THE ARCHITECTURE WHICH DEFINES OUR LANDSCAPE IS A TANGIBLE PART OF OUR COLLECTIVE HISTORY. WHEN HISTORIC STRUCTURES ARE DEMOLISHED, A PART OF OURSELVES IS RELEGATED TO MEMORY AND CONDEMNED TO BE FORGOTTEN. IN THE REDISCOVERY OF OUR ABANDONED, OFF-LIMITS, OR OTHERWISE HIDDEN ENVIRONMENTS, I DOCUMENT THEIR EXISTENCE AS WELL AS OUR OWN THROUGH THE PHOTOGRAPHY AND ADVENTURES PRESENTED HERE
March 28, 2016
Hudson River State Hospital
Hudson River State Hospital is a “Victorian Gothic” styled Kirkbride Hospital for the Insane which was constructed in New York in 1868 and opened on October 18, 1871. Construction took over 25 years to complete and was heavily criticized for cost overruns and delays. It operated until 2003 when facilities were consolidated with other local hospitals and it has been abandoned ever since. Demolition is set to begin any day now.
A detailed history of this site is beyond my current means but Wikipedia covers the history here pretty well. Suffice it to say this place is huge (it was originally 750 acres) and by now is pretty well destroyed.
This blog is dedicated to the pursuit of adventure and exploration in Saint Louis, Missouri and beyond. Here you will find photographs of, and history pertaining to, some of the most interesting, unique, old and/or abandoned locations across the United States.
1. With the exception of any historical photos, all of the photographs here are copyrighted and not to be used for any purpose without my consent. Credit for historical photos will be cited whenever possible. Images sourced via public domain may not have known citations.
2. "Don't try this at home." I absolutely will not be held responsible for anyone else's stupidity. Do not attempt to recreate any activities shown here. Sometimes I am granted access to the things you see here and attempting to follow in my footsteps may get you arrested, hurt or killed.
3. "Take nothing but pictures, leave nothing but footprints." I do not condone or tolerate: vandalism, theft, littering or any other disrespectful activity in any of these locations. Vandalizing and/or stealing from vulnerable locations is weak and lame as hell.
4. Do not ask me for (or comment) specific location information. If identifying information is not provided in the post, it was left out intentionally to protect the identity of the location. Any information will be provided either at the time of posting, or updated years later, at my discretion.
5. Any reference to "I/me, we/us" anywhere on this blog is probably just a metaphor. Metaphors are often employed to simplify complex technical details when storytelling. As such, they can never be considered as admission, nor proof, of guilt; They do not provide sufficient evidence as to who (or what) actually took any of the photos shown here. Anything portrayed here may be the result of a tour or a bribe or photoshop. I/we may or may not actually exist.
6. No ads. No sponsors. No gods. No masters. This site is completely independent, non-commercial and intended for education/entertainment purposes. The subject matter presented herein is purely based on personal interest. I/we receive no outside influence or financial compensation. All research is engaged in and typed out by a human or human-like entity or a cat or a team of cats. I/we answer to nobody. I/we are not available for hire.
