In culture after culture, people believe that the soul lives on after death, that rituals can change the physical world and divine the truth, and that illness and misfortune are caused and alleviated by spirits, ghosts, saints ... and gods.

STEVEN PINKER, How the Mind Works


Monday, August 25, 2008

Location - Weyburn Mental Hospital


Part One

The Weyburn Mental Hospital opened in 1921 and, at the time, it was one of the largest buildings in the entire British Empire. When the facility first opened, mental illness was poorly understood and the primary methods of treatment consisted of 'work and water.' A lot of them worked at the laundry and in the kitchen and in the gardens. They were just glad to have things to do.

One of the favored treatments of the 1860's was the Water Cure, in which a patient would be immersed naked into a tub of icy water and then taken to a tub of scalding water after their body temperature had sufficiently lowered. In addition, female patients, received a cold water douche, administered with a hose and then they were wrapped tightly in wet sheets to squeeze the blood vessels shut. This was followed by vigorous rubbing to restore circulation. The "treatments" were administered several times each week but not surprisingly, such techniques brought little success and most of the patients never got better.

Other treatments used at the hospital were not so benign. In an attempt to control and treat patients, methods such as insulin therapy, electroshock and lobotomies were practiced.

Although invasive, these methods were driven by a desperate need to help patients who were often a danger to themselves and others. Later, other therapies came into practice.

The haunted part of this location is said to be the fourth floor which is sealed off. Voices have been reported and some have even gone as far to report the sighting of a female ghost said to pace up and down the halls, throughout the night. Surrounding the mental institution is a hoard of trees which at nightfall witnesses claim to have encountered unexplainable noises originating from wood.

At present the Mental Hospital is scheduled for demolition, ending an association of more than 80 years with Weyburn.


Part Two


This past week we took a road trip down to the Weyburn Mental Hospital to check out this sprawling complex. Big is definitely a fair description of this building. The property is still some what active as two buildings on the perimeter are still being used by Sask Power and what looks like a health facility of some sort.

Our initial trip was to be during the day and the weather was cool and rainy. The inital impressions I got was the scope of this facility must have been massive. There was a uneasy and anxious feeling to it as well. My wife said the place made her feel weepy, like she wanted to cry but was unsure why.

The main complex's ground and first floor openings are completely sealed and boarded up to prevent the vandalism that still has occured in some areas. Thou the boards on one window had been pulled away we did not go inside. Thou we did take some photos threw this opening.



Is this location haunted or is it just a legend to go along with an unique old building with a depressing past?
As of the legend of a spectral women that moves back and forth on the fourth floor, we did not get any evidence of this nor the mysterious sounds and voices from the surrounding trees.

11 comments:

Bethl927 said...

I was in there yesterday the door was wide open. And clear as day my friend and I heard footsteps, like a woman in high heels marching down the hallway. It sounded like a teacher marching her way down the hall, then faded away.

KUB said...

doubtful..when are the doors just left "open"

KUB said...

i take that back the doors are wide open..odd tis probably a trap..

loventouch said...

k I knew nothing about the weyburn hospital until my sister took me there one night last winter, the back door had been left open leading to the basement, or upstairs your choice on direction, I did not want to go in, she had turned to me while standing in the door way her face went pale she thought she had heard me scream however when she turned around I was just staring at her, we ran back to my car and my radio started freaking out for no reason. We had finally convinsed ppl to come back there with us a total of four including myself went in, it was much colder in some rooms then in others, we found our way down to the tunnels, you could not see the end of them however our flashlight beam had appeared to go out and come back on as if someone where to have walked accross the light, we ran for our lives out of the place. the light was an amber at this point and no matter what we did it would not come back on by the time we got out of the area and near the seven eleven by there the flashlight came back on. On another night a few months after that we went back and walked around looking for an entrance I was scared and never wanted to even look at that nasty place again but some other ppl convinced me to go out there, all the doors were locked, someone tried one of the doors it did not budge they it it once or twice not hard and it few open our flash lights again did not work... I refused to go in that time and ruined everyones night but did not want to be even close to that old building... it gives me the chills just knowing its close when im in weyburn.

Anonymous said...

My Friend and I were in there about 9:30 and we were walking down to the building. There were things in the trees watching us. It was scary. Then we got to the building and my friend really started to act weird. When I shon the light in her eye they were black with a red ring around them. Then she started humming this weird song. Something she didnt member when she got half way out. Then after we got half way out she started trying to turn around and go back. Later she started talking in a southern accent. My friend doesnt have a southern accent at all. Then we got out and she was somewhat back to normal but she is still being weird.

Lazyowl said...

Thanks for posting mystery anonymous reader as well the other above posters :)

That's an interesting story. Do you have any photo or video evidence of the changes your friend experienced?

Anonymous said...

in the one picture that shows the side wall it looks like u can see a little girl. its the one with the cup or can in the window if you look close enough you can see a little girl

Anonymous said...

i work near the souris valley ground, which the mental hospital is on in weyburn and everyday my co workers and i walk by and watch them tear the hospital down, on the fourth floor almost daily we see a woman in one of the windows. i was not a believer in the paranormal until i saw this myself and took pictures. there is something still in this building.

Lazyowl said...

Hey there bekra! Thanks for your comments. Can you send us a copy of the pictures you took?

We plan on returning to Weyburn in the next little bit. We will be sure to check into this. Thanks.

Anonymous said...

Hey all! I was just in Weyburn for a business trip and I often find myself drawn to the Mental Hospital(not that I needed help). I have been visiting the site for the last 8 yrs, I was shocked to see the building being torn down, stupid politics is all I can say about the descion to rip it down! So we decided we needed to go inside and see what everyone is talking about as it would be our last time to do so, well we scoped out the construction crew and waited for the right time. We found an opening in the fence as well to the basement, we ran across the yard into the building.. We searched around a little bit and found a room full of chemicals, laundry room and what looked like an incinerator, we also found some old blank invoices in an old closet, I took the booklet, we continued on searching it was very dark hard to see, there were hundreds of yellow bags that were marked asbestos, my friend freaked out because of a pigeon that flew out over our heads, so we decided to evacuate the building as we had guard dog in the back of our minds, as there was two k9's floating around the building. As we exited the building there was a cop car scoping our vacant rental truck next to the fence(oh boy). So I can honestly say it was scary, our adrenaline was pumping and we had the shakes, but I think some of the fear was from the thought of a guard dog shitting our body parts out if they caught us..If anyone is wanting some of the blank invoices reply and I can send away..

Cops, did nothing, I encourage everyone to check it out for the last time before the mental shop is in millions of pieces at pawn shops across the country.

Just a thought, but Weyburn should of reno'd the building and turned it into condo's, with free entertainment!! lol..

Mark From Alberta

Anonymous said...

Hi everyone,
I am trying to find out the namees of patients there. I just found out that my grandfather died there around 1921. He was there only for a week. No one of my family nows how he did. I sure would like to find out......gail1919