First, I have to open with a little story. We were trying to find this hospital while on vacation in the area. We found out about this place through GhostHunters. TAPS is headquartered in New England, so I had to try. Well, I didn't bring a detailed map, so I was guessing. I knew I missed when I ended up in the next town to the south. We pulled into a gas station and asked directions. The person there then said to me, "You mean the scary place??"
In Bartonville, in a commercial/industrial area, is the former Peoria State Hospital.
To get there - first, don't follow us. Second, follow US 24 south from Peoria to Pfeiffer Rd on your left - there is a sign to an industrial park, and you climb up the bluff from the intersetion. The main stone building will be ahead, easily distinguishable from other buildings in the area. The industrial park is on the old grounds of the hospital. Many other buildings in the area were part of the hospital complex, as well.
The main stone building certainly has the look of an old insane asylum. It is 3 1/2 stories high and has a peaked roof. The building is 'C' shaped. The first floor windows are all blockaded. There are also signs posted saying 'No Trespassing.'
The factual history is as follows. The hospital was operated from 1902 to 1973. 47 buildings in all are associated with the hospital, most of which are across the street. All of them are listed as part of the National Register of Historic Places. Other names have been used for this facility including the Bartonville State Hospital and Illinois Hospital for the Incurable Insane. The peak population of the interned was 2600 in the 1950s. When the announcement was made to close the hospital, the population dipped to 600. Many of the surrounding buildings were converted to industrial/commercial use. The main building or Bowen Administration Building was abandoned for a while, then bought with the intention of converting it.
Paranormal history includes the following. There are many stories. There was the story of "Manuel A. Bookbinder/Graveyard Elm." Manuel Bookbinder, also known as "Old Book," was a patient at the hospital who also helped staff in burying patients. For each person he buried, he would go to the elm to wail. When he died, they had a funeral for him. Doctor Zeller, who ran the place, over a hundred of the staff and three hundred spectators attending the funeral saw a figure that looked like "Old Book" sitting under the elm tree in the hospital cemetery wailing away. They opened the casket and found "Old Book" still there peacefully resting. GhostHunters also related that there was a "Lady in White" who walked through the halls.
There are many documented paranormal investigations on the Internet. GhostHunters had an episode (originally aired in September 2011 - it was airing while creating this WM). They captured sounds of walking and voices in the attic, as well as other unexplained noises elsewhere. The best thing, though was capturing a human-like form in the cemetery.
While walking around, we talked with a man from the Shriners building next door. He related a time very recently where someone showed a picture to him of the hospital building. The pictured shows one of the windows, with a woman in the window wearing a nurse uniform of an older era. I did not see the picture, myself. However, later, I found out from someone else that the tours given there often have people in costume, so it is quite possible that the person in the window was an actual person in costume.
See below for details on tours. We were not able to fit it in our trip this time.
Sources:
Wikipedia (Peoria State Hospital):
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visit link)
hauntedamericatours.com (Illinois Asylum)
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visit link)