In this dust that was once a city lurked the decrepit old hospital buildings of the Essex Mountain Sanatorium, also commonly referred to as Over Brook and or Hilltop. The EMS served as a hospital for the insane, but specifically for patients suffering from Tuberculosis. But as time progressed a cure was adventually developed for Tuberculosis, therefore rendering the hospital useless. The hospital officially closed its doors on December 1 1982 remaining abandoned and untouched for years to come. Throughout these years of abandonment the hospital in a way took on a life of its own. It provided a playground of underground tunnels and decaying buildings for thrill seekers to explore. But as word got out about this local attraction it soon lured in the local vandals and before long the buildings became a hang out and was evidentially trashed.

From 1982 to 1993 the campus remained untouched until late 1993 when the first demolition crew broke ground destroying most of the main hospital buildings and leaving only a few hallowed structures remaining. The last of the buildings were then demolished off in 2002. Sadly I never got to experience walking through the abandoned halls and buildings of the Essex Mountain Sanatorium. I arrived a few years too late...

My visit to the remnants of EMS took place on a dreary April 1st, April Fools Day if you will. I knew all the buildings has been destroyed years prior to my visit. But there was something inside of me that just urged me to visit the grounds of the once grand hospital. The feeling of walking in the footprints of an abandoned asylum was something else. The thought of inhumane patient treatment was all I could think of, while walking amongst the depressing imprints of the hospital. There was not much left except a few old pump houses and foundations. Everything was quiet up-top the hill were the asylum once stood, occasionally you'd ear any eire wind pass by, but that was it. I kept saying to myself, if only I had arrived a few years earlier I would have been able to experience the journey though an abandoned hospital. But I was too damn late! Construction vehicles could be seen every where, destroying what little history was left. While walking the grounds I almost felt a connection with the buildings that were once their, envisioning them inside my head. The pictures I managed to capture, are of the foundations of the buildings, and a pump house or two. Nothing really remained and darkness was staring to win the race with light so I decided to make my journey back down to civilization, away from the hospital...

For every bit of information you could possibly wish to know about the Sanatorium please visit www.mountainsanatorium.net