Belchertown State School
I have explored many mental health institutions in my travels, but Belchertown is one of a very few which truly gave me the creeps. It is the only place I can claim to have ever encountered anything which seemed even remotely supernatural (though it is a stretch to even say what I encountered here was…
Northampton State Hospital and Memorial Complex – Trips 7 and 8
Another predawn run to NoHo but, as the demolition was progressing, I spent more time photographing the Memorial Complex across the street. The last two images are from a June 29, 2008 trip to the Memorial Complex
Medfield State Hospital
Medfield State Hospital is a pleasant cottage style asylum. Its buildings are modern enough to consider productive re-use, so hopefully the place can be saved. It housed an active parole board facility until recently.
Northampton State Hospital – Trip 6
By the time April 2006 rolled around, it was clear that demolition of the hospital was imminent. There were rumors about state troopers hanging around the hospital busting people, so I decided I would conduct a pre-dawn raid. As it turned out, there wasn’t a soul around and it was an incredibly peaceful trip. One…
Northampton State Hospital – Trip 4
I managed to drag my wife, who is not an avid explorer, with me on Trip 4. Trip 4 was around when I got my 50mm f1.8, so a lot of experiments with depth of field here. By this point I was at least starting to dial in my composition skills and get some level…
Northampton State Hospital – Trip 3
At this point, I was obsessed with exploring Northampton State Hospital – I was driving 2 hours out to Northampton every weekend. Definitely something that, in retrospect, I am incredibly happy I did. I had a pretty short window before this place was demolished and I can truly say that I visited this incredible place…
Northampton State Hospital – Trip 2
After my first trip to NoHo I was hooked. Returning only a few weeks later, the day was unseasonably warm and fog was forming from the melting snow. I started in the North Infirmary but towards the end of the day I became determined to get inside the Kirkbride, if only for a few minutes. …
Northampton State Hospital – Trip 1
Photography, for me, started in Middle School. My friend signed up for photography class and brought me in to the dark room to check out the prints he was developing from his pinhole camera. I was instantly hooked. The smell of the fix, the image slowly coming out in the developer, it was magic. I…