I contracted polio in 1953, at the age of 13. I spent about six months in an iron lung. It doesn't hurt. It is a very gentle form of artificial respiration. You are not claustrophobic, because your head sticks out the end. And, most important, it keeps a person alive. Thank God for the iron lung, and thank God we now have a polio vaccine. But a vaccine only works if people use it. Get your children vaccinated! For more information on polio and the iron lung, go to www.polioassociation.org

Ok Pookie I'll try that this afternoon, and yes I saw everything you've seen, at least in it's current state, like I've said I unfortunately never got my ass around to (terrible procrastinator, lol) seeing the inside intact, although a couple years ago during the winter of 09 I think it was I was up there one night for awhile checking out the outside. I so wanted to walk around the inside and I just kept taking for granted that they hadn't started tearing it down yet and hadn't checked here in a couple months and unfortunately missed the early warnings that the wreckers were descending on it. **sigh**
But after checking in here a few weeks ago I quickly made 2 trips up there over the past 2 weeks, both at night, as was my first trip up there, cause I was of course afraid of the coppers. And yeah even though I snuck in through the front if need be I certainly could've made a run for the woods, and I know just from maps those woods don't go to far before you hit civilization again. ;) Actually my last time there it was in the wee dark morning hours and as I was approaching a cop(or private security? I didn't wanna look too close at it, lol) SUV or pickup type vehicle was just coming down the driveway and leaving! :O ;)
But yeah I snuck up there and in the back there's a place where the construction fence(and these fences are pretty flimsy as it is) was already kinda pushed down(bet I can guess why, lol), and yep the place is all opened up and you can just walk in and I went all through the place, as some of the stairs were still intact for the workers no doubt of course. So I checked out the basement, which by the way there actually seems to be a second smaller section of the basement on the back of the center section which is completely separated from the larger section, and it looked like maybe kitchen/food storage(??), as there was an old upright freezer still down there. Also checked out the upper floors, gym was still intact, all the little closets or bathrooms or other nooks and crannies I could find, as well as the roof and even the elevator utility room way up at the tipity top. ;) Interesting how in the basement the amount of large electrical utility equipment that building needed . And then of course there's that Freddy Krueger-like boiler room, lol ;) which for some reason has some flooded standing water in it. I also on my second trip wanted to look more closely at some of the sorta stubbles for lack of a better word left where walls used to be to try and figure out where those seclusion cells were, and I think I found them. I'll ask you about it but it looks like they were along the back wall on the third and second(?) floors, on either side of the center core, and facing out the back yes?? And also it seems like there corridor was just a smaller corridor parallel to the larger central corridors?
Well but ya yr certainly right it's dark and creapy, and with all the debris and construction plastic hanging around and all the breeze you get up on that hill there's always some sudden small noises that might startle you a bit, especially at night. ;) And then I'm also kinda noticing of interesting smells, and all throughout there was this kinda distinctive smell, I guess from the old building materials(?) Also on one of the upper floors i could smell what smelled like really old stale pee, I assume from all the trespassers prob. and not from it's operating days. But yeah it's pretty interesting, and I look forward to hopefully talking to you. :)

And actually I thought the plan was to likely use the land for recreational/park use. I mean right out front is huge sign that's thanking the Waltham taxpayers for their help in acquiring the something small number of acres of land and "building" for the enjoymant and use of the city's residents. Kinda ironic isn't it that it's "public" land but still effing cops are nonetheless on the lookout for "trespassers" **rolling eyes" ;)

See my similar very long description down near the bottom of the posts under the first pic in this album. ;) :)

Yeah I was actually wondering if just maybe they were gonna save the outer shell, like for a low rise building like that why wouldn't they just start tearing it down after removing the asbestos/lead paint etc. vs. knocking out alot of the interior (by the way there was a semi trailer up there that had "Danger asbestos" signs on it so there must've been a lot of it!), but I suppose what it may be is maybe there's so much of it inside the walls etc. they had to do that first.

Oh wait sorry Pookie never mind lemme look into this, I was in such a hurry to make a post when I saw you'd been on today I didn't even read yr whole message first. LOL :)

Hey Pookie, what is you exact Facebook addy?? I so wanna see the pics you took!! :) :D

(Just a note I made the 2 posts above using the name "bunkbed", now using the name "Richard". :) )
Somehow when I think about it after looking around at what's left of the place as it's being torn down(remember I unfortunately never got my lazy ass around to getting to see the inside beforehand, **SULKING**), I think this room looks more like it was a closet/tiny storage room, or maybe even a small bathroom.

Yes those seats are most definitely seats from an American full size van, like a Chevy, Dodge, or Ford, and most likely for transportation of patients either around the grounds or like on field/activity trips.

Hey there boiler, I admit I was never at Gaebler but I'm a lifelong Mass. resident and would certainly be interested in talking with you or anyone else who was there and what it was like. I was up there a couple times in the last week and made a post about it in the first pic in this section.
schoolbed@live.com or
schoolbed1@yahoo.com

Ok here's another update.
If you can believe it I just drove an hour and a half two nights ago to check it out as I was anxious to see if anything was still left, and spent a couple hours in the dark very early morning going through it. The actual outer shell of the building is still fully standing, however most of the inside has been gutted. It's certainly no problem whatsoever getting in there now as practically every door and window is now completely opened up, lol. ;) There are large piles of rubble and some other construction equipment surrounding the place. A few sections of the inside like the basement and the gym are still intact, as well as some of the stairways so you can pretty much move throughout, although you certainly wanna be careful as I did see a couple openings in the floor, easy to see as long as you watch where you're going, where you could actually fall through to below. There's also a large hole in one section of the roof on the third floor.
I'm really kinda pissed as I procrastinated too much and didn't get to see the inside before it was torn apart, although you do get an interesting perspective now as well like in terms of how fortress-like the buildings construction was. It makes for some kinda weird and strange thoughts for me of how even in the mid 20th century it almost seems as if the primary concern in designing the place was to make it escape proof for the poor emotionally suffering young inhabitants trapped inside.
Like for example in addition to the outer walls which appear to be about a foot and a half thick from outside to inside wall, with a concrete block inner wall in addition to the outer red brick layer, all the original windows were essentially large rectangular hard (steel or iron?) grates comprised of several small (maybe 8 by 5 inch?) pains of glass so even if all the pains were broken the super hard probably cemented in grate would only allow someones arm to be stuck through to the outside. Although some of them as you can see in the pics I guess did have sections that could be opened although I imagine it wasn't very wide. And as is mentioned elsewhere in this gallery it appears that many of those later on had more modern hinged lockable security screens (like super strong versions of window screens), installed over them for additional escape-proofness. Also it seems that so many of the inside surfaces, wall and floors etc., were of very cold and hard materials like tile and glossy painted/porcelain brick walls and terrazzo-like flooring. And all the doors throughout were also very heavy looking.
It almost seems as if even when the place first opened it may have seemed a bit dated and kinda forbidding and scary for a troubled little child being forcibly brought in there.
But yet at the same time even though I was never there as a patient some part of me is still kinda pissed that the narrow minded city of Waltham is so eager to get rid of it.
I'd be interested in talking with anyone here about the place:
My MSN is schoolbed@live.com or yahoo is schoolbed1@yahoo.com :)
:)

Oh and Pookie what is your facebook addy, not just your name as I tried entering the name you posted and couldn't find you?? Would love to see your pics!

Is any of it still left????
I'm tempted to go there like even tonight or in the next few days as I hadn't checked here in a while and didn't realize they'd started tearing it down already although I knew it was coming.
I was foolishly lazy in getting my ass up there to try and see the inside although I did get to see the outside.
Damm Fucking city of Waltham!! **MAD** ;)

My favorite place in my favorite season...beautiful

Its a devistating thought to know that this beautiful structure no longer stands this day...

A c-arm unit, used during surgery for portable x-ray.

Looks like a fairly recent SCBA mask from Sigma or similar (1990's).

Maybe 'how' is supposed to be 'ooxx' ??

I believe the device is an old "slit lamp".

"she was in the kitchen cookin the paaasta." lol or "HEY!!" (guy turns around) (other guy gives a serious face and points) "Fuck Youuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu) lmao too many one liners from that movie!

Motts I believe I can speak for all of us here when I say....

WALLPAPER PLEASE!!!!

Motts I believe I can speak for all of us here when I say....

WALLPAPER PLEASE!!!!

THERE'S AN OLD PIANO AND THEY PLAY IT HOT BEHIND THE GREEN DOOR!!

Hahaha sorry I couldnt resist!

AMAZING!I Every time I see a place like this it always fires up my passion and drem to one day help restore these old bulidings.

HISTORIC PRESERVATION FTW!!!!!!!!!!

This has to be one of my favorite shots Motts.Keep on producing your amazing art!!