daisy, she came into ward 32, my work experience ward! Absolutely of sound mind, we would take her out in her wheelchair, meet up with our school piers , in corridors of this vast hospital, and person's the same as my daisy. We would have wheel chair races! Daisy and friends absolutely loved this! I was ill from school for two weeks? Came back to my ward32? My daisy was still there, unfortunately not in mind anymore?? I spent months with daisy, 1 day every week, the old, still need the young, it keeps their minds alive. Today40 years later? We have no homes! For the mentally ill? Allowing them to be acknowledged, and help them recover? Everyone is put in the same box? There seems to be, recovery is ? Every individual is the same? No need to go any further in text book terms?? How sad , and heartbreaking, the hard work put into gaining their proffesion? Is just another tick in a box??
@AnneEloiseOfCNY Жыл бұрын
@L. Bever: Yeah, sure, that Nazi doctor Mengele, also provided a lot of medical advancement information. Guess it all evens out cause it was all long ago. And we benefit today. Mister, with the way you reason you would have made a fine Nazi. All's well that ends well, eh? No need to condem, since we profited.
@dalesmith4019 Жыл бұрын
Yeah the petrochemical psychotropic drugs are a huge step forward - NOT!
@louisefontaine6856 Жыл бұрын
I cannot even try to imagine my mother, who had Alzheimer’s, being put in such a horrible place. She died in a long term hospital 6 yrs ago. Although it was a well run place with caring staff, it was still depressing as hell to go there. Not enough staff to feed all the patients so me and my sisters often went to help. Those poor people 100 years ago never had a chance…😢
@JenaOhJena Жыл бұрын
The asylum in my town buried them without even numbers marking their graves. Just a memorial sign added recently. A huge wide open field of graves with no identifying markers at all. It was also used by soldiers in the civil war. If you ever make it to West Virginia you should see it. The hospital itself is now a tourist attraction with lots of paranormal tours etc. It's been featured on many television shows. It's now called Trans Allegheny Lunatic Asylum. It's in Weston West Virginia.
@crystalriffle3213 Жыл бұрын
Very true, I'm from Weston. Many in my family worked at this "asylum". It was very sad for the patients.
@JenaOhJena Жыл бұрын
@@crystalriffle3213 Yes it was a brutal place! The history is mind blowing.
@brendagoodwin7178 Жыл бұрын
A very disturbing and horrible disgusting story! The mental hospital's have come along way since then. The patients are now treated with respect! I worked for Rusk state hospital as an RN it started out as an hospital for prison inmates. It's now an State Mental Institution!
@aamlam Жыл бұрын
I love how you brought them forward, with respect. God only knows what they did to those people in there. The admin looked mean.
@ThroughTheVeilParanormal Жыл бұрын
Anna State Hospital, contemporarily known as Choate Mental Health and Developmental Center, is a public psychiatric hospital in Anna, Illinois, established in 1869. These 2 places seem to have very familiar histories.
@lynnclendenin2988 Жыл бұрын
I remember going there to sing Christmas carols when I was in high school!
@ms.c3 Жыл бұрын
Reminds me of Newtown Asylum hospital in Ct. But this one sounds way worse. Face’s at the window is creepy cool. That branch that almost hit you, that was pretty creepy. 😮 May all those who suffered Rest In Peace. By the way Ron, ❤LOVE YOUR BEARD! It looks great!
@altha2008 Жыл бұрын
Was there videos done on that
@alrise1776 Жыл бұрын
Ah, yes. Fairfield Hills. Very creepy, indeed. I went to a horse show that was on the Fairfield Hills property once. My horse absolutely lost his mind. Needless to say, I just loaded him back up into the trailer and left. He knew what was up and I didn't see the need to torment him or get killed.
@Katseye102 Жыл бұрын
You found pictures of some of them! Sadly and you probably know this, some where sent to these places sometimes for something as small as monthly cramps. Some because they refused their husbands in bed…..horrible reasons……with the ladies you can almost see fear in their eyes, maybe they knew what was going to happen to them? The things that happened in these places and the people that “cared” for them sometimes were just as cruel. Gives me chills thinking about it. I’ve heard some really horrible stories. This was a good one Ron, thanks for sharing! Take care out there! By the way your beard gives you that rugged mountain man look! I like it! 😀😀
@dianecrawford2598 Жыл бұрын
Hi Ron. This reminds me of Pilgrim State hospital here on Long Island. I worked there for about three years. It also had tunnels beneath, where patients were moved through. Very spooky! There is also King's County hospital which is said to be haunted. People have seen lights moving around the buildings and grounds, and at times, screams can be heard. Both of these hospitals are long closed now. Thanks for the history lesson, very interesting, as always.
@salliecaulford4875 Жыл бұрын
Ron, i worked in the kitchen of a mental institution in Connecticut from 1971 to 1995. we had patients working on the 2 serving lines for the patients, after 10 years of service, i trusted the patients over many of my fellow employees. back in the 60s & early 70s a lot of families couldn't or didn't know how to deal with the older members of the families & would commit them into Fairfield Hills. so sad seeing these people come thru to get their food. thank you for sharing this story & all your stories with us
@tombstonetales Жыл бұрын
Wow, this is brilliant, but very spooky! We have similar ones here in Liverpool.
@maryellengrayberg9146 Жыл бұрын
Ron, I worked in a private mental hospital years ago. Very fascinating stories of people and how they arrived there. Part of my duties were to bring the time cards down to the kitchen area, and I had to walk a very scary long tunnel to get there. Yes, there was a lady who was there for years due to the fact she was considered "bohemian" by her family and they did not approve.
@mycharmedunicorn8715 Жыл бұрын
My ex in-laws and my parents owned nursing homes for many years. There was one lady there that had like six children and she wound up having a nervous breakdown she couldn’t handle all the kids. The nervous breakdown messed up her mind so her husband put her in the nursing home facility. Which she could come and go as she pleased. Her kids never came to see her. she died well in her 80s. I do believe her husband divorced her so the state would pay for her care. But yeah it was sad I guess she used to be normal and then she just had a nervous break down that messed her up
@redrooster1908 Жыл бұрын
My mother in law had a small stroke in the 70s. She couldn't speak well and her motor functions were impaired. Her teenaged sons and a teen friend snuck her out from the locked ward. She recovered fully at home in about a month.
@tinaharvey-endacott6826 Жыл бұрын
Thank goodness they got there names back . Brutal awful place . Heartbreaking . Bless there souls , may karma find the monsters that were soppose to look after them 🙏
@aliciabrewer9444 Жыл бұрын
So sad what all those people went through back then in those places, unnecessary cruel treatment…😢😢 I’m glad you did a video on this story Ron, all those who had been forgotten are now remembered again… I hope they all can rest in peace someday.🕊🕊🕊 Stay safe out there Ron.🙂💟
@H_H____ Жыл бұрын
Such a beautiful tribute to all these people. So sad how people have been treated in mental hospitals through the years. Very traumatizing treatment of them all their lives in many cases I am sure. The stones they have now with their names, birthdays, date of passing, are so pretty and the grounds are kept so clean and manicured. I like the little garden area, too. They now have been honored twice...through their personalized stones so they are no longer just a number, and through your video respectfully telling about them and remembering these FOTF. Thank you for telling their story. 🙏
@davidbrem6783 Жыл бұрын
Man what a sad feeling. My great-grandmother was in the State Hospital. She suffered from Epilepsy and was admitted for the last 6 months of her life. She is also buried in the hospital's cemetery. It's very well kept and she has a nice tombstone. Appointments are necessary to visit the graves. She was only 55 years old when she passed.
@gregoryclayton8287 Жыл бұрын
Ron, it's a real shame that none of these people weren't given the opportunity in life, to live free and happy like most of us. They could have brought great and wonderous things to our life's... As soon as you shown the outside of the Anoka Hospital, it did looked spooky, but the fear soon turned into a greater sadness. The cemetery walk did ease a lot of the pain and it was a good thing that they numbered the graves and recorded them back in the day. Those people who picked up the tab for their headstones, and are keeping the place neat, they are all SAINTS, God bless them all and God bless you to Ron. Thank God, that we live in a more understanding age, of course we have a ways to go yet and hopefully we will all get there soon, for all our sakes. and that's in the name of all civilization... Also, Ron, what you're doing is awesome, may it last forever, and IQ is the perfect name for your new channel, really cool. Inclosing, B E A U T I F U L cemetery, and REST IN PEACE to all. Thank you Ron, you did them a just, a job well done. G t E.
@dalehoward5416 Жыл бұрын
Thank you for all you do Ron. By reading the dates on the plaques It was sad to see how regularly the patients died. At least they are at peace now. And the photos at the end really pulled at the heart strings. And the photo of the staff - who could imagine the pain and suffering they inflicted on others. Thank you again good sir. God bless and stay safe.
@AnneEloiseOfCNY Жыл бұрын
Gregory, sadly without modern medication those with actual mental illnesses would still have lived a nightmare. But without being physically tortured also. Without medication, the symptoms of mental illnesses can be crushing! But those who were fine but committed, how horrendous! For those who were put there by another person's avarice, how awful! May God give heavenly peace and rest to all the tortured and tormented people who were forced to live and die there!
@schumi9xwdc Жыл бұрын
Society doesn’t need the mentally ill
@AnneEloiseOfCNY Жыл бұрын
@@schumi9xwdc You are reported for Hate Speech. Eugenics is an abomination.
@rebeccabukta2461 Жыл бұрын
Oh my god!!dont do that!! I was drinking tea...when you put that face looking out the window..i spit out my tea!! lol...my heart skipped a beat!! I'm awake now!!! lol
@donnaboisen6003 Жыл бұрын
I live about 6 miles from here. I have been on these grounds many times. I have taken my grand boys here to show them what life was like there. Yes, it’s haunted. I’ve seen photos. There is a paranormal group that has investigated the cottages. I’ve read stories and have known people that work in some of the cottages that have been made into office’s. They said strange things go on occasionally. Doors locking themselves, opening and closing doors. Something you’d have to get used to if you work there. The sad thing with these places all over the U.S. is yes, some of them may have had mental health issues. But I believe that a lot of them were special needs. Slower mentally and maybe even physically. I have raised my special needs son for 26 years. It breaks my heart to think of him going through that torture. Makes me sad to think of that. I would like to think we have come a long way in our mental health. And special needs people.
@jujulionesselsa1416 Жыл бұрын
It is so very sad they was completely entrapped. I watched a documentary many many years ago, one man stole a handbag and was put in an Asylum and that was it he never ever left. He was completely of sound mind beforehand. And obviously many more went the same way and they didn't have anything wrong with them either. And I agree with you Ron their so called families was getting their inheritance. Nowadays we can have a deputyship who can help someone who can no longer make their own decisions here in the UK 🇬🇧.
@steff9041 Жыл бұрын
My cousin Marvin was sent to an asylum when he was 14. He had Down's Syndrome and the doctor had been recommending that he be sent to an asylum since birth. My aunt refused but he became extremely hard to handle once he became a teenager. My aunt had 13 other children to care for as well. Alvin died a couple months after he was sent away from pneumonia, which seems to be code for death from some type of neglect or abuse. My aunt felt so guilty, even many decades later.
@doreenarcher8543 Жыл бұрын
Thank you Ron. This is so sad. Still too much abuse goes on in these hospitals.😢
@burntpopcorn7543 Жыл бұрын
The problem now is that a huge percentage of our homeless populations have some kind of mental illness and don’t think they need any treatment.
@amandawhite7527 Жыл бұрын
That was such a sad story that Ron again has brought to life... This was so soo sad especially when you know these patients had no chance of getting better that is if they were mentally incapacitated,It is brilliantly edited too. Just another sad but amazing story.🎃.x
@lunawolf007 Жыл бұрын
What an amazingly beautiful ending 💖. Thank you!
@pameversole5886 Жыл бұрын
Those were the days when a husband could sign his wife into one of these places just because he’d found a younger model. If she didn’t have family living nearby to dispute his word…she could end up in a place as this.😢
@DorisVoerster Жыл бұрын
Thank you, Ron, for such a touching and beautiful memorial video. And God bless all those who provided the stones. My Dad had a brief stay in a hospital mental ward receiving shock treatments for OCD. I was pretty young but I vividly remember visiting him after a treatment when he wasn’t sure who my mom and I were. Thankfully, he recovered because of or in spite of the shock treatments in the 50’s. Thank goodness the treatments and understanding of mental health have come such a long way and will continue to improve. God bless all of these patients. RIP 💜
@sarahnichols743 Жыл бұрын
My great grandpa was committed to insane asylum by his second wife because she said he was sex crazy. He was found dead with a hole in his head. I think that was in 30s.
@sueaddison9958 Жыл бұрын
We had some really horrific institutions here in Australia 😑😔😢 there were patients who had cerebral palsy, epilepsy, and etc, who were born with conditions which just weren't understood! It's very disturbing. There was an island near Sydney called Peat Island, home for the criminally insane. It only closed in 2010!!! Even Children were taken there. The readings about it are absolutely horrific. Another place was named Callen Park mental institution. Unbelievably cruel and terrible places😔😔😔😢😢🌏🪐🍀🙏🌕🦋🌸🇦🇺🦉🏡🌴🌹 thanks for your interesting stories😊
@kimberleymcmahan3863 Жыл бұрын
Ron, this story was so moving. Thise poor people to have been treated so badly and buried as nothing more than a number. I think there's a special place in heaven for those individuals that made these souls had proper headstones and at least some amount of respect in death. Thank you Ron! Yet another amazing video.
@reavesadventures606 Жыл бұрын
It was cool how you did the face in the window
@jennifergray6433 Жыл бұрын
And I said if I see a face, I'm running. Nearly damaged my phone..😳🤣
@organicgal7751 Жыл бұрын
The sad thing is how many of those people were not really insane that were brought to that hospital? Very sad and cruel what was done to them. I wonder if the movie "One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest" was based on what happened at the hospital?
@adriansoonx33 Жыл бұрын
Scary windows Ron 😄 love your videos & story telling 👍 May this Poor Souls Rest in Peace
@qayruaza Жыл бұрын
May they all rest in peace. The segment at the end with the photos was so thoughtful. Thank you, Ron!
@susan5301 Жыл бұрын
You always bring such dignity to the forgotten. Thanks for doing that Ron, I appreciate it so much!
@paulaj7860 Жыл бұрын
I grew up in the suburb next to Anoka. I remember my brother and I driving on the grounds of this hospital as teenagers in the mid-1980s. I guess we were morbidly curious but we were kids. I remember seeing patients outside in their gowns and robes. At the time they frightened me. Now I feel so badly for those poor souls. RIP
@mazhansen8804 Жыл бұрын
I love it when you do hospitals Psych or otherwise. The hospital I trained at was an old repat hospital which also had a new wing with med & surgical ( where i worked , after my rotation)and had tunnels & apparently cells underground. I never did get a chance to see in the tunnels, but Nurses who'd worked there longer had seen inside someone was supposed to get the key for a group of us to go through them, but it didn't happen in the end bummer! The last hospital I worked in was a psychiatric hospital, again on a huge site with many old buildings & a river runs through it we had a code for patient in the river & a boat if we needed to use it. lots of old haunted buildings. I loved working at those hospitals. The treatments before my time were horrendous though😢 It's a housing estate now.
@Chuthermucker Жыл бұрын
They built these asylums with high expectations of really helping people. This was quickly ruined by overcrowding and staff shortages. The treatment was horrible but that is what has led to breakthroughs in mental health treatment these days. Some of the reasons people were committed are ludicrous....post-partum depression, epilepsy...things that are treatable now but back then were not. Might not be a bad idea these days to build a couple asylums so some of the mentally ill people can get actual treatment. Our mental health care in this country is abysmal. I am so glad to see that there are grave stones with the names on them rather than just a number.
@Glamrockqueen Жыл бұрын
I work at a Psychiatric Hospital here in the UK. I have no doubt that times were terrible for the patients back then. Luckily, they are treated way better now.
@kylieirwin1325 Жыл бұрын
I would just like to say a big THANKYOU to you Ron for taking the time and endless research for such places as this. It is hard to imagine exactly how the "inmates" were treated, but they surely were not treated very well. Thanks for the pictures of some of these poor people that you found. Many a person has gone without a face, for an eternity.
@jamesmccarthy5086 Жыл бұрын
I don’t understand how people can do this to others. This is so sad. My dad used to work with people who have mental disorders and I’ve gotten to see what it’s like for people who treat people well. But I’ve seen documentaries on these and it’s terrible. My dad was always so mad at these people for how they treated these people. It was just horrible. It’s so cool to see the photos. Very nice way to pay respect to the forgotten.
@janejones658 Жыл бұрын
So many of these episodes have made me sad, but this one made me cry. Thank you Ron for all you do.
@marybarratt2649 Жыл бұрын
It is appalling how these institutions treated those who were committed. These conditions were prevalent in other countries and it dreadful to imagine how they used to be treated.
@nicolaxoxo1 Жыл бұрын
Sadly modern day facilities for those without money or good insurance aren’t much better. And senior facilities too. If you tour them you would be appalled. Those without anything but Medicaid get wharehoused in substandard conditions. Getting old sucks, but if you aren’t rich it REALLY sucks
@sandylee9564 Жыл бұрын
I'm so thankful everyday that mental health treatment has improved immensely . And that there are also support services for people with Developmental Disabilities/special needs are available, in theory anyway. Here in Oklahoma people with special needs have been on a waiting list for 14yrs! We still have a long way to go.
@shifajamaima7173 Жыл бұрын
Thanks for the story Ron seeing someone peeking out the window has scared me, shaken me up. But those people were heartless, it breaks my heart to know that they weren't treated right. They went through so much pain and suffering. They were human too. Thanks once again for a job well done.
@danielpetitjean1003 Жыл бұрын
very touching episode...may they all have found peace and righteousness,justice...We may wonder who really were the lunatics,the docters and the nurses,or the so called insane,who suffered most of the time of a simple depression...reminds me of "One flew over the cuckoos nest",where most of the caring personnel were just sadists and psychopaths...thank you for sharing their story and remembering them
@photohoot Жыл бұрын
Well done Ron. So many stories to tell in a single almost forgotten cemetery.. Such a shame we couldn't get in the building, The treatment of these individuals was horrific. I wonder if 100 years from now they say the same about the treatment of our children and the pushing of puberty blockers and surgery.
@CaroleLeamer735 Жыл бұрын
I just found your channel yesterday, and i am now addicted. I have been binge watching since! I have always loved history, but the older i get, the more I treasure learning it! Thank you so much for taking us on this journey! I have learned so much. I so appreciate the care you take in telling the stories and respecting the dead.
@FacesoftheForgotten Жыл бұрын
be careful binging! 👍😃
@tcwhite0104 Жыл бұрын
WOW looking at the photos of the some of the people that were there, just makes your mind go crazy on how thier lives were. So very tragic and sad.
@gina_latte Жыл бұрын
Just checking to see if I was the only one who 💩 my pants when the creepy lady peered out the window? SHEEEEEEEESH, Ron!! 😱😱😱😱😫😬 😆
@mothermcready4417 Жыл бұрын
It hurts my heart just to think about this, and how these people were treated, as if they weren't even human! I think about veterans suffering from "she'll shock", which nowadays, they've termed "PTSD", being treated like criminally insane... dear God! We may not lock them, or any others, who suffers a mental illness or disturbance away,.... today, thinking ourselves so enlightened, we just sanctimoniously.... unceremoniously....send them out to try and find for themselves, many ending as homeless people, dead on the street.... washing our hands of any responsibility for continuing treatment and care... for fellow human beings. I don't understand, and it irks-me-no-end....WHY does the pendulum seem to always swing so far the opposite way, whenever this society attempts to right some wrong,... correct some horrible mistake it's made? I'm certain there's a...if not "happy"...at least, a "more satisfactory", Medium resolution to this, and other tough problems we have as a nation...as a society. But, leaving a MEDICAL problem, such as mental illness, up to the "government" to handle.... definitely, is not the answer! IMO.
@paulrickson9796 Жыл бұрын
"Do unto others as you would have others do unto you." That's the answer. However, an evil World advances evil people into positions of power, control and authority. So, there will never be a "happy medium" like you mention in the World as we know it because those that could make real and beneficial changes in how society works either don't care because it doesn't benefit them personally or because they are simply callous and don't care, period. E-V-I-L.
@annbrownlee8858 Жыл бұрын
My mom was born and raised in Anoka back in the 1920s and '30s, and her father was an administrator at this hospital. Growing up I heard some stories about the place but I don't remember anything scary about it. My grandfather would take Mom there sometimes and my grandmother would sometimes have a female patient come to clean their house. Maybe Mom was trying to protect us kids from the bad stuff. Anyway, my grandfather Joe Granfield is in the picture with the staff at the end of the video. He is in the front row 4th from the left. Thanks for doing this, I especially enjoyed the cemetary because I like to think my grandpa knew and maybe helped some of those people.
@edithq617 Жыл бұрын
Those poor souls 💔 😢 this one brought me to tears dear lord I hope we never see things like this again
@angelwingstn3392 Жыл бұрын
I helped to move individuals out of 2 state institutions years ago into the community. Oregon and Tennessee. Oregon had tunnels as well. I have heard alot of horror stories. Families were told by doctors to institutionalize their loved ones as they would not be able to care for them at home. Some of them spent 40 to 50 years institulanized and of course some died in there. They were buried on the same government property as the institution. No grave markers. I'm so glad most of them , if not all are shut down now.
@sharonconnell3914 Жыл бұрын
So sad for these poor people. They must have went through u forgiveable misery. May they all be at peace
@marymahaffey4618 Жыл бұрын
Very heartbreaking and super sad and kinda spooky and creepy and looks very haunted the old hospital...I feel sorry 😔 for these poor ppl the way they were treated I've heard stories if just terrible.....rip all the men and women who died there and in the cemetery 🪦....thanks Ron for sharing this and remembering these ppl and showing pictures of them too ..looks so sad 😭.... be careful out there Ron And safe travels too ...
@michellerene951 Жыл бұрын
Omg Ron @ 4:18 I almost spit out my coffee! That got me good....even my coworkers were like What!??👻🤣
@1Grandma62 Жыл бұрын
that was so funny 🤣
@nestaannjarrett4948 Жыл бұрын
The Mount Jackson asylum off west Washington and Tibbs in Indianapolis has tunnels as well. My aunt Maria said there were rooms in the tunnels so the staff could hide in case a violent inmate would escape.
@pamelapurcell187 Жыл бұрын
Thank you Ron. Makes me so sad for those people. I pray they had at least a day or so of happiness in life. I know, they r know. Take care Ron. RIP dear souls.
@cararule3992 Жыл бұрын
Oh my goodness Ron!!! What a surprise to see this video!!! I wish I could have seen you! I used to work at Anoka State Hospital. Many interesting stories and history. Prior to the building of this state hospital some of the inmates had been to the poor farm nearby in Coon Rapids where the high school is. There are a bunch of us former Anoka state hospital nurses who work not far from there at a private sector hospital on the mental health unit. I love watching your series!!!!
@FacesoftheForgotten Жыл бұрын
oh wow, how cool, we were right there!! 2 weeks ago I shot that.
@daleromdenne Жыл бұрын
Wish I could go freshen up all this. Love spending time with all the kind souls. I just don’t want these people forgotten. I get it, I feel forgotten in life already. Thanks for sharing!
@sueamos3860 Жыл бұрын
Those poor people,may they Rest in peace
@eileenallen1986 Жыл бұрын
So sad, how people were so badly treated in those places. I can't imagine the suffering. RIP beautifull people..
@cheryllakin6736 Жыл бұрын
The Victorians had a way of building such beautiful buildings to commit such human atrocities inside its walls.
@Harkart59 Жыл бұрын
How sad, but a little kindness came out of it at least. Nice to remember these poor souls.