The plot of land in Louisville, Kentucky was originally the site of a spacious mansion, but in 1910 a modern tuberculosis hospital called Waverly Hills was opened in the same area, a sanatorium to serve patients in the area. Louisville, surrounded by swamps and wetlands, had more patients with the disease, then called the "white plague," than many other parts of the country.
In the first half of the 20th century, the treatment for this disease was rather odd, to say the least. The authorities considered fresh air to be the best medicine. Thus, patients stayed on verandas and patios all year round, regardless of the temperature and weather outside. Other forms of "therapy" included the surgical removal of several of the patient's ribs and muscles in the hope that the lungs would expand. Needless to say, many patients died in the course of this "treatment"?
Unsuccessful treatment has resulted in the death of many patients. In an attempt to preserve the reputation of the sanatorium, the staff decided to transport the corpses through a special tunnel so that the guests of Waverly Hills did not see the dead and did not lose hope of recovery. Fortunately, in the second half of the 20th century, the number of cases of tuberculosis dropped sharply. The Waverly Hills Sanitarium was closed in 1961, but in 1962 it was converted into a nursing home. Soon, rumors spread that the staff of the institution were conducting strange experiments on guests, as well as practicing electroshock treatment unnecessarily. They said that old people go crazy in this ominous place. The nursing home was closed in 1982. Later it was planned to turn the building into a prison, but this idea did not come true,therefore, the former sanatorium quickly turned into another abandoned mansion with a terrible history.
Of course, such a mysterious place could not but acquire mystical rumors about ghosts. For some unknown reason, the fifth floor of the building seems to be the center of the paranormal. The ghosts of children play in the rooms. The spirits of elderly patients roam the halls. Lights are visible in the windows, and the smell of cooking food can be heard along the corridors. Room 502 has a particularly messy past. The story goes that a pregnant nurse hanged herself in a room and was found only a week after the incident. Rumor has it that the spirit of the deceased still roams the territory of Waverly Hills and cannot find a way out.
Today, the former sanatorium belongs to private investors, who in every possible way emphasize the building's reputation as one of the most visited places in America. They offer tours for the curious and regularly host nightly ghost hunts for everyone.
BALAN-SENCHUK ALEXANDRA