Manhattan's own Inwood Park was once the home of the House of Mercy, the House of Rest for Consumptives, and the Magdalen Benevolent Society. These cheerful sounding institutions were anything but.
As Cole Thompson, local historian and founder of My Inwood, recounted:
More than 100 years ago, three separate institutions holding ladies deemed wayward or of ill-repute, along with tuberculosis patients, were located in what is now Inwood Hill Park, […] there were many reports of cruel and unusual punishments by the ringleaders and caretakers, and many of the young women would attempt to climb the tall structures and escape the confines of these walls.
While all physical remnants of these asylums are gone, there have been various stories of encounters with the forgotten spirits of these times. Read through the full article for more history on Inwood Park's chilling past.
via Crain's 5 boros
Joshua Mu
Contributing Writer
When he is not attempting to hustle the hustlers of Central Park, Joshua enjoys exploring the depths of what New York has to offer. He one day hopes to pilot a drone without immediately crashing it.
Something wrong with this post? Let us know!
