Inside An Abandoned Mental Asylum: A Spooky Road Trip to Americus!

For months, I had this reoccurring dream... 

I was a patient held in a hospital against my will, and I could tell I was heavily-medicated. I had somehow escaped through the basement door. The sunlight was so bright, and I felt so weak. I was barefoot, wearing a hospital gown, and I could tell I had recently ripped an IV needle out because my arm felt exposed. It was hot and muggy outside. I moved clumsily across the overgrown lawn on my way to the pavement. The massive hospital behind me towered over me like a foreboding monster, but I saw a neighborhood street in the distance. As I made my way to the asphalt, I heard voices behind me. I turned and saw three orderlies looking around outside the basement door. As I looked back at them, one caught my gaze and started running toward me. I felt overwhelming dread when I envisioned being forced back inside the hospital, so I turned around and sprinted as fast as I could. I was running for my life but felt like I was barely going anywhere. It was as if I had a weight tied to me. 

I turned the corner onto the neighborhood street. My legs felt like they were about to give out on me. I stumbled and crawled up the front porch to one of the houses. I banged on the front door, begging for sanctuary. No one answered. As I made my way back down the porch steps, the orderlies turned the corner onto the street. I was out of time. I wasn't going to make it. I saw people looking at me through their windows as the orderlies yelled for me to stop. In that moment, I realized that no one was going to help me. I took off running as fast as my fragile body would allow me. Then, I wake up. I always wake up. What ever happened to that young girl? Did she ever leave that hospital? The fear she felt will never leave me. 

…Keep this story in mind as I continue with my latest post:

HISTORY:

Central State Hospital in Milledgeville, Georgia was once the largest mental asylum in the world. It was in continuous operation from 1842 until 2010. Its almost 2,000 acres are home to over 200 buildings and, at one point, housed over 12,000 patients. It was basically its own little city with its own train depot and even its own power plant. 

Between the 50's and 60's, the hospital began to outgrow its resources. They had trouble getting psychotropic drugs, and it got to the point where there was only one doctor per 100 patients. In addition, the public began to question the methods of mental hospitals. In 1960, a journalist named John "Jack" Nelson wrote an article on Central State in the Atlanta Journal Constitution and won a Pulitzer for it. His and others' accounts mentioned lobotomies, insulin shock, and early electroshock therapy. Reports showed children were confined to metal cages, and adults were forced to take steam baths and cold showers and were treated with douches. It was even found that some of the "doctors" had been hired off the mental wards. Yes, the patients were helping run the hospital. 

These reports caused then Governor Carl Sanders, with the help of President Jimmy Carter, to start clearing out Central State Hospital. Not long after this began, new psychiatric drugs allowed people to be treated from their homes, and small group homes began to rise in number. Deinstitutionalization began, and soon the grand buildings of Central State were left vacant and rotting. Even though the lack of large scale mental asylums has lead to homelessness and drug abuse among the mentally-disabled, almost all agree it is still better than the aggrievances that occurred inside the walls of these poorly-funded hospitals. 

Believe it or not, Central State is still operating today. A new facility opened in 2018 and serves about 200 mental health patients.

THE BUILDINGS:

The artfully-decaying buildings from the original hospital are a haven for any urban explorer. The main buildings all surround an old pecan grove, with the Powell Building (the Main Building) front and center:

Map of the Original Hospital

The Old Pecan Grove

Powell Building - The white building with the dome was built in 1937 and still holds a small office for the campus Redevelopment Authority. The affluent and intricate design of the building was intended to keep families from feeling as if they were bringing their loved ones to a prison or a mental asylum. 

Entrance to the Powell Building

Mail Room or old Records Room

A Patient Room

Walker Building - If you look closely through the third story windows of this building, you can see the sunlight shining through. This is because in most places, the roof has collapsed, and nature is slowly reclaiming it. 

Walker Building

Third Floor of the Walker Building

Stairwell in the Walker Building

Green Building

An Exterior Corridor

Jones Building - The building boasting Georgia's state seal has been left to rot since 1979. This 142,140-square-foot general service hospital was the heart of the campus in the 1800s, as it was home to the cafeteria, the operating room, X-Ray, and pathology. The interior of the building has since been a filming location for the "The Originals."

Front of the Jones Building

Nurses' Station in the Jones Building

Morgue in the Jones Building

The Auditorium

Brantley Building

Hallway in the Brantley Building

Cedar Lane Cemetery - This cemetery displays 2,000 cast iron markers to commemorate the over 25,000 patients buried in unmarked graves throughout the hospital grounds. 

Cedar Lane Cemetery

BUT even with all the decay, life still goes on throughout Central State campus. The chapel still hosts weddings and holds services every Sunday, and the pecan grove can even be rented for events.

Visitor Discretion Advised: This historic location is not for the faint of heart. Firstly, there are security guards monitoring the property, and you can be fined and/or arrested if caught trespassing. Secondly, I love abandoned buildings (and exploring an old mental asylum has been on my Bucket List for as long as I can remember), but the feeling of this place was almost too much to take. The weight is so heavy that it feels like it's hard to breathe sometimes, and it got to a point where me and my group couldn't handle it anymore. We were almost sick to our stomachs by the time we got out of there. 

We decided to leave the property via the back way, and we turned down a side street to exit the hospital grounds. All of a sudden, I was back in that dream. This was the neighborhood street where I sought refuge. This must have been where all the doctors, the hospital workers, and their families lived. All of the houses were vacant and run down now. Based on the home styles, my dream had to have happened in the 50's or 60's. I haven't had the dream again since visiting Central State. Premonition, reincarnation, spirit? What do you think it was?

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We left Milledgeville as quickly as we could and headed to our final destination - One of the most haunted hotels in Georgia, the Historic Windsor Hotel. 

THE WINDSOR HOTEL:

The Windsor was built in 1892 as a five-story, 100-room vacation destination for the "snow birds" of the North. Americus was a bustling town, and parties and balls at the Windsor were a normal occurrence for the exquisite Victorian hotel with its tower, turrets, and three-story open atrium lobby. Over the decades, the hotel fell into disrepair and was closed to the public in 1972. After a $6.5 million dollar renovation that took into account even the smallest details of the original design, the hotel re-opened in 1991 with 53 individually-appointed rooms, including 6 Suites and 2 Tower Suites, the Bridal Suite and the Carter Presidential Suite (the hotel has hosted President Jimmy Carter and his wife on several occasions). 

The Three-Story Open Atrium Lobby

An Original Phone Booth

As for dining options at the Windsor, you can choose from:

• Rosemary & Thyme Restaurant for a modern, upscale American fair. 
• Floyd's Pub is always a great time with rocking chairs on the veranda, refreshing cocktails, and amazing food.
• Or you can have good ol' room service brought right to your door!

Enjoying Downtown from the Veranda

Now, when I say the Windsor is haunted, it's not a spooky kind of haunted. This hotel feels so incredibly warm and inviting, and the rooms are wonderfully spacious and comfortable. However, the Windsor is definitely old enough to have ghosts. 

The two most famous are:

Emily and Emma Mae - The story goes that a former housekeeper, Emily, lived at the hotel in the early 1900's and was having an extra-marital affair with a local politician. It is said that he pushed her and her daughter, Emma Mae, down the elevator shaft on the third floor. Hotel guests have reported seeing and hearing a ghostly young girl play in the hallways, as well as hearing a woman's voice and a baby crying. Most of the activity happens on the third floor. 

Floyd Ardell Lowery (1905-1982) - This bellman and elevator operator who served the Windsor for half a century is whom "Floyd's Pub" is named after. The hotel's longest-serving employee is said to be continuing his daily duties long into the afterlife. He has been noted as a helpful and curious ghost who has the tendency to move items around guests' rooms and even hang up clothes on occasion.

Again, don't let the the ghosts deter you from the Windsor, as we all slept incredibly well in this gorgeous hotel. In addition, Americus itself is a lovely town with cute little shops and restaurants along the main street, so I definitely recommend a visit if you are ever in the area!

Have you ever been to Milledgeville or Americus? Are there any must-dos you would add to the itinerary while in these locations? Please feel free to leave any Central State or urban exploration suggestions or tips in the comments below!