Waverly Hills Sanatorium
PANICd#: 1242
Waverly Hills Sanatorium sits on land that was originally purchased by Major Thomas H. Hays in 1883.
4400 Paralee Lane
Louisville , KY 40275
Phone: 502-933-2142
Open to the public: Unknown
http://www.therealwaverlyhills.com/
Lat: 38.130725
Lon: -85.84142
Database Summary:
Demographic Rank: 6
History: 2
Stories: 2
Claims: 6
Evidence: 0
Resources: 5
Retrievals: 8379
Vistor Rating: 3.0
Votes: 3
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History
History information is some background and history about the location. This is meant to be a basic summary. Below the history records you will find sources in which you can click on to find out more information. There may be multiple history records per location.
A segment from a 1931 Government Tuberculosis film
Added by: sdonley on 08/19/2012
DB#:137
Source(s):
http://youtu.be/qpv9MLkogBI
Waverly Hills Sanatorium sits on land that was originally purchased by Major Thomas H. Hays in 1883. Major Hays was in need of a school for his daughters to attend, so he started a one room school house that was located on Pages Lane. He hired a woman named Lizzie Lee Harris to teach at the school. Her love for the tiny school in addition to her fondness for Scott's "Waverley Novels", prompted her to name the little school house, "Waverley School." Major Hays liked the name, and chose to name his property "Waverley Hill." The Board of Tuberculosis Hospital kept the name after purchasing the land and opening the Sanatorium.
Originally, Waverly Hills Sanatorium was a two-story frame building, with a hipped roof and half timbering. Construction on this building began in 1908, and opened for business on July 26, 1910. The building was designed to safely accommodate 40-50 tuberculosis patients. At the time, tuberculosis was a very serious disease. People who were afflicted with tuberculosis were isolated from the general public and placed in an area where they could rest, stay calm, and have plenty of fresh air. Sanatoriums were built on high hills surrounded by peaceful woods to create a serene atmosphere to help the patients recover.
Tuberculosis was becoming an epidemic in Valley Station, Pleasure Ridge Park, and other parts of Jefferson County in Kentucky. The little TB clinic was filled with more than 140 people, and it was obvious that a much larger hospital was needed to treat those afflicted with the condition.
The massive, collegiate, gothic style Sanatorium, remains standing on Waverly Hill, today. It could accommodate at least 400 patients and was considered one of the most modern and well equipped facilities at the time. Construction of this Sanatorium began in March 1924 and opened for business on October 17, 1926. The facility served as a tuberculosis hospital until 1961, when the discovery of an antibiotic that successfully treated and cured TB rendered the facility obsolete. It was closed down and quarantined, then renovated. In 1962, the building reopened as WoodHaven Medical Services, a geriatric facility. WoodHaven Medical was closed by the state in 1980.
Added by: sdonley on 08/09/2012
DB#:136
Source(s):
http://www.therealwaverlyhills.com/History/index.s...
Stories
Stories are just that. Stories and personal accounts that have been reported about the location.
Added by: sdonley on 08/19/2012
DB#:1092
Source(s):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Tcl3eRoNUk
False Claims
Some people believe that Waverly Hills is so haunted because it had an extremely high number of deaths. In fact, in one episode of Ghost Hunters they promoted the myth that 63,000 people died at the sanitarium. Facts dispute this claim.
Waverly Hills opened in 1926 and had approximately 500 beds. It was opened for 55 years. In order to have a death toll of 63,000 would need a death toll of 3 people a day, every day for this period (1,145 people a year). However, according to Assistant Medical Director Dr. J. Frank W. Stewart autobiography, the highest number of deaths in a single year during the time he worked there was 153. There is also evidence that shows that the death rate at Waverly Hills was approximately 100 people a year, not 1,000.
Added by: sdonley on 08/19/2012
DB#:1093
Source(s):
http://www.thehauntedinternet.com/waverly_hills.ht...
Paranormal Claims
Here are the paranormal claims for this location. These have been found through Internet research, reports from members, or reports from personal interviews. To add a claim, please contact PANICd.com, and we will review and add your information.
| Claim # | Added | Added By | Claim |
| 1537 | 08/19/2012 | sdonley | A man in a white coat is seen walking in the kitchen. |
| 1538 | 08/19/2012 | sdonley | The smell of cooking food is smelled in the kitches and cafeteria. |
| 1539 | 08/19/2012 | sdonley | In room 502, people see shapes moving in the window and hear a voice telling them to "get out". |
| 1540 | 08/19/2012 | sdonley | On the fourth floor, people see a figure peeking at them from around corners and see shapes passing back and forth between doorways. |
| 1541 | 08/19/2012 | sdonley | In the "body chute" (a tunnel that led from Waverly HIlls to the train tracks), people report hearing unidentifield noises and voices as well as feeling cold spots. |
| 1542 | 08/19/2012 | sdonley | A young boy named Tim seen on one of the floors. |
Paranormal Evidence
Paranormal evidence is based on claims that have been reported for this location. There can be several types of evidence; however, we have grouped them based on media type for better organization. Here you will find evidence that are logs, audio, video, or photographic.
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No Evidence Reported Yet!
Additional Resources
This is a collection of Internet resources for this location. This section will house links to other websites that contain information related to history, claims, investigations, or even the location's website.
| KySpirit Paranormal Research Web Page
Added: 08/09/2012 By: sdonley |
Information about this location from KySpirit Paranormal Research. |
| Waverly Hills Sanatorium: A 'Top Five' Ghost Hunters' Haven
Added: 08/09/2012 By: sdonley |
Hello Louisville Article about this location. |
| Paranormal Activity Investigators
Added: 08/19/2012 By: sdonley |
Paranormal investigation report. |
| Discussion on the number of deaths
Added: 08/19/2012 By: sdonley |
A group discussion on the number of claimed deaths at this location. |
| The Haunted Internet
Added: 08/19/2012 By: sdonley |
Page about this location. |
Location Comments
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