Exploring Letchworth Asylum - A Real Life Horror Story 

Our math was a little off on that memorial. Probably more like 1,000 names on there.

Amazing how cruel people can be to the ones who are unable to fend for themselves. So so sad!

This begs the question, did we go to the other extreme? So many of our mentally ill seem to be homeless, living on the streets, or incarcerated. Not spending much more on helping them today, in my humble opinion!

It's so heartbreaking to see grave markers with just a number on it or in some cases in other cases just a date of death. No matter the mental capacity of these people, they were still human beings.. Yet they were buried in my opinion without any dignity of personal identification.

I am going to give a very unpopular truth here. Forty years ago, I worked in one of the few private facilities that were available once these institutions closed. Back in the 1920s, even through the 1970s, there were polite societies where one simply did not have less than perfect children. Doctors encouraged mothers to leave children behind and not look back. Children were left behind for a deformed hand, a cleft, palate, dwarfism and a million other non intellectual issues. Even America's first family warehoused a child. Once a lobotomy did not restore Joe Kennedy's daughter Rosemary to normalcy, she was never pubically again mentioned. And those are only the young. These institutions held nightmares and secrets for decades, and filth, nudity, and being understaffed are just noise so folks don't look any deeper

Easy to condemn the institution. But the real blame goes to the families knowingly putting their family members into these places. Was a easy way out for the family that couldn’t or wouldn’t put up with a mentally I’ll child. Sad. I’ll bet 70% of families that did put their handicap children in these places never came back to check on them.

Always fascinating,yet very sad to see these old asylums😿💔

The issue was not the sanitarium themselves. It has everything to do with money and the privatization of Healthcare. To this day there are mentally unwell patients dropped off at your local hospital where they stay for months and months because their families don't have the money or the parents aren't fit enough themselves to go through processes that could get the patients into private facilities. I have heard of patients being refused by 40 facilities and in the meantime they are attacking staff and taking time and manpower to manage wial staying at a small local hospital not intended or equipped to deal with these situations. Not uncommon for a 20 something yr old female nurse or cna to be expected to deal with a mentally unwell male or multiples and regularly being attacked and hit. Large institutions like this certainly had/have their place if run in a ethical manner. Just my opinion.

Very heart breaking to see how children lived, if you can call that "living". Thanks Chris and Jay!

Darn I wish I knew you were going to be there! I’ve been exploring there for many years. I even did my college photography final on Letchworth. I could have been your tour guide, haha. The first time I went to the morgue, almost everything was still there- the freezer doors, the tables, instruments, patient files, etc. but so many kids have come through and taken stuff, it’s practically down to its bare bones at this point. Thank you for shining light on it.

The sad thing is, somewhere in our world today these places still exist..

So sad and so horrific, I can't even imagine what these poor people had to endure. SMH

When i see videos of asylums i immediately think of those poor Souls by themselves, abandoned and abused. RIP

I would like to say a few words. Not all mental hospitals were like this in the 70s. My friends mother was a charge nurse in a large hospital. My friend and I decided to volunteer as candy stripers age 14. We witnessed those nurses treating every child and adult with patience and care. We couldn’t handle the environment as young kids. We quit. Loud, upsetting and children who scared us. Those wise and loving nurses could handle it. I met them again at my friends mothers funeral. Still calm and angelic women. Bless them ❤️👍

Heartbreaking 😢 those poor souls! May they rest in peace in the arms of God.

Wow this is incredible interesting but so sad. Thank you for the video.

Awesome editing as well as the video and the history.

is it bad to say that I think we need more people in institutions like this? obviously better conditions…I’m a nurse, and it is impossible to get patients committed, even when they really need to be. Our current mental health crisis is insane rn. we need better facilities, that are easy for all the have access to, in order to receive the care they desperately need😅 what are everybody else’s thoughts

Oh, those original pictures and the video from Geraldo! How awful it would have been there as both one of those institutionalized or a staff member. So many graves with nothing but a number. Very, very sad. Thank you for documenting this old asylum. It's just one of many all over the world back in those days.

Chris, both you and Jay need to commended for your reporting and compassion whilst processing your own personal feelings about the horror and tragic story of this place. Thank You!

Visited this place like 7 years ago. Crazy true story attached to it. It’s sad how many places around America were like this but that’s how it was back then.

You can feel the sadness through the screen 😢 how could a parent just abandon them.

You're videos are so well done. Your notifications always make me happy. Even on such a sad subject. Thank you for this type of documentaries. If we forget the past then we are likely to repeat it.

Thank you for showing us Chris! It's crazy that this place was still in operation in the 90's.

Hard to believe this place was open in the 90s. That's not that long ago. So so sad. Great job on the video though. Oh, and thanks for making me cry. (I did cry, but I needed to see this. Thank you for real).

Very sad. Unfortunately, many people today are just left on the street with no care at all.

Chris, I really wish you would wear rubber gloves to protect your hands when you handle stuff like you and the young man with you was doing with that rusty tin toy. You don't want to take the chance of picking up something like germs, bacteria, and etc... just please be safe 🙏

As a parent of, 2 adult children with physical and mental disabilities in their mid 30's, I want to thank you for doing this explore showing respect and dignity to these individuals. So many, make remarks that are rude and degrading to the people that lived here. Geraldo's report was the beginning of the end for facilities like this. Home and Community Based Services began to assist us parents with keeping our loved ones at home. Modern medicine is not what turned it around for individuals with special needs but for those with mental illness. They are two different categories not to be compiled together. Home and Community Based Services is what reduced the numbers in those being placed in these institutions.

Thanks for sharing. The whole thing was absolutely horrible and a disgrace . Govt still doing the same things cutting things to benefit themselves.

I've seen this place before on an investigation charm city paranormal did. It's got a lot of tormented souls left behind. Did you encounter anything Chris?

Amazed the narcissistic condition of humans that they need to put graffiti everywhere. Wtf.

This is very well done. Thank you for sharing a glimpse of what life was like for the patients.

There are still places like this but way nicer. Some are slowly being phased out. I had two relatives that were in institutions. It is more common than you think.

This is the image of "institution" that is seared in the collective memory of this country, which is why we have so many people on the streets who cannot care for themselves. The country/states will not open/run facilities to house/help them because of laws, policies, and stigma. So we leave them on the streets to live the same way, only without food and shelter. There have been and are legit institutions (in-patient residences) where people do get the help they need when their families don't have the ability or means to do it themselves. I'm sure a majority of people who were institutionalize back in the day were put there because there was no other way to care for them, and it was the best known way to "help" them. Pressured by society and the doctors, many mothers turned over their children to the state to "help" them, with visitation being limited because of the false belief it would make the patient's "progress" fall back. We can't judge the ways of 1911 with 2023 knowledge. Yes, the conditions deteriorated and were horrible, and many people shouldn't ever have been put there, like women with post-partum depression or someone with mild disabilities, but what do we do today with our elders ... and how many people visit them? We warehouse them in much the same way, with conditions in many of those places being less than ideal. Things will change when families are intact and step up to the best of their abilities, even if it's just regular visits and caring. - Great job on the video! Thanks for the visit! - Muddypaw 🐾

That's a very stylish approach to include the inverview audio on top of your own footage. It really adds a haunting layer to all of what was.

Been watching you since you had like 200 subs and i hadnt doscovered Lamont yet. Keep at it man. The entertainment, video quality and the accuracy of information is commendable and has only gotten better, and better. Thanks Chris for another great video.

I will never understand why people think painting their names in eligible bubble letters on other people's property is cool. Who's just walking around with a can of paint on them lol. Great video!!

Was there any way a family could get their loved one out of this facility when it was active? If so what was required of the family to have their loved one returned?

I find it hard to understand how conditions could have been allowed to get so totally out of control here, Chris, but we are talking about New York and also the mental heath situation nationwide has been a shambles for decades. Than you for showing us the revolting travesty. God Bless and stay safe.

Terrible conditions for the disabled and mental patients to live in and also staff having to work in this environment day and night knowing that it was not going to get better either. Thanks for sharing!

It took 20 years to close the place down after Geraldo reported on it. 🥺😩

This place is so sad and humiliating towards those poor children and adults that was there over those years. You can see by the size of them, that a lot was not fed enough food, as their showing bones. sure it didnt look as bad inside as it does today in its abandonment, but it was no pleasure place either. I truly hope there are no more places this bad in todays society

I remember seeing the Geraldo Rivera story on Willowbrook from 1971-72

One of the few things Geraldo did to actually help people.

Take the whole buildings down why save a nightmare it's horrible seeing things like this

It makes me sad to hear these stories. I’m only here because I find psychology and the paranormal interesting. My hearts go out to my fellow autistic people who suffered in insane asylums. May they rest in peace.

Well done Chris and Jay. So sad the way people were treated when people just didn’t understand mental health. So sad for the employees that tried their best with what little they had.

Very well done. The news clips worked great, and your attention to detail is impeccable. Sad one to watch.

Absolutely barbaric. This is and those like it are the reason mental institutions are shuttered in America. They did this to people. In a country that needs mental health facilities the more than ever this is why there aren't any left. We see today what animals do to people in retirement facilities. Imagine what they would do to people in mental crisis.

Letchworth Village was featured on Travel Channel's Ghost Adventures in 2011.

7:10 It was not wrong it was a cure to a disease that cost many people their lives. I have never met a person that was disabled due to polio. My grandparents feared getting it as a kid. The oral polio vaccine, despite the small danger, is likely one of the best things that could have happened to that place.... other than getting shut down.

This story reminds me of Byberry State Hospital, in Philly. Absolutely horrible living and working conditions for those involved.

In my opinion there are many people in todays prison system that would be better suited for a institution the people with mental illness ect a prison is not where they should be 😢

So sad. But thanks for doing the video. So these people are not forgotten. Great job both of you.❤

I can't even watch this. 😡 It angers me and hurts my soul to know these precious children were mistreated, unwanted, abused and tortured. My first job was working with disabled adults who came from institutions such as this and i formed loving bonds with so many. I became a psych RN, because i wanted to care for the "misfits" of society. I consider it a blessing.

I'm no Geraldo fan, but the work he did on this report I truly admire him for.

Just the name of the place says it all. Letch worth 😅

This is the way to help the suffering kids ....and adults. Show them up.!!.. Theres so much stuff we dont know. Thank you a million times.

So hard to fathom how a place that was imagined and realized in the spirit of human kindness and good will could devolve into a proverbial house of horrors, and ultimately the sad decay that is left today. Perhaps even sadder is how common this is in our society.

The minute I see some old footage that goes with the story I’m sold

I remember watching this in the 50 year anniversary of this asylum the reporter name was Geraldo Rivera cover this report with a employee who worked there. One of the patience of the asylum became friends with him the stories of these victims made me sad but glad it was shut down for good

For years I was Residence Manager for Group homes for the developmentally disabled. After Heraldo’s expose, these places began to treat these individuals so much better and deinstitutionalized these people so they could live in homes in the community. Now over 50 years later they are living in 4,5, or 6 bed homes, go to work or day hab programs, go to a huge variety of recreational activities every nite and on the weekends, have decent clothes and decent and nutritious food, have spending money, go on beautiful vacations etc. This is what they should have had all along. My most cherished memories are the hugs I would get everyday. Also myself and 3 staff took 10 individuals to Orlando to Disneyworld/Epcot Center, Animal Kingdom and MGM studios for a week’s vacation. We stayed in a huge house with a screened in pool and jacuzzi. It was probably my most memorable trip in my life, to see the looks of amazement and wonder on their faces. For years afterward, I would occasionally see these individuals and that’s all they could talk about! I could keep writing of my 25+ yrs in the field of Special Education, maybe one day I’ll write a book of all my experiences! PS- I had a young woman who came from Willowbrook and many from Letchworth Village. They were permanently scarred from their years of abuse. I hope I was able to have made a more positive impact on their lives. The hilarious stories I could tell you! And a shout out to all the hard working underpaid staff- thank you for your love and dedication to these individuals. ❤❤

Great video, I can see you work on the thumbnail! It's also great that you're reminding people of the history they wish they can forget. It makes me wonder if some schools in the USA are making a similar mistake.

Horrible! How would anyone want to put their loved ones in a place like that? They were "throw aways". Really sad.

Well done Chris, and Jay, perhaps one of your best yet, revealing tragic Americana of the past. They were all once someone's child, and now children of God. Thanks for this.

When a place is abandoned unfortunately people will destroy places because they have no respect for anything but themselves

A big part of our history. Thanks for covering. 18:16 JFK pushed to close many of these places, but true funding for home and outpatient care was never approved. The home and outpatient supports were part of the care plan.

Just amazing how big this place was at one time when so many buildings for people who have mental health problems with today's problems we need to reopen this place again

Thanks for sharing this tough story.

You lock the door And throw away the key And there's someone in my head, but it's not me (Brain Damage, Dark Side of the Moon, Pink Floyd)

I have found mountains of paperwork in this place with staff members literally pleading for more help funding and food. Every single one of them was denied😢 I won't get into what else was found while going through days of paperwork

Such a sad history 😢all those helpless souls.❤would love to explore here kinda has a beautiful feeling now with nature taking over .🌱🌿

I believe you knocked it out of the park with this one. Wow! I'm pretty shocking. Thanks for sharing😢

The drug problem cant be bad in that area.... there is thousands of dollars worth of scrap for the taking.

These only got bad during the extreme budget cuts in the 60's and 70's. Now all the people who would have been housed here and cared properly for are living on the street, in jails and under bridges, on their own and vulnerable to criminals, unsurvivable weather and starvation. We genocided our mentally ill by throwing them into the street instead of replacing budgets.

I think this is the hospital that goes along with the documentary called Cropsy.

Im a little two sided on this issue, first i do agree that putting handicapped children/adults in such places was criminal and should have never taken place, that said, my other point, These days street drugs like fentanyl have grown to toxic and deadly levels never seen before in North America causing homelessness and violence to go way out of control, even attacking strangers for no reason, the point is that addict's simply refuse to cooperate with most out patient treatments, even when they are revived from near death from overdosing they just walk away from offers for help and are shooting up again just hours later. Its these dangerous out of control addict's that need to be strapped down and locked in padded rooms, not innocent misunderstood children with learning disabilities....

We need to open the asylums back up. Not like they used to be, but clean, safe facilities for the mentally ill, especially the violent and violent addicted. They have no business roaming loose among us.

Jeremiah 17 : 9,10 - " the heart is deceitfully wicked and desperately evil , who can know it "

Nothing ever gets to me on RU-vid hardly. This is an exception.

These places were meant to be hidden aways from normal people in the countryside no one knew about them the family's kept things private between doctors and family it was not talked about like today

Sad history there but looks like an awesome place to explore

You really do fine documentaries.

Looking around today I think we need to restore these places. People aren’t well and it’s alarming.

Willowbrook is now the campus of the College of Staten Island.

So sad and painful, great video!

Did anyone else see the face on the door frame right below the door latch area. right around the 7; 57 to 7;59 mark in viedo

Very well done, voice over/cut scenes was special touch...Thank you much. Keep safe and all🎉

far too many of these places then, and the group homes and home supports today, are poorly run, had and still have rampant abuse. its horrible and beyond cruel. but you cannot blame the parents for giving up these kids, i worked in social services for adults for almost 20 years. and it is highly selfish to keep these kids at home, they do become, yes, a burden , it is cruel and not fair to the rest of the family, the siblings,etc. to have to give up their own lives, dreams and potential to be saddled with the life-long care of these severely disabled people. im a conservative republican, but i support abortions for cases of knowing that you will, or will likely have a disabled child, these kids, while many do live decent,happy fulfilling lives, but most do not, and again... at the expense of how many other people to make that one person live in the illusion that they have good life, more often than not, these kids and adults become depressed, lonely, their quality of life is bleak and poor. don't think for a second i don't value life; i do, i value life very much, which means dont knowingly bring these kids into the world to live a life of suffering, sure, there is a chance of a good life, but not worth gambling. ultimately we need to cure and prevent these birth defects and brain deficits from occurring.

The Marlboro psychic hospital when it was opened had a cemetery across the street was exactly the same. Just graves with numbers. So sad! They also had a memorial built that added the names of some of the individuals.

LOOK IN VIEDO AT 7.59 LOWER RIGHT DOOR FRAME. THERE IS A FACE IN CHIPPED PEELING PAINT.. WENT OVER SEVERAL TIMES ITS NOT GRAFETTI. ERIE..

Why does every idiot that enters an abandoned building have to graffiti the place, seriously!

I worked in GA an u are right it easy to condem the staff an ppl but what about the family's that put them in there an never look bk

I wonder how many children were autistic or had Downs Syndrome. What a sad place 😢

I live about ten mins from this place been here exploring a few times, last time i went my friends and i had a terrible experience and never went back, ive gone as far as changing my commute route so i dont drive past. Of the friends I shared that experience with just one besides myself is still alive the others have either offed themselves or od'd, not sure if its a coincidence or related to them carving tags that day. I occasionally have nightmares about it and wish we never went that day and I'll NEVER go back!!

Now the lunatics are walking the streets... Nothing changes.. just relocated

Wonder what all the institutions did with their patients when all the institutions were shut down. An how many were normal until they started experimenting with them. Great video thanks

Now they don’t use Asylums. They leave them to live on the streets. Which is more humane ?

Imagine what the employees put up with there. I wonder what the turnover rate was . That place has to be haunted now.

This was so sad cause I have a special needs child and I couldn’t imagine or even digest any of this happening to him. It’s just horrible how people just though their children in these places without any thought. 😢😢😢 Sad!😢😢