Danvers State Insane Asylum
Danvers, MA

Danvers State Insane Asylum was built in 1878, in what was then a rural setting far outside of Boston, and was formally shut down and abandoned in 1992. It is one of many huge asylums in the New England area, most of which were originally built late in the 19th century and then shut down in the early 1990s after successes with drug treatments led to decreased need to keep patients housed at institutions.

Danvers' primary building is a tremendous gothic structure. The floor plan was developed according to the Kirkbride plan, developed by Dr Thomas Kirkbride to separate various patients and give them all access to light and air. Today the building sits shuttered and empty. This shot of the pinnacle of a tower on the was taken from the roof of the main building just prior to dawn.