The Haunted Insane Asylum in Salem

Many may not know this, but the inside of the current building housing the Oregon Department of Corrections is haunted. Employees of the Oregon Department of Corrections have claimed that they hear screaming and voices when they work late in the evening. Some employees have reported that windows have been open and closed when no one else was there to open and close them. It is well-known in the department that there have been issues with ghosts and lingering spirits within the old building.

The building used to be used as an insane asylum well over a hundred years ago. In fact, it was used as an asylum clear up until the 1970s. It is well known that the patients at this asylum were abused, beaten, received electric shock therapy and sometimes were even murdered. Inhumane and cruel activities took place for many, many years and no one was able to stop the cruelties from taking place. Those who were housed in the asylum were given no voice. Below the asylum there is an elaborate tunnel system underground. Inappropriate and inhumane activities took place underground. It is said that patients behaving poorly would be handcuffed around the pillars in the basement for days on end without any food or water. It is believed that those who died there still linger in the building.

The building has such a creepy feeling that it was chosen as the film site for the film One Over the Cuckoo’s Nest that was filmed back in 1975 starring Jack Nicholson. Many who have toured the building, that is now the Department of Corrections, will recognize the stair case, the ceilings and the tiled floors from the film. This truly haunted building was perfect for the filming of the blockbuster movie.