The Sweet Springs Sanitarium in West Virginia is no stranger to visits from paranormal enthusiasts. Destination Fear, which heads there for this week’s episode, is not the first and likely will not be the last production to visit the old building searching for paranormal activity.
Previous investigations of the Sanitarium have been carried out by Supernatural Lost Adventures and Paranormal Encounters, with eerie results. Tonight, the Destination Fear team experience everything from unexplained harrowing screams to voices and terrifying chanting.
Before ghosts and paranormal investigators arrived, this pre-Civil War building had previously played host to ex-presidents, famous generals, tuberculosis patients, mental health patients, the elderly, and finally, as reported by some, the ghostly souls of those previous guests.
The Sweet Springs area was first settled in 1760, with a hotel first being constructed at the site of the sanitarium in 1792. The main building currently occupying the site is often referred to as The Jefferson Building, it was built in 1839, during the most prosperous period of the resort, which lasted from the 1820s until The Civil War.
The resort, known affectionately as Old Sweet, was host to many famous historical guests, including but not exclusive to, George and Martha Washington, James Madison, Franklin Pierce, and Generals Lafayette and Robert E. Lee.
After The Civil War the place began to become less popular, mostly due to its remote location away from the burgeoning railroad network. However, it remained open for business until the 1930s, at which point it finally succumbed to the economic crisis of the era and shut its doors to guests.
The State of West Virginia then came to the property’s rescue, and the building was reopened as a ward for patients suffering from lung diseases, especially TB. In the 1940s and 1950s the property catered for patients suffering mental health issues.
Finally, it was a home for the elderly until 1993, and since then it has been uninhabited by any one large group of people.
The current owners of the property state, on their Facebook page, that they are open to paranormal investigators and that any donations received will go to the preservation of the old resort. Tune in tonight to find out what the Destination Fear team uncovered!
Destination Fear airs Saturday at 10/9c on Travel Channel.