Waverly Hills Sanatorium Louisville, KY / 0 Reviews Address: 4400 Paralee Drive, Louisville, KY 40272, USA Visit Website Phone: 502-933-2142 Claim Ownership Add to favorites Print Overview Map The Haunted Waverly Hills Sanatorium Waverly Hills Sanatorium is chronicled on many of the "scariest places" lists by paranormal historians. (Despite its name, Waverly Hills was not a mental hospital; a sanatorium is any institution that provides treatment and convalescence for chronic illnesses.). History In the 19th century, tuberculosis, the "white death," was one of the most dreaded diseases. Another nurse, who also worked in Room 502, jumped off the roof to her death. As the non-profit steward for the property, the Waverly Hills Historical Society continues to offer educational and paranormal events (such as tours), and this legal issue has not forced the Historical Society to cancel tours or events. The Waverly Hills Sanatorium is a former tuberculosis hospital in Louisville, Kentucky, United States. Visitors will learn more about Waverly Hills' past. One legend stems from the experiences of the Louisville Ghost Hunters Society. Waverly Hills Sanatorium is an example of early 20th century early Tudor Gothic Revival style architecture. Inhuman spirits, on the other hand, are entities that never walked this Earth in human form. The Waverly Hills Sanatorium | Louisville KY After Joey and a few of his friends learned about the spooky history of the place, they had their own haunted experience. He has been doing this for over 10 years and has over 1,000,000 subscribers. Opened in 1910 on land that once held a schoolhouse, the sanatorium was designed to deal with the rising . It opened in 1910 as a two-story hospital with 40 beds and closed in 1961. The number of patients who lost their lives on the ground is staggering, and the torment they suffered added the angst many researchers say is needed to compel a spirit to linger beyond death. Kentucky Life visits the infamous Waverly Hills Sanatorium (former tuberculosis hospital) in Louisville, Ky to learn its history and to learn why many think . The Board of Tuberculosis Hospital kept the name when they bought the land and opened the sanatorium. The cafeteria was in a similar state of disrepair. Although Waverly Hills did their best to make life as comfortable as possible for their patients and their families, nothing was going to truly make things better until a cure for the disease was found. Some of the claims in the lawsuit say the Mattinglys are selling the historical societys assets and equipment, making changes to the property, and retaining money for trees they unlawfully cut on the property. The Waverly Hills Sanatorium is a former hospital for tuberculosis patients. While the building is now primarily a tourist attraction for those with creepy predilections, it used to be a functioning tuberculosis hospital. Select the Private Investigation with Accommodations ticket, and You will need to bring your own sleeping bag, pillow, and blanket. He is a man who had invented a device that can directly contact the spirits. Since 2001, the Waverly Hills Sanatorium has been kept in special care to keep the building and its rich history alive. He and architect Milton Thompson wanted to convert it into a minimum-security prison for the state, but the developers dropped the plan after neighbors protested. While there's no explanation for who or what the Creeper might be, some think he might have been a mistreated patient whose contorted appearance reflects the trauma they experienced in life. Voices in the Attic records the story of one famous enough to have a name: Timmy, the ghost of a young boy who wanders the halls. American Hauntings explains that the legendary fifth floor of Waverly Hills was not at any point used to house or confine mentally ill patients. The hospital used experimental and then-advanced treatments for tuberculosis, but the . Waverly Hills Sanatorium cannot be accessed via through the golf course. Alyssa Timboya (Fake Name) on July 27, 2020: Great Work to whoever wrote this. Before the invention of streptomycin, tuberculosis was basically a death sentence. All told, by some estimates, over 63,000 people have tragically lost their lives on the grounds over the years. Waverly Hills Sanatorium Many claim Waverly Hills Sanatorium to be one of the most haunted buildings in the world and this site certainly possesses the dark history to claim such a reputation. The original facilities at Waverly included two large open-air pavilions where the patients were placed to receive their prescribed fresh air and sunshine. Who might have done it, and why, are unknown. At this time, there are no working elevators. They're also currently restoring all the windows in the decrepit building while restoring the interior of the old sanatorium. Join XPLR CLUB for only $1 using code "HELLWEEK" - http://xplrclub.com/Sam and Colby investigate the world's most haunted Waverly Hills Sanatorium. In 1963, the former sanatorium reopened as the Woodhaven Geriatrics Center, a rest home for the elderly. As the legends go, the most haunted location in the entirety of the Waverly Hills facility is the fifth floor. She also received additional fringe benefits, including a company car. Death Tunnel: Directed by Philip Adrian Booth. The 180,000 square-foot facility provided treatment for over four hundred patients, each having access to their own telephone, radio, and solarium porch space. Waverly Hills Sanatorium sits on land that was originally purchased by Major Thomas H. Hays in 1883. The boys entered the place and began hunting the souls down. Visit one of the most haunted locations in the world! The statue, which was inspired by the famed Christ the Redeemer statue on Corcovado Mountain in Rio de Janeiro, would have been designed by local sculptor Ed Hamilton and architect Jasper Ward. But for those who have had experiences at Waverly Hills Sanatorium, there is no convincing them otherwise: Waverly Hills Sanatorium is indeed the scariest place on earth. Tel: 502-690-7880 GPS Addresses: *** NOTE *** Waverly is in the Eastern Standard Time Zone What are their intentions? We stood in a group & stared to the end of the hall & shadow people everywhere. During the buildings existence, it became known as one of the most haunted places on earth. The Waverly Hills Historical Society, a 501(C)3 non-profit organization, was formed to save the building and promote the education of its history, treatment, architectural significance, and impact it and tuberculosis on the local community. "The Waverly Hills Historical Society and Charlie Mattingly have reached an agreement to resolve all of . The Mattinglys have always owned a private residence away from Waverly Hills property. While it might be nice to think about living in a community like Waverly Hills where the philosophy of treatment is "sunshine and good vibes," it's important to remember that tuberculosis was an incurable, highly contagious disease that was spreading at epidemic proportions. [5] Major Hays liked the peaceful-sounding name, so he named his property Waverley Hill. The Waverly Hills Sanatorium is believed to be one that manifests many different types of ghosts, spirits and many other paranormal manifestations. However, it was soon overcrowded, without enough staff to treat residents. True Ghost Tales featured a story by Joey, a visitor to Waverly Hills Sanatorium. I suggest that somebody goes to Waverly Hills and uses an Ouija Board. Todd and Thompson then proposed converting the hospital into apartments, but they counted on Jefferson Fiscal Court to buy around 140 acres (57ha) from them for $400,000, giving them the money to start the project. The first tuberculosis sanatorium for blacks in the segregated South was the Piedmont Sanatorium in Burkeville, Virginia. [2][3][4], The land that is known today as "Waverly Hill" was purchased by Major Thomas H. Hays in 1883 as the Hays' family home. As luck would have it, 1943 saw the introduction of a new antibiotic called streptomycin that was an effective combatant against the infectious disease. The historical society is trying to recover its alleged losses from the Mattinglys. So while it's true that the most common treatments were exposure to sunlight, bed rest, healthy foods, and fresh air, the Waverly Hills Sanatorium Memorial records that several other methods were applied to patients, including surgical methods that were cutting edge for the time, but that might sound barbaric now. The second phase would convert the old sanatorium into a chapel, theater, and a gift shop at a cost of $8 million or more. Over the next two years of construction, a two-story wooden administration building as well as two connected open air pavilions on either side, each housing 20 male and female patients were built at a cost of $25,000. "The owner of Waverly Hills Sanatorium has not been forced out. Is Waverly Hills really the hotbed of paranormal activity that many researchers claim, or does the old and dilapidated building simply provide a good background for ghost stories? Waverly Hills, in 1950, had 373 patients, but it had dropped to 293 patients by 1960. In its heyday, Waverly Hills could be called "state of the art." It was well-equipped and considered modern. Woodhaven was closed and all of its patients were transferred to another care facility. Waverly Hills Sanatorium was the final destination for thousands of tuberculosis patients. [21], The old sanatorium is currently owned by Charlie and Tina Mattingly. The Board liked the name Waverley Hill and kept it, though at some unknown point, the second "e" was dropped. In 1962, the sanatorium reopened as Woodhaven Geriatric Center, a nursing home treating aging patients with varying stages of dementia and mobility issues. Secondly, when I was in my early 20s at Port Arthur Tasmania, I was looking around the Underground Cells, when an unseen hand slapped me on the shoulder; the unusual aspect of that was, it was broad daylight. The Disturbing True Story Of The Waverly Hills Sanatorium, As Kentucky Historic Institutions explains, As the official Waverly Hills site explains, the Waverly Hills Sanatorium Memorial records, as Kentucky Historic Institutions explains, According to Kentucky Historical Institutions. But, beyond that lies a particularly-interesting 5-story structure on this unsuspecting hill. HubPages is a registered trademark of The Arena Platform, Inc. Other product and company names shown may be trademarks of their respective owners. Perched upon a hilltop in southwestern Louisville/Jefferson County, Kentucky, is the former Waverly Hills Sanatorium, a looming, monolithic building that looks like something out of a dark gothic fairy tale, and in many ways, it sort of is. Anyone under 18 years of age, must be accompanied by a responsible adult at least 21 years of age. Waverly Hills Sanatorium is known as one of the most haunted places in America. We suggest no one under the age of 13 years old. What about the dark spirits? When they visited Waverly Hills, they found the kitchen in shambles. It was restored to its former glory as a tudor gothic style revival, and a nonprofit organization has dedicated their efforts to ensure the building is properly maintained. Our address may lead you to two gates depending on the GPS provider. The group went back inside, still pursued by shadows. Public Investigations are semi-guided, so a guide will be available as needed after an initial walkthrough. Visit the Location link. However, as Kentucky Historic Institutions explains, this treatment wasn't made available to the patients at Waverly until 1949. Either way, there was no shortage of dead bodies that had to be moved out of the sanatorium, and patients seeing corpses being wheeled out on the regular would be pretty counterproductive to Waverly's "no bummers" approach to medical treatment. Waverly Hills is indeed haunted and even through I have never been there before, I believe that 'The Creeper' does exist. Incredible Image of Ghost Figures Captured During Tour of Kentucky's Waverly Hills Sanatorium. The legal battle has been going on since early 2021, but things may yet end outside the courtroom. But there is something else at Waverly Hills, something much darker. Waverly Hills Sanatorium is quite the historical landmark in Kentucky. Learn More Once it was, though, new patients could now be treated at a regular hospital as outpatients. Deep under the hospital is the "Death Tunnel" which once were used to secretly remove the dead from the grounds. When it opened it originally accommodated just about 50 patients but soon expanded to hold almost 500 patients. We are already planning our return to both the others. The stories say that it is on this floor that people have seen shapes moving in the windows, heard voices telling them to get out, and evenso they sayjumped to their own deaths. To clarify what was said in a WAVE report, the Waverly Hills Historical Society never initiated any eviction proceedings against the Mattinglys or kicked anyone out of their home. Nestled on the top of a placid hill, the old Waverly Hills Sanatorium once tried to heal tuberculosis with peace and good vibes. Shining a flashlight on real places around the world that are really haunted and really spooky. This was believed to be a suicide, triggered by depression over an unwanted pregnancy. The Waverly Hills Historical Society is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization and operates fundraising activities to accomplish its purpose. The building and its surroundings were sold in 2001 to its current (as of this writing) owners, Charles and Tina Mattingly, who established the Waverly Hills Historical Society to raise money for the restoration of the building's interior. at Waverly Hills Sanatorium: With Jason Hawes, Steve Gonsalves, Dave Tango, Kris Williams. It's a fight for one of the most haunted places in the country. The Waverly Hills Sanatorium Waverly Hills Historical Society | 4400 Paralee Drive, Louisville, Ky 40272 NOTE: No one is allowed on Waverly Hills property without a reservations. Its name is Waverly Hills Sanatorium, and in spite of its modern ghostly reputation, it was established as the best hope of peace for people struggling with tuberculosis in the first half of the 20th century. The doctors and workers of this time also believed that this would help to lower the disease's spreading rate.[14]. Despite this, Room 502 seemed to invite sadness. "Sanatorium Has Waiting List for Treatment, Effective In Early Stages". I had an experience where it felt as if someone was holding my hand in one of the buildings. The manner in which that energy may still be present can vary. Maybe the Creeper is something else entirely, an ancient spiritual entity we don't quite understand, and perhaps never will. Though she cries for help, when outsiders approach her, she runs away screaming in terror. Now imagine that respiratory illness is so contagious that it has been a worldwide pandemic for years, and humanity remains ill-equipped to fight it.This scenario was the reality for generations of people co-existing with tuberculosis. The massive five story hospital was built in 1926 and sits atop Waverly Hill today. Described as dark shadows resembling humans but having no distinguishing features aside from their shape, shadow people are usually seen only out of the corner of ones eye. It is one of the most famous Kentucky ghost stories, and the haunted Waverly Hills Sanatorium is known worldwide. The Creeper is a shadow spirit rarely seen at Waverly Hills, but it carries an aura of doom felt by anyone who crosses its path. Maybe. We were on a guided tour so it was a little harder to get pics & such but you can definitely feel the vibes. 6 hour is free roam with any equipment you might want to take. One of the most popular spots to get scared is the Waverly Hills Sanatorium. The solution was a "body chute," or a tunnel that led from the hospital to nearby railroad tracks. 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