Haunted-- Oregon State Mental Hospital Building J

Over 3000 copper canisters like those in the picture (right) from the collection "library of dust," by David Maisel, hold the cremated remains of patients of the Oregon State Hospital. Many of the remains are over 100 years old and are stored went unclaimed by their families and friends. The remains symbolize the loneliness, isolation, shame and despair too many patients of the hospital experienced. We encouraged others to know about the remains and to visit the abandoned building where they are stored. Journalists, politicians, bureaucrats, family members and former hospital patients visited. A large amount of publicity was generated. About 40 families contacted the hospital and claimed their relative’s remains.

The Oregon State Mental Hospital, notoriously, the setting for One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, is reputed to be one of the most haunted sites in Oregon. Remains of cremated patients have been sitting in storage there for years. After plans were announced to demolish the 125 yr old 'j' building, many people objected because of its historic status. Tours were started in Sept.

Tourists interested in exploring the mental hospital made famous in "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" will have to settle for a virtual visit. Public interest in visiting the 125-year-old J Building at the Oregon State Hospital soared after the state Department of Human Services sponsored a series of guided tours the Statesman Journal reported. State employees led about 200 people through vacated, decaying sections of the building and the sprawling tunnels under it, where some patients had to live. Publicity from that day led another 1,100 to express interest in visiting the place where the Oscar-winning film starring Jack Nicholson was shot.

It's definitely a creepy place. People have reported hearing screams that seem to have no origins, fogs, cold spots, and specters. Sadly tours were soon discontinued.