THE STORY
Reported Haunting
The sprawling former Pilgrim State Hospital campus is said to be haunted by former patients. Reports include apparitions, disembodied voices, unexplained noises, and powerful sensations of unseen presences.
Pilgrim State Hospital opened in 1931 and eventually became the largest psychiatric hospital in the United States by patient population. The enormous complex employed treatments that included electroconvulsive therapy and lobotomy during portions of its history. Much of the original campus has since been demolished, although Pilgrim Psychiatric Center continues to operate on a smaller scale. Paranormal legends hold that former patients remain on the grounds, with reports of apparitions, voices, strange noises, and an oppressive sense of unseen presences around older sections of the campus.