The Grafton State Hospital in Grafton, and Shrewsbury, Massachusetts was a psychiatric facility that operated as a farm colony for “chronic insane patients” from the nearby Worcester State Hospital. Grafton State Hospital opened its doors in 1901, and in 1912 it separated from the Worcester State Hospital, leading Grafton State Hospital to operate as its own state-run mental institution. The cottage-built institution was built with four different colonies each functioning for separate classifications, and separate genders. The 4 colonies were Elms, Pines, Oaks, and Willows. Elms and Pines were complexes with stone and brick buildings operating as wards for “excited,” and “violent” patients with Elms being for Male patients, and Pines being for Female Patients. Oaks and Willows were cottage groups with stone and wooden buildings operating as wards for patients who were deemed “trustworthy” with Oaks being for male patients. Patients deemed “trustworthy” lived on more quiet, peaceful parts of the grounds and were given the freedom of being able to enter and leave their dorm at their own will, while patients deemed “excited, or violent” were strictly kept in their wards under supervision. The hospital’s population expanded tremendously overtime, and by 1945, the campus sat on 1,200 acres, and by 1956, the hospital peaked at 4,537 patients and 200 staff, leaving the facility extremely overcrowded. At this point, the campus had expanded, adding the Cedar Colony for female patients, and the existing colonies expanded as nearby hospitals closed many of their units. At this point, the campus consisted of five colonies with many patient buildings as well as the administration building, staff dormitories, kitchen & dining halls, auditorium, maintenance workshops, and the power plant. The hospital continued to function for years ahead, however, the facility seemed to run solely on agriculture to keep the hospital self-sustaining. However, this left the facility lacking in treatment for the patients. Nearing the 1970’s societal shifts started lowering the demand for state-run psychiatric facilities, and this led the Grafton State Hospital to decrease majorly in population with the majority of their patients moving into halfway homes, and other smaller private facilities. The hospital eventually closed for good in 1973 with 641 patients left, now being discharged permanently. The nail in the coffin for the hospital stemmed from lawsuits against Dr. Sevinsky after sexual assault allegations within the facility took place. This led to many state hospital closures around Massachusetts in a process known as deinstitutionalization. The closure of the Grafton State Hospital led the campus to be abandoned, and neglected. Soon after abandonment, the Willows colony was demolished. However, parts of the campus were sold off to Tufts University, (also known as Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine) with a plan to reuse many of the vacant buildings. Tuffs reused the administration building, the auditorium, and the majority of the remaining Elms complex. Other parts of the campus were sold off to The Jobs Corps, which reused small portions of the Pines complex. Some remaining parts of the former state hospital would then be used as state facilities. However, after all of this redevelopment, the majority of the Pines Colony, and portions of the Elms complex continued to sit abandoned for decades on. Eventually, the abandoned buildings of the Grafton State Hospital became an attraction to ghost and thrill seekers, urban explorers, and photographers. People often traveled to photograph the deserted buildings inside, and out, and despite police catching and prosecuting many trespassers, people continued to explore the historic abandoned complex. In early 2022, the rest of the remaining abandoned buildings of the Pines complex were demolished to make way for an apartment complex, restaurants, and shops soon to be built. In March 2025, the last abandoned part of the Elms complex was demolished seemingly out of nowhere, leaving more of the Grafton State Hospital’s history erased. Now, the abandoned buildings at the Grafton State Hospital are no-more, however, the remaining of the historic buildings around the old campus remain in use for the Jobs Corps, and the Tufts University, leaving much of the Grafton State Hospital’s buildings to continue on in a bright path.

Note: I only was able to take a few photos in the Pines Colony before it was demolished, but thankfully I was able to thoroughly photograph the abandoned parts of the Elms Colony before it was demolished. I wished that I could have documented more aspects of the state hospital but i’m thankful that I was able to photograph what I did!