Whoops

Wow! Talk about the violation of privacy laws! Leaving those things out where anyone can get to them is illegal. Some official is goofing off. You ought to inform some reporter about that, especially one that works in a gossip rag, and then watch the fur fly.

What a shame.

send the photos to a local newspaper, like Rik said, then sit back and see what happens, I bet you see them move on this quick! When did this place close

Not for nothing, but isn't trespassing to be in a position to read those files a crime? I love all of Motts' pictures and I don't have a problem with urban exploration, I'm just saying that if we're looking to throw laws around then getting into a locked area to read them seems to be illegal as well.

A mental paitent named KILLian......!

as long as motts has no criminal intent, he'd probably beat a trespassing charge.

A little kerosene and a match would take do the job those officials were supposed to do! But I can tell Motts isn't they pyromaniacal type.

Motts wouldnt have to give his name, just a pic with an explanation as to what institution this is...no mention of tresspass etc... heck, they might even think the pic was sent by a former employee, or a caretaker of the building now...
Motts doesnt have to be implicated in any way....

If it was you exploring this history....evan the peoples files would you really want them destroyed or would you worship them and read them...one by one?....I know I would.. not to disrespect but to learn. It would be a sin to burn them.

Ok, while these were all stored before HIPAA laws went into effect (Health Information Portability & Accountability Act)....and while they would be a valuable research tool for psych and medicatl students.....it IS a HIPAA violation for these to be there....but that's the problem of the property owner or whomever should be destroying them, NOT the helpless explorer;'s.....

i'm surprised that the workers didnt take everything and sell it like in Hannibal.

in some states evidence obtained illeaglly is still admissable, well so ive heard. who cares rat em out

I would be soooo tepted to take a look at those

Looks like this persons case was closed 5/1999
and suppsed to be distroyed 5/2000 ...ummmm almost 6 years late.

THESE RECORDS ARE AS HISTORICALLY VALUABLE AS THE BUILDING, IF NOT MORE.

Leave only footprints folks. Allow the next explorer the same opportunity to discover. To "expose" this would put the building in greter jepordy of being brought more to the public's attention and possibly denying a peek inside the of psychiatry in America.

i bet you could find someones hand in one of thoes boxes

Now THAT would be a gruesome discovery!

I knew what ya meant but couldn't help myself, I was taunted to do so!

EVENTUALLY THESE RECORDS HAVE NO FACE VALUE ONLY PRIVATE INFORMATION THAT SHOULD BE KEPT THAT WAY.

They have no face value. It's just a ton of scrap paper. It has recycling value.

WHY DOES EVERYONE CARE SO MUCH, MY OPINION "LET SLEEPING DOGS LYE"

hi, i'm a court administrator. i deal with records destruction all the time. Medical records are not kept indefinitely. Every state has different laws regarding their destruction and what is to be done away with. In this case, it's unlikely any of those patients are even still alive and if so, the content is probably limited at best anyway.

Imagine searching for your family's past (geneology) and being able to find a relative's records here. Imagine how many relatives were lost in these asylums never to be known. I would find them interesting to read too. Amazing how with the Hippa act that it seems so hard to get private records yet it's amazing who actually can get access to your records so easily yet.

i feel that these records should be given to universities for students of mental health tolearn from. i would have welcomed this when i was training.

Im sorry but I would be reading them!

collection cases from 1999 probably wouldn't have any educational value. also, hospitals, companies, and governmental agencies are required to retain records for certain periods, varying depending on the type of document. documents are destroyed to protect the company, hospital, agency, not the patient. the "destroy date" is the date that the files must be kept for, not the date they must be destroyed.

OOOoo spooky!seen any of them yet?

VERY cool photos - I'm jealous! About the records, not only do I love old buildings, but any kind of ancestry/genealogy. It's like a treasure hunt! I can't help but feel that an effort should be made to contact these people, or their families, or courts....as a society we already have so little disregard for the past (well, maybe not the "us" who love websites like this one), I would hate to see these records just disappear. Or maybe I'm just too sentimental and shouldn't be concerned that private psychiatric records were left behind??? Ok, I'll stop babbling and go look at more photos :-)

Only in America

terrible pain and mispent life locked away with noone caring and to finally get away even in death, but to have your name to lie as vivid mockery to your "escape".

=8-o

Also...It's not like these are OLD records from 1900's or 1930's or anything...these are from 1999 and such, not so long ago....

Tuesday, 02-07-06
By: nitedivine

I tell you it would be interesting to look through some of those files. It is weird that all that all those medical records were just left isn't it?

While tresspassing may be a crime, these photographs are completely legal.

Such a shame!---CASE CLOSED!!!

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE tell me that you looked at those,... because I sure would have.

Did you open any Motts?

What a disgrace,those record's were private. They should have been given to the patient's families .If the patien't was deceased; then they should of been distroyed .Just what type of person would leave those medical files lying arround ,sure hope you do not work in a medical facility now.

Are some of you people stupid? These records are from the last ten years. They can't "lock people away" now. To be committed takes time in front of a judge. Chances are anyone who spent time in these hospitals were just passing through. There aren't a lot of people these days who spend their entire lives in psychiatric hospitals. Quit acting like we still torture patients and stop being so dramatic.

You really should turn the photos of these private boxes filled with personal info to the police. If they ask you why you were there, just say you run a COOL DOWN TO EARTH SITE. They will understand. Besides, your Motts the Urban Warrior

Iam glad those records are not mine.

Hi Erin,there are many people with mental illness that are locked away in the jail and prison systems across the country.

Trying to turn anything in to the police is likely to get you a fine or even a jail sentence. Motts, I really would black out the names on those pics for both the sake of the patients' privacy and also for your own sake legally.

Here's what would be fun:
1. Take boxes.
2. Find a busy sidewalk.
3. Remove lid and let papers fly.
(Just joking, of course.)

i am very interested in old insane assylum records,is there any way to get a hold of them?

that is so werid wow you think they would of but o well. The case files would of been the most neat to poke through.

=8-o

I just finished checking this site out, im from canada and 24, i worked in a mental hospital up here and i can tell you that records are sometimes conveniently left behind when the hospital closes so the elements will eventually destrooy them rather than people which is against the law, alot of abandoned hospitals are patrolled by security and more so if some things are left behind, if anyone has any questions contact me at al_cochrane@hotmail.com

ohh my god..this is super crazy...why arent these distryoed?
is this place closed down?

Because it would cost the state $$$ to destroy them . There are many files left abandoned in many state properties. Most have names, addresses, S.S# etc. Everything a peson needs to commit identity theft. But nothing will be done until it DIRECTLY effects them and by them I mean the superintendent ( the big wigs ) in the state run divisions, DMR, DMH, DSS

wow! when were these pictures taken?

January 2005.

I'd read them but I'm nosey like that.

If you were to take this photo to the police or anyone, it might be a good idea to do it anonomously.

Print it out and put it through a mail slot in the middle of the night, with a few background details on it xD

Someone wasn't doing their job. What a shame.

Are they patient records?

These pictures are quite informative.
As far as looking at the records (that should have been destroyed) is concerned, I'd be curious to see what kind of treatment some of these people had. I bet it was hideous.
I wonder where these people are now.
Connie

The fact that you admit to being so "curious" to read people's personal medical files when these folks were at a damned rough point in their lives - just to prove your own personal point - is exactly why HIPAA laws were enacted - to keep people who have no connection with the person involved from rooting through their records.

Just goes to show just how lazy some of are.

By: Lynne
The fact that you admit to being so "curious" to read people's personal medical files when these folks were at a damned rough point in their lives - just to prove your own personal point - is exactly why HIPAA laws were enacted - to keep people who have no connection with the person involved from rooting through their records.

Agreed!

For those who are that curious where these places are, all you have to do is google the name, and the location appears somewhere.

maybe u should look at it another way about the HIPAA laws Lynne.. the records aren't merely kept away from "curious" everyday Joes, but mainly from companies who would could exploit or discriminate their employees or possible employees, or from medical groups that have sold ppls personal info to make $$, etc.. If someone found my records, mental or other, I would personally care less. What defines "normal" anyway? I would HATE to be normal..that's boring...... I can betchya most ppl could care less what is actually in those records, except for the sick and twisted sect, such as ourselves.. =8-o

A patient's records would not be given to the family upon the patient's death unless a formal request was made by the family. Medical records (including all of our own, not just those of patients with mental illness) belong to the doctor, therapist, hospital etc. that provides the treatment, not to the patient. While the records are *about* the patient, they are *owned* by the provider.

Although these records have patient names on them, they are not necessarily clinical records. They could contain the monthly bank statements for the trustee accounts the hospital maintained for each patient, with receipts for all the funds spent for or by the patient. Other possibilities--personal property inventories, correspondence from Social Security, etc.

yes=ah

killian... WTF thats gona haunt me for the rest of my life

Man I sure would love to have these patients records, especially the records of the male patients, as I am a gay man. maybe there's some pictures of their faces in them boxes. I would take the pictures and protect them with all my might, even place them under my mattress or pillow for that matter, yeah it may sound strange to many, but these are innocent people who have been killed. I myself believe in ghosts, theres good ghosts and bad ones. If you treat them right they will treat you right, at least thats how i feel. I have been in an abandoned mental hospital here called malcom bliss, and have found a few facial pictures of male mental patients, they looked to be in their mid 30's I took them home and I have them taped to my headboard above my pillow. I feel that they are protecting me at night just like I am doing them. don't know their names, which bother's me lots, I don't know how they died, and I don't want to know. Just ticks me off that the state can do these types of things to the insane, they have a voice as well, and need to be heard, as they can't help being who they are. The photos I found are not in best of shape, as the hospital closed in 1993, and I found them in 2004. I just recently taped them to my headboard, and now I don't seem to be having any more bad dreams at night like I used to, sounds weird don't it. I alsolaminated them to keep them from getting any worse or more worn out. If you find any let me know.

near my grandparents house theres a old hospital out in Hartner KS, and i get the jitters knowing they left all the files of patients, though, had i been ballsy enough, I may have actually gone through them, or rather, gotten close enough to them to go through them haha. good pictures motts, i love this stuff :)

i sware who ever left them there is stupid what if sum dingbat got ahold of them ...

Nothing a portable shredder couldn't cure. Not that long ago, people never would think about something such as identity theft, I think that's just a product recently thanks to the "information revolution". I know people (and I'm one of them myself) that would go "dumpster diving", not for personal records and the like but for other things. There was a time when people who worked in retail would mark a shipment "short", throw the item (camera, clothes, electronics etc) into the dumpster, then go retreive it later after the store closed. I used to find brand new merchandise in the dumpster all in the original boxes. As for patient records, I believe they should be stored for awhile then either given to the patients family or destroyed. I know I had a hell of a time getting my own records from a doctor's office, it was hell and they charged me like $200. If I'm a patient and I request my own records for whatever reason, I should be given them. They pertain to me after all, not someone else. Now everything is going "paperless" and on computer media, but there are a lot of businesses around that have peoples names, addresses and even credit card numbers available if you know where to look for that stuff. A company I worked for closed and all the computer equipment was just left and I often wondered if someone got in there and took that stuff they would find HUGE files with company info, personal info, credit card numbers the works. We need to be more responsible when disposing of stuff.

I couldnt agree with you more eldokid ! Thank goodness im into abandoned buildings, i found my birth records , my brothers, my aunts mental records that nobody should have access to, all with personal info. I dont understand why the hospital closed and left this paperwork sitting in files that anyone could have found ! These records should be disposed of, or at lease sent to a secure medical facility, certainly not a moldy old abandoned hospital!

This was grizzly, but interesting, because I have always heard that Taunton was the worst mental hospital in the Commonwealth.
Compare these pictures to Medfield, and you'll see why.
I can't imagine being a patient in any of these places?
As far as those boxes of records are concerned, try getting any information on a person--you can't you have to go through the courts.
Unless, you run into a situation like this.
Demolition is not going to erase this blight.
C. Griffith 1-10-10

case closed,1999,destroyed,03.bit late

lazy people not destroying file's when they should be, i live in canada there is a hospital in peterbourgh. Same story it closed down because the goverment could not afford to keep it open. All the junk the other hospitals don't want like files end up in there

This is a disgrace to human kind! One of my family members was there for years. She has hydrocyphalic. I pray her records not in those boxes. I would like her records- but how would I get them?

Actually a lot of medical records are supposed to be stored for 10 years now days, but they still should have been destroyed around 2009 ish and secured in a better fashion. (Locked cabinets or better locks on the doors.) I work in a clinic and you would be amazed at the kind of stuff we keep in terms of records. I'm something of a hoarder so my desk is down right scary. The lack of responsibility in taking care of the records is astounding though. That alone would be grounds for a lawsuit :/

Hippa violation...lol

i wish i could peak through the records

Wow, some of ya'll really need to get a grip. The records aren't that old and the patients probably didn't suffer some of the treatments used in the old days.

And, Shawn, who said anything about these people being killed? You are clearly a weirdo.

I think I remember reading about someone getting in trouble for putting some records from Danvers or some other mental hospital on Ebay. for sale. I read so much, and my memory is not what it use to be..

Actually, HIPPA laws where in effect in 1996, so, this would be a clear violation of HIPPA regulations and the owners of this hospital could be charged for each client's box abandoned at the building.

(By the way; William is not my real name. I still trying to keep the skeleton of my past in the closet)

As a person who spent most of his young life in mental facilities I can tell you we (as a society) still do lock people up "and throw away the key." It is very, very easy to get anyone committed, all you have to do is prove that they are a danger to themselves or others; then once the person has any kind of history of mental problems you can have them committed at the drop of a hat. As I became older I worked as a commercial plumber on quite a few remodel jobs at several hospitals including a some very, very old ones (100+ years). One such hospital is located in Washington, DC; during the remodel there I can across old storage rooms in areas that had been closed for asbestos issues, where I found many, many boxes of records. Also in the basement of one of the sealed building were flooded tunnels that when pumped dry revealed a large room with a dirt floor that had graves in it. It was later found out that during the civil war that one of the hospital graveyards was moved due to several high ranking officials and high ranking prisoners being buried there. It was originally intended that the bodies just be stored until such time as they can be returned to their final resting place. The reason they were buried was to keep down on the spread of scavenging animals and the smell. each grave was marked with a simple cross and a small brass plate with a number fastened to it. The numbers were then supposed to correspond with the name of an individual written down in a ledger. Unfortunately like most treasure in history, the ledger was lost or destroyed, nobody no for sure but it was rumored to have been lost in a fire; it was also rumored that some of the people buried there were famous leaders and the government has covered up the loss of their bodies with fake graves. (I will not state what leaders i have heard that were buried there, but needless to say it's unbelievable if the rumor is true.) Anyway back to the topic of the age of the records in the boxes in this picture; I'm 35 so the woman that said that all these patients were probably dead, your probably wrong. The mental hospital I was at when I was younger was opened in 1850 and is still operating to this day in North Carolina. I left that hospital in 1995 and my files were closed in 1997. So yes there is a very REAL possibility that the patients whose histories are in this photo are still alive and well.

"Sun 02-26-2006 By: scott
collection cases from 1999 probably wouldn't have any educational value. also, hospitals, companies, and governmental agencies are required to retain records for certain periods, varying depending on the type of document. documents are destroyed to protect the company, hospital, agency, not the patient. the "destroy date" is the date that the files must be kept for, not the date they must be destroyed." In revisiting this wonderful site after years have passed, and reading comments since my last visit, I look at the picture again and see what Scott and other's wrote, these probably are just billing records and such that don't reveal any medical details. Any place that essentially quit majorly serving the mental health community before 2000 didn't either have to deal with HIIPA or didn't have the ability to deal with decades of forgotten records if anything medical related was left. I still maintain the records would be interesting to read for a historical account as so many people's lives were destroyed and forgotten undeservedly.

I would give ANYTHING to read these. these people are (sadly) long and forgotten. i want to see how these people were treated. how they made files back then and wondering.. why werent they destroyed?