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Mark Ledford | profile | all galleries >> Waverly Hills Sanitorium >> waverly hills black and white tree view | thumbnails | slideshow

waverly hills black and white

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WYK22-May-2019 17:30
Nice images, Moo!
Ashley 02-Sep-2010 23:20
Wow! These are awesome pictures. I know you were a few years younger when you took these, so I'd love to see what you do now. I love that you seemed to focus on Waverly itself and not necessarily its "ghosts." As creepy and rundown as it is, you made it look majestic. I am very interested in the paranormal, but I am not easily convinced. Although there was death and suffering (as I would imagine there would have been in any TB hospital), it is obvious by the building's magnitude and the many different treatment methods tried, that someone really wanted to help these poor people. Now the whole Woodhaven abuse thing is a horrible thing. People that are truly bothered by elderly abuse should be well aware that this is still a problem and is widespread, not only in nursing facilities, but with families and friends. I would understand if Waverly has some lingering spirits, especially of the Woodhaven abused or the poor healthcare providers that risked their own lives and watched their patients despite all their efforts. I would think that would create tons of negative energy.
Again, beautiful photography. I hope you continue this. I will look for your name on amazing pictures.
kathy 02-Feb-2010 22:54
Tour Information - Call (502) 933-2142 to schedule a tour This is what you need to do to book a tour
Guest 06-Nov-2009 18:55
I think the black and white photos look better. It makes the place look haunted and scary. Makes it more interesting. Makes u wanna know more about the place.
Deana Warlick 01-Nov-2009 17:32
I think it is a shame how people have vandalized such a historic site. People are just sick in this world. They have nothing better to do. Get a job people. Leave the dead to rest in peace. Great pics though. Hope this place survives for years to come. Nature will do enough damage without all he idiots in the world helping. I hope to visit Waverly soon. I live in North Carolina though.
Guest 01-Nov-2009 17:30
I think it is a shame how people have vandalized such a historic site. People are just sick in this world. They have nothing better to do. Get a job people. Leave the dead to rest in peace. Great pics though. Hope this place survives for years to come. Nature will do enough damage without all he idiots in the world helping. I hope to visit Waverly soon. I live in North Carolina though.
Randy Wilharm 05-Oct-2009 06:04
This really is an excellent pictorial. Giving the viewer the option of having a picture fill the screen is first-class, just like the quality of the pictures themselves.
cassidy 27-Jul-2009 19:26
those are scary pics and i also hope they didnt tare down waverly hills.
cassidy 27-Jul-2009 19:26
those are scary pics and i also hope they didnt tare down waverly hills.
katie 17-May-2009 02:02
wow i would love to go their.I heard they where goin to make it into a hotel so maby when they are done with it ill stay their i hope its still haunted!!!
M.Lee 21-Apr-2009 18:51
Excellent B&Ws! Alot more info and facts at WWW.GhostHauntings.org/waverly_hills_sanitorium.aspx .... scroll down past the pictures for actual data.
John 15-Dec-2008 00:58
The 152 figure was a quote from an autobiography written by a former assistant medical director who stated that the worst year for deaths in the history of the sanatorium was 152.
However we found that this figure must have been a typo because in 1945 (the author's first year at Waverly) there were 162 deaths (we have all 162 certificates).
It would have been easy to accidentally hit a 5 instead of 6 so I don't believe it was intended to mislead. However this shows that there is no way possible for the overall figure to be in the tens of thousands.
Again, I invite anyone with questions to e-mail me at jamky13@yahoo.com

And thank you Janette Murphy for the kind words.
Cheyenne childers 12-Nov-2008 15:56

I want to see it so bad;
it looksso cool;
ihave always been into things like this.
t-rev 28-Oct-2008 15:55
cant wait to check it out
oleg 27-Oct-2008 06:14
It's really a shame at the condition of the place considering there where fag satanists there there probably are probably negetive energies there which are the ones telling people to get out. its sad really they really should repaint and paint over the graffiti and repaint the hospital to how it used to look. have not been there wish i could go there some day and spend a night by myself ...can't be that scary lol
NeonWhiteAura 27-Jun-2008 05:39
Words of advice for anyone who dares visit Waverly: DON'T LICK THE WALLS. (Lead paint! )
silence 14-May-2008 13:49
but to kill one can only resolve in nothing but your own death,take these words wisely for someday you hear from someone else..........shh,he awaits you!
silence 14-May-2008 13:46
death is a very powerful thing if you use it well................hmm
blue 28-Mar-2008 20:32
hi that place looks creepy
Shelby 09-Jan-2008 22:26
so is this place like open to the public, or can you just like come and go as you please...i want to go and see it this summer. Someone let me know....
jessie 13-Dec-2007 18:15
hey that is really cool! i love the pics and this summer i am going there it is going to be so sweet!
Heather 02-Nov-2007 03:19
From 1911 to 1961 TB patients reported they were treated with kindness and were optimistic being treated at what was then a state of the art facility. No hospital is ever free of sadness or problematic patients/staff, but the outlook was good for most of the patients. Why? Because they never saw the dead being taken away. I saw an interview with 2 patients. When they were asked how they felt knowing all those people were dying they replied that they don't remember anyone dying. (63,000 deaths; sounds more like a state-wide number. Even the owners claim that the number is from Waverly alone. That sounds impossible. The actual death toll from Waverly alone is believed to be around 152.) There is nothing in history that says to me that Waverly deserves the horrible reputation that it has.
Woodhaven (1962-1981) on the other hand was closed by the state due to patient abuse. Staff members went public and told horrible stories of how they were forced to neglect patients.
J. Clifford Todd bought the property in 1983 in the hopes of turning it into a prison. The locals protested and the plan was canned. He then toyed with the notion of turning the building into apartments. In 1996 Robert Alberhasky bought the property and made plans to erect a 150ft tall statue of Jesus on the roof and turn the building into a chapel, gift shop and theater, but he only managed to raise $3,000 and the project was canned in 1997. He attempted to have the building condemned (he encouraged vandalism and the destruction of every porcelain fixture in the building) but since it was a landmark he couldn't so this "christian" man attempted to undermine the foundation by digging around the building so he could collect insurance money. In 2001 the Mattinglys purchased the property and have been busy restoring it ever since.
These photos are absolutely beautiful! You are a talented individual and have an eye for composition. Thank you for allowing the public to view these because no one will ever see Waverly Hills look like this again!
Janette Murphy 18-Oct-2007 17:19
Well said, John. A voice in the dark, so to speak. I've posted many comments to much the same effect, and repeat that WH was only one of many hospitals of its type. Medical experimentation was, and still is, of course, absolutely necessary, and so we should spare a thought for all medical workers who work desperately to save lives, and in this case at enormous risk to their own.My own mother spent over two years in just such a hospital in northern England (where the sun never shines!) and survived, albeit without one of her lungs. Sorry to shatter the death and dismay illusion, but people did survive, many of them, and it was thanks to the dedication of the staff that they did do. The 'death tunnel' was a compassionate compromise that kept the patients from having to witness any more suffering than was necessary, and stupid, trashy movies that perpetuate the myths are only one small step from both libel and slander. 'Death Tunnel' is just such a movie - it's so obvious that WH is the subject, and the dreadful lies told in it seem to have been absorbed into common folklore.There's death and suffering all around us, each and every day; WH is no different. High buildings attract suicides, and sick people do away with themselves all the time, the world over. If there are any ghosts, they're probably just furious that the place is so neglected and that they're not treated with more respect. Over and above all that, the photos are simply superb.
Jessica 23-Aug-2007 21:52
I love the way you caught the mystery of Waverly in these pix.. Lovely
John 15-Jul-2007 16:58
Now those are some well written posts. But it's sad that people go to such lengths to try to validate their own twisted fantasies about the place. Yes it was harder to do background checks back then. But people had morals back then. Generation after generation people are becoming more self obsorbed and care less about the consequences of their actions.
Not saying NOONE was like that back then, but they were actually rare unlike today. And why try to slander the good names of the staff members who risked their lives to save strangers from death, and dwell on fairy tale or childish campfire tale? Let's face facts, yes there are bad people. Far more than there were back then. And yes, there were likely some people who weren't always nice. But for the most part Waverly was the cutting edge of medical science, staffed with heroes who risked and sometimes gave their lives to save people they didn't even know. These myths are just as incorrect as the rumors of how many deaths occurred on the grounds.
Legend claims that there were 63,000 deaths, some even estimate the nuber to be twice that. The truth is that these numbers are huge exaggerations. The actual number would be closer to 6,000. And anyone wanting to see my figures are welcome to email me
brandon 19-May-2007 13:01
Lady the reason people vandalized this proberty is because the man who owned it payed them to you see he bought it hoping to tear down everything but the building would not go down legaly it was a part of history when he could not tear it down legaly his only chaoice as to get condemed he wanted it down to build the worlds biggest cross with jesus on it when he could not condem it because the building was still up to code amazingly he hired "vandals" to tear it up. he even whent as far as digging holes up to 30ft deep to try adn crack the foundation this did not work so in 2001 he put it up for auction it has yet to sell but is still standing strong and not going down without a fight there is legend that he hired 2 guys to go inside plant some kind of bomb adn blow it down they went in and never came out. so there for i belive this building will never go down EVER.
mz..sancha 27-Apr-2007 19:58
How awsome is this. ima defenetly go see this
Lady 16-Apr-2007 00:06
you can definatly feel the power of the pictures. But let me say this. It angers and upsets me when foolish people treat the history of these places with disrespect I have seen on these posts. It shows me that bad things will definatly happen again. I read the stories of a hero and the person is very smart and knows their stuff. You people have no Idea what went on in there. WHen it was woodhaven the staff (not all) tortured and neglected the patients. remember this, if we dont learn from the past we are doomed to repeat it. and reading some of these inane comments I fear we are on a head on collsion for that fate.
♥•Amy•♥ 04-Mar-2007 08:48
I would love to go to this hospital but i live miles away. I LOVE THE PHOTOS BUT JUST LEAVE THEM AS NORMAL PICTURES THEN INVESTERGATE THE PICS BEFORE LEADING PEOPLE ON THAT THRERES GHOSTS AND IMAGES IN THE PICTURES.
Jessica 12-Nov-2006 15:54
That looks really scary and I really want to go!
Toni 31-Oct-2006 19:00
i love the pics. they really show what waverly hills is all about! i've been through the haunted house there 2 years ago and it was awesome, i can't wait to go again it is one of the best "scary" places there are! you can just feel the eerie-ness in the air, and can imagine what it was like to be in a place of such tragedy.
B*Monkey 27-Jun-2006 13:07
Pretentious load of waffle much? the previous comment, not the pics.
stories of a hero 23-Oct-2005 22:33
Many people have posited the question "Do ghosts exist at Waverly Hills"? I think the unequivocal answer has to be yes. Whilst Waverly was an active TB sanitorium I have no doubt that it was a welcoming refuge for those suffering the ravages of such a terrible disease. However, one has to imagine that whilst most of its staff were health care professionals dedicated to the welfare of the patients they cared for, like any large employer it must have attracted it`s fair share of odd employees, if not out and out manisfestations of pure evil. One must remember that it was not so easy to track prospective employee work history`s in those days. How many miscreant individuals found a haven for their tormenting practices at Waverly? It would be easy to mask such deravity in such a large organisation. The opportunities for such must have been manifest at a place like Waverly. Mankind does it`s greatest dis-service in the guise of humanity. How many other establishments are but charnel houses to the same perverse practices. Prisons, hospitals, sanitoriums, detention centres are all ripe for corruption. The underlying message being that if you are unfortunate to find yourself an inhabitant of these Godless places then its your word against the staff. Of course ghosts exist at Waverly. There can be no doubt. Humanity has suffered within its walls, either by medical ignorance or the outright determination of some of the ghouls that staffed the wards. It makes me laugh that such a subject is open to debate. When one looks around at the depravities that endure in society today it is tragicomic to deny that such similarities are not mirrored in our supposedly most caring of institutions. I would in fact challenge anyone not to feel inclined to perpetrate some sort of infraction, (no matter how slight) no matter how professional ones approach to health care is. To be in care of such people puts one in a elevated position of superiority. One cannot help but feel above the abstractions of other peoples health issues. If one of them dies then it just free`s up a bed for another willing victim. Confronted with the mass sickness of society (and one is always told not to get personally attached to individual cases) it is very easy to adopt a front of a less than caring attitude. In such climates lost souls are manifest. Would you go willingly to a peaceful afterlife knowing that the engineer of your misfortune was still prowling the wards and corridors of the establishment that took you from this world? Was still blighting the lives of similar unfortunate helpless souls? Of course not. Your tormented soul would wander the floors until retribution had been exacted. And when the place of your torment became derelict what price justice then? To any tortured soul I would imagine it would appear just as it was at the moment of your greatest torment. Ceaselessly you would search for the agent of your destruction. Yet you would never find them. They have left to find new places of torment. Your search continues forever. What a ghastly world we inhabit.
Alex 22-Oct-2004 00:38
Your pics are amazing! I am very intersested in photography and you did a really great job at photographing Waverly Hills. I have never been but i am lookin forward to going to going this weekend! i cant wait! I would lyk to do the tour, If anybody has any information on it would you please email me, and let me know, thanks alot. and great work on the photos.
lauren 17-Oct-2003 16:55
Waverley hills is so freakin awesome, if you ever get a chance to go i HIGHLY recomend going. This gallery of pics is so great!!!!
Kay I 05-Feb-2003 00:43
Excellent site!! Thanks for sharing these pics so we could all check them out!! ~Kay I
steve 19-Oct-2002 04:33
i have lived here all my life and remember the tb hospital and then when it became woodhaven and even when the nurse quarters burned down across the hill from the hospital it always seemed very spooky and creepy because of all the stories told and the history behind it because some of them came from my grandmother who stayed in the tb hospital for a while and i mean the stories about the body chute and all.
Rachael 16-Oct-2002 00:25

Hey, I just went through this site and it was great. I'd never heard of the place in my life. But, it seems so neat. I went to Louisville and stayed there for 3 yrs and never once did anyone say anything of this TB Hospital. But, I'm sure it's very wack!! If you get something new I will be back at this site to see it, very soon!!! I hope to go there one day in the long future..
later........Love Ya'll, Rachael King Scott Knotts
Jenna 16-Oct-2002 00:19
This site is amazing! I went up there today to get a close look at that place, and it was nothing as I exspected! The pics look just like it does in real life. I would love to build a house up there and I'd be like so popular for tourists. But, I know the owner and he is so sweet. I'm so glad they didn't take it down to build a stupid statue. That place will be famous til the end of time. I plan to go there next week on the tour for$20.00. I hope to get lots of pictures. I'll problay even bring 10 camaras.

Well....c-ya,
Jenna Kay
clueles 11-Oct-2002 20:11
502.502.502.502.502.502.502.502.502.502, I please help 502.502
Laura 10-Oct-2002 17:41
I remember seeing an ariel picture of the site when I was young. My Dad worked for the Parks Department, which ran Bobby Nichols golf course below, and my great aunt lived in the nursing home facility for awhile. Is there any ariel views available online?
Mark Ledford08-Jun-2002 03:29
Thanks :)
They were shot in black and white mode. My faithful 990 has recently
died and I am saving up to get the Nikon D100. A dreamy Digital SLR
that is coming out :)
Joe 06-Jun-2002 23:19
Great shots! I was browsing through some random photos and stumbled on yours. I particularly like 2928....awesome.

A question...did you shoot these in color and then convert to b&w? If so, how exactly did you do the conversion.

Great work!
Guest 22-Nov-2001 02:37
I loved your pictures of Waverly, i had previously been looking for other ppl's pictures, and had found none. I too have been there, & hope to make one last trip there.
click on thumbnails for full image