Status: Unverified — ghost stories are anecdotal; some of the best-known details (such as very high death counts) are disputed.
Credit: Kris Arnold / Wikimedia Commons · Licence: Public domain (released by the photographer) · Source
Louisville had one of the highest tuberculosis death rates in the United States in the early 1900s, and Waverly Hills Sanatorium was built to treat it. It opened in 1910 as a two-story wooden facility, and a five-story building for more than 400 patients opened on October 17, 1926. It closed in June 1961 after antibiotics made long stays unnecessary.
The building reopened in 1962 as the Woodhaven Geriatric Center, a nursing home, which closed in 1980 after reports of overcrowding and neglect. The site changed hands several times, and since 2001 it has been run by owners who offer tours and a Halloween attraction to fund restoration.
Legends say that a 500-foot tunnel was used to carry bodies down the hill discreetly, and visitors report apparitions, voices and shadows. Numbers of deaths quoted online vary wildly and are not reliable. As always, the stories are part of the experience rather than proof.
Sources: Wikipedia: Waverly Hills Sanatorium
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