Broughton Hospital has been designated one of North Carolina’s most haunted asylums. The hospital, which was formerly known as West Carolina Insane Asylum, is located near Morgantown, North Carolina.
The hospital’s name has been changed a few times throughout its existence, first to State Hospital at Morganton in 1890 and then to Broughton House in 1959.
When mental illness began sweeping the country, the authorities required an institution to house people in. The building was designed by Thomas Kilbride and was created to have fresh, free-flowing air throughout the facility, as well as sunlight and views of the hospital’s 283 acres.
All of these things were thought to be cures for mental disease, and insanity was thought to be contagious. As a result, persons labeled insane were better off locked up and away from the general public.
Opening
Dr. Patrick Livingston Murphy of Sampson County, NC was the first superintendent of Broughton Hospital. Until his death in 1907, the doctor and his family resided on campus in the Center building. Because of the building’s appearance, rumors of hauntings have circulated for years.
The hospital also includes tunnels beneath it that were used to transfer patients around and out of sight of the public. Many historic wards have been closed, and there have been reports of haunted structures.
Dr. Red Pepper was the first patient admitted in 1883, and another 100 were transferred from a packed Raleigh hospital shortly after. However, by 1884, Dr. Murphy had demanded more capacity, and 500 more beds were provided. Patients were also utilized for construction at the hospital, such as building new roads and maintaining the grounds.
By the 1900s, there was a farm with a dairy farm, vineyard, and greenhouses, all of which were managed by the patients at the hospital. It was nearly a self-contained hospital and farm. Unfortunately, by the end of World War I, attitudes toward mental health had shifted. And, like many other hospitals, it began to disregard the hospital’s, staff’s, and patients’ well-being.
Financial Exploitation
The Great Depression and financial challenges exacerbated the hospital’s problems. The patient-to-physician ratio was 300 to 1 in the 1920s and nearly 500 to 1 in the 1930s. Due to a shortage of room, the attendants were forced to sleep in the same area as the patients.
The hospital did not grow again until the 1940s when the population was approximately 3500. The hospital underwent another transformation in the 1960s. Religious services and educational initiatives were added to the facility. During this time, the hospital expanded to include community health centers.
The objective was to start deinstitutionalizing the mentally ill and treat them in outpatient settings rather than inpatient ones. By 1973, the hospital had undergone its first Joint Commission survey and gained a one-year certification.
The hospital faced several problems between the 1980s and 1990s, but the Broughton Hospital Foundation was created in 1992, which benefited the patients. The hospital still treats approximately 800 patients per year, employs 1200 people, and has an annual operating budget of $98 million.