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Weston, West Virginia: Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum

Historic treatment facility (1858-1994) for the mentally ill has been reopened for tours, scary sleepovers -- and monster truck mud racing? Tour the isolation ward and watch monster trucks drive in mud on the front lawn.

Address:
71 Asylum Dr., Weston, WV
Directions:
Take Exit 99 to Weston, WV from I-79. Go into Weston, and you can't miss this large old stone building.
Hours:
April-Nov. (Call to verify) Local health policies may affect hours and access.
Phone:
304-269-5070
Admission:
Varies with tour type.
RA Rates:
Worth a Detour
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Visitor Tips and News About Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum

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Nervine Improved Elixir.

Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum

The daytime Tour of the Paranormal is $35 per person, and worth it. It took us about 1.5 hours to go through with a guide.

[Steve, 10/20/2020]

The long list of maladies justifying hospital admission in the 1880s includes: "Softening of the brain;" "Business trouble;" "Political excitement;" and "Parents were cousins."

Hallway in the old asylum in the daytime.

Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum

Broken up into several different tours. Went on the paranormal tour and saw a head peeking around a corner and a woman crying.

[Carol Rhonemus, 09/02/2019]

Lunatic asylum.

Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum

The buildings were closed when I stopped by. There aren't many places to peek in besides the front.

According to local family gossip, the hospital was nearly self-sustained, which accounts for the green house and dairy farm (?) I saw at the back of the expansive property. I believe I spotted workers living quarters also, but they appear to have been converted into apartments.

[Jane Geoh, 07/23/2012]

Asylum.

Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum

My husband and I went to the Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum this weekend. They had a haunted house with props in the old tuberculosis building, but I don't like that kind of haunted house...I want the real deal! So we did the four-floor tour during the day ...which was strictly a historical tour. Learning about lobotomies done by "Dr." Walter Freeman was freaky!

We did a flashlight tour in the evening...50% historical and 50% paranormal. No ghosts, but they tried. Being in a pitch black room was fun...the only thing that scared me was wondering if there were birds, bats or mice...didn't see any of those either (thank God!).

[Lori White, 10/18/2010]
Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum

A historic insane asylum open for tours. I was driving down the highway with my with teenage sons on a college tour when we saw the sign. The place is now vacant, but it is very old and was used into the 21st century. From their website:

"Formerly known as the Weston State Hospital, this West Virginia facility served as a sanctuary for the mentally ill in the mid-1800s. The history of the building holds fascinating stories of Civil War raids, a gold robbery, the "curative" effects of architecture...."

Very creepy, they offer day time, night time and overnight tours. The place is vacant and has been filmed by the TV show Ghost Hunters.

[K Walsh, 07/23/2009]

Nearby Offbeat Places

Museum of Glass and MarblesMuseum of Glass and Marbles, Weston, WV - < 1 mi.
Mountaineer Military MuseumMountaineer Military Museum, Weston, WV - < 1 mi.
Tiny ChurchTiny Church, Buckhannon, WV - 13 mi.
In the region:
Mother's Day Shrine, Grafton, WV - 32 mi.

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