Going to the hospital for a scheduled procedure can be scary enough. But the lure of a good fright is drawing droves of visitors to an abandoned hospital in rural Washington for ghost tours.
Over 4,000 people have toured the former St. Ignatius Hospital in Colfax, Wash., in the past year and more were expected to join on Sunday for a special “fright night” movie screening before Halloween, according to tour leader Valoree Gregory, who is executive director of the Colfax Chamber of Commerce. Tours cost $10 to $60, depending on the timing. The chamber uses the proceeds to help downtown business owners preserve their historic storefronts.
The 50,000-square-foot structure was built by the Sisters of Providence in 1893 and served patients as the small town's only hospital until 1968. Then it was bought and turned into a home for the developmentally disabled and mentally ill. In 2003, it was sold to its current owner, who hasn't redeveloped it yet but has allowed the chamber to run tours since last October.
Staffers from nearby Whitman Community Hospital have been among the visitors. They found the hallways and rooms, whose walls are peeling paint, littered with old beds, wheelchairs and gurneys along with an early ultrasound device.
Sleepovers are one option for hopeful ghost hunters, though there's a waitlist for that experience.
Initially a skeptic, Gregory said she has heard whispers and recorded unexplained energy on electromagnetic meters at the building, making her think twice.
“I was the person that said: Let's do this for fun, it's a fundraiser. And I really didn't believe in anything like that,” Gregory said. “But there's been things that happen to me in there that I can't really explain.”
