Western New York has a former poorhouse that sells tickets to anyone willing to walk its dark halls. Rolling Hills Asylum sits in East Bethany, about 45 minutes from both Buffalo and Rochester, and it is tied to more than 1,700 documented deaths.
If you’re planning a spooky road trip this fall, this is a stop worth building a day around. You can spend three hours inside on what the asylum calls a Psych Hold, and it is one of the few places where that phrase is a ticket and not a diagnosis.
Rolling Hills Asylum History in East Bethany, NY Starts in 1827
The property opened in 1827 as the Genesee County Poor House. The county used it to care for people who were mentally or physically disabled, poor, widowed, or orphaned, and it could house 150 to 200 residents at a time for as little as $1.08 a week. Residents who could work kept the grounds running to keep costs down…