St. Alban’s Sanatorium

What is now the ruins of St. Alban’s Sanatorium in Radford, VA opened in 1892 as a prep school. The school closed in 1911 and the property reopened in 1916 as a sanatorium. It alleges to be one of the most haunted locations on the East Coast, if you believe in ghosts.

Perched majestically, high on a ridge over-looking the New River, stands St. Alban’s Sanatorium, a living monument to the Georgian architecture of the 18th century. St. Alban’s first opened its doors in September 1892 as an elite Lutheran boy’s preparatory school, an edifice dedicated to developing strong minds and bodies. For nearly two decades the halls of St. Alban’s rang with the energy and laughter of young boys. All too soon the magnificent boy’s school would close only to find rebirth as St. Alban’s Sanatorium under the auspices of Dr. JC King. Instead of educating minds, the doctors and nurses at St. Alban’s dedicated their skills to healing the minds of those souls often discarded by society or left to wander in the dark. As more modern facilities were constructed St. Alban’s once again closed its doors. In 2004 the building was abandoned and scheduled for demolition - but fate had other plans! Citizens desiring to preserve the buildings history, coupled with paranormal groups interested in the tales of ghostly apparitions, inspired the current owner to halt demolition plans. In 2010 St. Alban’s Sanatorium reopened offering historical and paranormal tours throughout the year along with an annual Halloween haunted house.

I went through part of Radford’s campus on my travels; I was surprised at how small the buildings were. I had assumed Radford was a big school.

When we went in the facility, the guide was walking us around - there were two buildings connected by a hallway - and I decided to break off on my own. I always go the opposite way of everyone else so I don’t have to deal with people getting in the way of my shots. I went back to my car to get a flashlight and headlamp (which I was glad I had), and during that time the host handed out a map. So I had no map like everyone else and I got lost a lot and had to keep asking people how to get out. Since it was a hospital setting, there were mostly empty rooms and hallways. But unlike other asylums I have photographed, there wasn’t a single “money shot”. In addition, they had their Halloween props everywhere. I made the best of it and took some shots of the props. It was an underwhelming location, but it was good to get away.

Technical information: Shot with a Canon 7D Mark II, 10-22 wide angle EFS lens.