Random Creepy Things with Nicholas | Morbid | Podcast | Forensic Files

Hey weirdos, I'm Ash. And I'm Elena. And this is [Music] Morbid. This is morbid. And it is humid
and swampy outside. Like it's [ __ ] Florida or some [ __ ] Oh, we haven't even been outside today, though. Yeah,
but I was told by reputable sources. Yeah, but I know. Meaning my husband texted me and
said it's like Florida outside. It's humid. No, he's a very reputable source. Well, the problem it wasn't even [ __ ]
humid in Florida when we were there. So, now we're back home and we have to deal
with humidity. And guess what? Not good for my hair. Yeah, I don't like it. Not good for my hair that I blow dried this
goddamn morning. One thing I am excited though. Thanks for caring. I don't I don't
[Laughter] You guys know I don't love summer. Um but I'm decided to get into it this year
because the summer and slasher summer. I'm trying to get in that vibe. It's gonna be fun and I'm excited for that.
So that I'm trying to like get in a different um state of mind for summer cuz this is usually the time of the year
when I say [ __ ] it. I need fall more than I need oxygen. Wow. And it hurts. I want it so bad. Like I'm there now. Like
it's hurting me. I'm in pain right now. Literally May second. Yeah. That's that's my favorite response is whenever
I say that somebody just goes checks calendar. It's this date. And I say no, I know that. That's what hurts is that
it's not October. She's going to square up right now. She said that is always the response. She said, "I know what the
[ __ ] date is. Put your [ __ ] arms up." It's always the response. I say, "Wow, I really want fall." And people
are like, "It's May 3rd." And I'm like, "I know. If it wasn't May 3rd, I wouldn't be missing fall. I would be in
fall." I think that I think we're going to have to noise regulate this episode because we screaming. We scream it.
Listen, I like summer. I'm ready for my birthday, which is in 1 month. We're not
even in Gemini season yet. So, I'm excited for summer. And you can feel how you feel and I can feel how I feel and
we can still run a successful podcast together. Just so you know, it's May second. It is. I know. Do you know?
Listen, I was being mature. I was being mature. I was being mature right there. And you weren't. Maybe that's why
Nicholas has a problem with you. Oh, we got to talk about that, guys. So, this is a fake fight, by the It is. I think
we opened up a few episodes fighting. Yeah. And I feel like that's going to start a whole thing where I'm going to
be chased with pitchforks. Maybe they'll chase me. No, I can't run. So, don't do
that. I I won't run. I I will not run. So, no. This is totally fake. We're We're
totally fine. Jokes. Uh we we're in a silly goofy mood. Help me. Shut the [ __ ]
up. Just shut the [ __ ] up. Uh, but no, on a lighter note, but no, on a little bit of a scary note,
actually, Alena has a problem with a poltergeist. Okay, so here we are. Um, maybe not. This is a spooky episode. Uh,
we didn't we started out with a theme and then we said, "Are you okay?" Oh, see, he's trying to make it right. Maybe
he asked me if I was okay because I mean that that's like a ghost lyric. I like that. Maybe that maybe that's falling to
you. I think Nicholas mother mother. Okay, we're back. Me and Nicholas are back. He heard me starting to talk about
it and he was like, "I'm sorry. I hurt you. I'm sorry. I'm not He's He's responding." Uh, okay, Nicholas. I'm
sorry. I'm I'm going to talk about our fight, but we're fine. We're totally cool now. Uh, okay. Wait. Going back. If
you guys watched or listened to Listener Tales episode 666, we had a special guest, Nicholas, on it's the Ghost Tube
app. We're gonna have him. We're gonna put it up whenever we do spooky episodes. Yeah, just spooky episodes or
maybe when we feel like it. Yeah. You guys seem to like it though. It was fun. He doesn't interrupt that much. Um and
when he does, it's very pertinent information. So, uh we named him Nicholas because he named himself
Nicholas. That's how that works. We said, "What's your name?" And he said, "Nicholas." And we said, "Okay,
Nicholas." Uh Nicholas and I were broies the last time. I felt a deep connection
to him. So, we started off this episode and I was like I was like, "Nicholas, what's going on?" And he said he was
struggling and I was like oh no. And I said tell me your wos Nicholas. And he responded you. And I said whoa. This is
our first fight and this is okay. I thought maybe his woes are you because like he lives here and he's because he
can't like he can't love you because you're not even on the same plane and you're married. Oh my god. I'm telling
John. I think that's me and Nicholas's dynamic. I think cuz he just he you're his forbidden love. He heard that I
misunderstood here. Although he did call you mother. So yeah, that's weird. Uh maybe he thinks you're an icon. It's
okay. He thinks Yeah, he's like mother. I'm lost. I'm lost. He's lost. She's lost. See, he
said no. He said I don't even know how I feel. Possessed. What did he say? Possessed. I'd like to not be
personally. Nicholas, we're okay. Um we're okay now. Nicholas, we understand each other. Nicholas, I get it. Okay.
Yeah, it's complicated on Facebook. Some people don't understand our snark. Okay.
But this is how we do. That's right, mother. So, Nicholas is gonna be is going to be around and Nicholas will
chime in when he feels like he has something to say, when he sees fit. Um, and again, we were going to make this
like a themed spooky episode, but then we just got crazy with it. And Ash chose a cemetery, I chose an institution, like
an asylum, and we're just going with that. So there's no real theme except spooky. This is [ __ ] spooky. So
Nicholas is the theme. He's the common thread. Nicholas serving Nicholas. Serving Nicholas mother. So very much.
Very much. He just Oh my god. Wow. He's a king. Nicholas for life. He said serving Nicholas very much. Okay. I
think Nicholas is a gay icon. Personally personally on the season of All Star. I'm obsessed with Nicholas.
Maybe. Oh my god, did he say maybe? [ __ ] we have a full-blown relationship with a gay paranormal icon. Get on our
goddamn level. I have literally upset. I've never been I've quite frankly never been happier.
He said, "Maybe catch me on RuPaul's Drag Race season 17." I love you. Wow. Oh my goodness. Nicholas, you bring joy.
Wow. Okay, I don't even know how to follow that up, but I don't think you can. Episode done. Bye. Thanks for
listening. So, I found this uh so I was searching for spooky places. I didn't know what I wanted to do. At first, I
was looking for cemeteries. That's how this did lead me here cuz Ash had found a cemetery she wanted to do, and I was
like, "All right, I will find a cemetery." So, the reason I found this is it's it's an old asylum. I'm going to
get into all the all the nitty-gritty. It's really horrible, so buckle in. Uh, but there is a cemetery on the site of
this place, but it's like a mass grave. Oh. So, it's technically a cemetery, but
that's what led me to this. And then when I found out the history water, you need some. I'm empty on water. Actually,
are you asking? So, when I got further into like the history of this, that's when I was like, I have to. I'm
literally about to take a sip of your water because you told me to just yeed down to her water bottle. He said,
hydrate. She said, "Okay, as you wish." Yeah. As you wish, Nicholas. So, I'm going. And then as I
got into like the, you know, the background of this place and it's like it's just horrifying history. I found
that Sam and Colby had gone to this place and explored it. So, I watched that video cuz I wanted to see what that
was about, and they experienced something crazy there. So, I I urge you to go look up their their video about
it. Um, but yeah, it's a very scary place. It was a very scary history. And again, this is going to be a little
upsetting at times. This is not It's a It's like an institution, so that's not great. Mine will palette cleanse a bit.
Yeah. So, this is Forest Haven Asylum. It was opened in 1925. It was opened under a much more offensive, but very of
the time name. M um it was the so part of that was um the district training school for something that I will not say
now. Uh it was named Forest Haven Asylum in 1963. That's better. That's when they
I mean still pretty shitty, but uh yeah, and somehow it got shittier after that.
So I don't know how that happened, but it was intended initially to to treat children and young adults and more. It
was a really bad hotel. Uh it they were treating children and young adults in Laurel, Maryland and it was serving the
people of the District Columbia as well. Like they it had a big range. Um it was
going to be taking in people who were deemed mentally ill at the time, like severely mentally ill, but later it went
way far out of those parameters. uh far enough to bring in kids and young adults
that were just deemed not quote unquote normal by society or were just people that did
nobody wanted to deal with anymore. That's horrible. There was also times when people were taken from their
families against their family's will and put into this place. Yeah. How did that
happen? It was really bad. It it I mean there was a time and we'll get to it that an orphanage closed nearby and 20
orphans were just written down in documentation as being mentally ill to be put into this place cuz they didn't
have anywhere else to put them. Holy [ __ ] So completely, you know, uh like just like average kids happen to be
orphans, don't have any illnesses to that we could see. We're just put in this place to be forgotten about.
Yeah. So, this is huge. This place is gigantic. It has 30 structures. It covers 250 acres. Damn. It's kind of in
the middle of nowhere in a forest. Like, it's definitely pushed off, which a lot
of these places usually were. Yeah. Uh on the entryway into the main building, and it's still there, there's a bronze
plaque that says, "Yet while I live, let me not live in vain." Which is chilling
because all of them did. Yeah. like they did not follow that, right? At the height of its operation, it had over a
thousand patients, which they were referring to as inmates at the time. Way overcrowded. Way overcrowded. When it
initially opened in the 20s, and this is what's wild, it was it was initially created as like a progressive farm
colony style thing. Like they had opened it as an institution, but what they wanted to do was make it more like a
wellness thing. They wanted to actually help these kids and these young adults like grow and thrive and like nourish
them therapy. Yeah. Like truly make it like a wellness thing. In the beginning, they were learning life skills, farm
skills. They were like doing work and training for certain things and having like a real feeling of being part of a
community. They were providing for the community as well with the farming stuff. So like they were they were given
purpose. Like yeah, everything there was supposed to be like super chill. There was a lot there too in the beginning.
There was basketball courts, a baseball field. They would publish the scores of the baseball games in the papers
sometimes at first. Oh, that's cool. So, initially this was like great and it was
being like held up as like this great place like great stories were coming out. I mean, they had theaters there,
they had a gym, they had all kinds of things to keep the patients busy and active and their minds working. How did
it all go together? Everything was calm and nurturing. Well, in the 1960s, the funding started to be pulled
back. And once the funding got pulled back, the asylum was suffering. They started to take in people outside of the
way outside of the parameters. Mostly, like I said, without their family's consent. Some of them were like
basically kidnapped. Like people with epilepsy were put here. People with just hearing problems. What? Uh people with
tuberculosis. Oh my god. kids, the kids from the orphanages without any known disabilities. According to Ghost
Adventures in the 70s, there was a lawsuit about this. Uh, but I'll get into these lawsuits too because they
were wild. But like nothing fixed anything even these lawsuits. Yeah, it is pretty plausible. But like they
didn't fix anything. Mistress Wednesday. Okay. Whoa. Your leg, honey. I'm sorry.
Why? He said mistress. Mistress Wednesday, your leg. You better put your legs back up. Mine are exposed. God
damn. Well, that that's your man. That's your polter man. I think there might be
two in there. Two manses. Uh so yeah, they kept on taking patients. Um you know, like I said, of all different
kinds, like people who didn't wouldn't necessarily be quote unquote institutionalized. Sure. Um, and you
know, now the recreation programs were being cut. Like it wasn't this nurturing farming community anymore that they were
learning things. It became crazy overcrowded. Um, they were not being monitored monitored. They were not being
stimulated in any way, shape or form. They would just leave them to just like wander around doing nothing. Monster.
That is like me. I do like you. They are monsters. Uh they would end up being like sexually assaulted, physically
assaulted by staff, by other patients. Like it was a literal it was a hell house. Like it is called a hell house.
Yeah. It's awful. And the only attention these patients were receiving at this point like they were being totally
neglected. And if they did get attention, it was abuse. That's all it was. That's all the attention that they
were getting. And so staff was also being replaced with completely unqualified people. uh they were
allowing doctors with suspended licenses to continue working there. Meaning the state of Maryland had deemed these
people not suitable to practice medicine anymore and yeah what I agree yeah it's
nuts. Nicholas gets it. Uh again they were the abuse was widespread and it was awful. Uh aspiration pneumonia was a
leading cause of death there. Oh. uh which happens when and especially in this kind of environment when feeding
procedures are basically not being followed safely uh safely. They would force-feed patients. They would feed
people laying down often times. Oh my god. They would use improper feeding tubes. Like they in fact the laying down
while feeding was like a thing. Like they were constantly being fed while laying flat on their back. So stupid.
Yeah, that is stupid. Nicholas, this is wild how he's like legitimately responding. He's really kind of freaking
me out. Yeah, that is stupid. But no, like it's also just [ __ ] like diabolical. You don't need to do that.
It's senseless. And it's like how is nobody training them to do a better job like to learn feeding procedures that
would cost money. Yeah, exactly. Now, deaths from neglect and torture were just skyrocketing at this point. There
was also punishments like they would be, you know, thrown into rooms by themselves and left there for days. They
would be hit with bats. They would end up with missing teeth. They would be hit with belts. Like horrible [ __ ] Horrible
[ __ ] Um, Mayor Vincent Gray, the director of the DC Department of Human Services at the time. Were there human
services at the time? Well, he said he was forever haunted by the place and the sites that were seen even from the
outside there. So, he said the place was inhumane. It was a very negative experience. And he told the Washington
Washington Examiner his most vivid memory of the place was seeing, and this is very upsetting just so everyone
knows, was seeing nude residents paraded outdoors to be hosed down by staff members. Oh my god, you have to be
demonic to do to somebody. You have to be demonic. So, a Washington Post article, um, there was a quote in there
that said, "Workers here because of frustration and lack of help tend to abuse residents. Of all of our
residents, I'd add some 400 don't belong here. Yeah, that's that's difficult. It
is difficult. That's not frustration or lack of help, though. That's lack of humanity. Exactly. You can't claim over
stimulation and frustration like control yourself. Right. Uh in many incidents, the facility is contributing to the
handicap. So they're saying like a lot of times these people aren't coming in here with any issues, but they are
creating issues while they're here. Medical experiments were happening. They were putting them naked in freezing cold
baths. What the [ __ ] Um, which often caused the deaths. Some death certificates would say quiet. Uh, some
death certificates would say they died from burns. Oh. Which is awful. Uh, tons of patients
were crowded into padded rooms together and left for days with no food, nowhere to sit, nothing to do. Um, they also
used um they utilized like adult cribs where they would strap them in there and they wouldn't be able to leave. That's
really sad. There was also a morg in the basement obviously because these places
have to have one. That makes sense. But this one was like one that they could like expedite. If someone died, they
would just rush them on down there and scoot them out to get buried with no one looking. Yeah. Uh and they were buried
in unmarked graves in a big field right on the property. Mass graves. Like tons. That
is so [ __ ] up. Nothing. And it's very creepy now because if you look at like aerial shots of this place or if you go
there, which by the way, you can't legally go there. You have to get permission to go there now. It's like a
government area and it's uh patrolled by security guards. Okay. And it's also like highly dangerous. If you watch the
Sam and Colby video, they literally had to like dodge security guards. Like don't do that. Yeah.
But like they it's you'll get in big trouble now. So I don't want to send anyone there. But if you were to get
permission to be on these grounds, you would see um that there's depressions in the field that's the cemetery um where
these people were buried side by side like hundreds of them. It's so difficult. It's weird you keep saying
that. I know. And they're all like side by side in rows and it's like erosion is
happening so it's starting to show where the graves are. It's very spooky. uh a woman named Tina Simmons from the Laurel
Historical Society. Uh she worked in genealogy. She has done a ton of research naming these people, like
finding out who these people were. Oh, good for her. Finding their graves. And she had found 16 individuals that like
um there's a monument to these people that was finally erected. Uh but she found 16 people who are not listed on
that monument that like weren't listed. So they don't know who they are. You do the monument, right? Yeah. like there I
have no idea. Um but she found deaths um cuz she found all these death certificates for these people. These
deaths in this institution range from 3 hours old. So somebody 3 hours old Oh wow. to 65 years old. What the [ __ ] And
the 3 hours old ones they said those are very nefarious because that means somebody either entered in pregnant
which was rare or something happened in there that they became pregnant. Uh-huh.
And it's like that's scary. That's like there was so much sexual abuse in here. Um if you are looking it up sometimes
this cemetery, this makeshift cemetery is called the District Training School Cemetery. Uh the first recorded death
here. Um but and it was recorded according to the Laurel Historical Society was 1928. So 3 years after they
opened. Uh in 1950, this is just an interesting one that I found in a newspaper. Uh, two boys, Arthur Swan,
who was 16 years old, and Raymond Thorne, who was 17, escaped from the institution after stealing a rifle from
an employese's locker. Damn. They left for a night, and then Arthur returned the next day without Raymond. Huh. The
director said he wasn't super concerned when they ran off because especially Arthur was a quote regular absconder, so
he would he would escape a lot. Okay. When Arthur came back, he started teasing and hinting that he quote knew
where there was a dead body. Oh. They ignored this for a while, but then they called the authorities finally when he
started like really ramping these things up, and they were able to locate the murdered body of Raymond Thorne, who he
had run away with. He had killed him with the rifle, left the rifle on top of him, and just like dumped him in the
woods. Yeah. Now again in the early 50 uh 50s Geraldine Griggs who was a 15-year-old
patient at the institution was paralyzed. She had gone in paralyzed. She will touch you.
I don't like that. That one wasn't good. No, Nicholas. I didn't like that one. Nicholas, stop it. Take step back. That
one was upsetting. Yeah. Um this one is horrifying because this this nurse never
really faced charges for this. Oh, what'd she do? Um, she was 15 years old. She was paralyzed. She drowned in a
bathtub. Uh, so a nurse, Elsie Stanbach, put her in the tub and then left her alone to take care of another patient.
And Geraldine drowned. She's paralyzed. You can't leave. What are you doing putting a paralyzed young girl in a tub
and leaving her there? Oh my god. If something happens, she can't move to get herself above the water. What are you
doing? This should be pretty common sense. Uh, charges were brought, but they were dropped and she resigned. But
like, LC girl, that kind of [ __ ] was pretty regular. In 1970, and this is really awful, just to tell you, um, a
young 8-year-old girl named Joy Evans was sent here because she required 24-hour care, and her parents had to
work and couldn't provide it. Her mother, Betty, said when she was first sent there, she almost immediately
started seeing issues happening. She would find injuries on Joy like chipped teeth to scratches, lacerations, bruises
all over her. Get her out. One horrific thing was that Joyy's back, she said, was raw because she would be strapped to
a rubber sheet and her back was raw from urine burns cuz they would just leave her there to lay in it. How do you do
that to anybody, let alone an 8-year-old? And she The thing is, her parents couldn't get her out of there
because sometimes once you would institutionalize someone, they like wouldn't give them back to you. What?
Yeah. And also like they still couldn't do the 24-hour care. Uh she died there as a as a teenager of aspiration,
meaning she was fed improperly lying down and choked to death. That's horrific. Yeah. Betty, the mother, wrote
in an affidavit, "Dogwood, the cottage where Joy lived, was a veritable snake pit. I once witnessed a nurse open the
cottage door only to find 80 half-clad screaming women come running to the door. The nurse quickly closed it.
Say Nicholas. You just said Nicholas again. That's weird. No, that's crazy. That was like two, three weeks ago. That
was did that episode. Yeah, that's really weird. So they she just shut the door on like they all came running
towards the door to try to get out and she just closed the door and walked away like just like I'm not dealing with
that. Oh my god. And a mother later said once committed to Forest Haven, the only
way out is to die. Oh, that's chilling. In the mid70s, this is when the families
filed a class action lawsuit against the institution for how they were treating their children and family members. And
the lawsuit said Forest Haven, intended as a facility for treatment, education, and training, subjects residents to
physical or sexual abuse, provides virtually no treatment, has no training program, and neglects basic medical
care, to say the least. The Department of Justice got involved, and more court cases came in, but things just got worse
for a bit. The lawsuit stated at one point staff members locked dozens of residents naked except for adult diapers
in rooms stripped of furniture other than wooden benches. Like why? You have to be like an actual monster to do that.
Like you literally have to find some kind of something out of that. You do. Like you really have to be you that's
not even being like you have to either be entirely detached from humanity which means you are a monster. Yep. or you
have to find some kind of enjoyment out of it. Both ends are just the worst kind
of person. Now, as it went into the 80s, there was way more deaths occurring very
rapidly in succession, and they were really tragic deaths. They would strap, you know, patients to beds and just
leave them to die at times. Finally, in 1991, the institution shuttered. Can't believe it was open that long. Yeah. And
it was like during these like after the lawsuit in the 70s, it was like they slowly started moving patients into
different group homes because there that was their solution was like we got to shut this place down but we can't just
like once everyone out at traumatized cuz there's over a thousand patients in there. So they were doing it slowly and
it's like at the end there was like 15 residents left in there and they were just being complete. I mean that would
be perfect under normal circumstances cuz you shouldn't have that many people, right? But they were being neglected
too, right? Because everything was just like whatever, let's forget about it. Now, in the 80s is when the families of
those who died funded that like big stone memorial marker that I told you about. Yeah. And it had
391 names of children's and children and adults who died there. Wow. And this area is called the garden of eternal
rest. Now, um, if you were to go there now after getting permission to go there, uh, everything is left behind. I
mean, suitcases, toys, clothing, paperwork, medical devices, equipment. That's so it's all there. There photos
of people, of kids in the facility. Oh, a ton of shoes, like baby shoes. Oh, kids shoes, slippers,
high heels, like all kinds of shoes. It's very stressful. Um, again, it is patrolled by guards. Um, apparently it's
all very dense woods around it. You have to do like hiking through it. And then you just like come upon it. Like
everyone says it's like all woods, all woods, all woods. And then you like come to this point where it just appears like
it's like a jump scare. That's scary. Yeah, that is scary. Now, of course, with a history like this, it's going to
have hauntings. I mean, yeah. I mean, it's be rife with hauntings. It is. There's a there's crazy. I mean, you you
go in here supposedly a lot of people hear screaming and groaning like people like people say legit people crying and
begging for help out of rooms and when they go and this place is completely experiment
experiment. What the [ __ ] That's literally Yeah. was happening because of these they would do
medical experiments on these people and they're all and that's why they were screaming. You can hear that [ __ ]
People hear gurnies being pushed down the wall, like the squeaking of gurnies. Something about I literally just got
goosebumps from that. Yep. People People often hear the um the morg door cuz the
morg's in the basement obviously. They hear the morg door slam. Oh, and when they like no one else is in there, just
residual hauntings. And uh they one of the things people really talk about is just the intense feeling of dread in
that place. People say it's like sadness is something you can touch in there. Like it is so depressing in this place.
Like sadness has permeated every part of this place. It's not the kind of place I
would want to investigate. It looks scary. I want to now I want to like hear from people who have investigated this
people. I want to talk to them. Yeah. I want to know like what the feeling was here. Now a lot of people report feeling
someone with very cold hands grab them or just touch them in the hallways, which also like you always think of like
doctors having cold hands. Like that's like a thing. Yes. And it just makes me think of like doctors and cold hands. I
don't like I don't like that. There's a clinical smell like a antiseptic kind of
smell that will sometimes happen. Like a hospital. Yeah. Like a very hospital type s or that like musty hospital
smell, you know, like Yeah. Um EVPs from this place go crazy. I mean it's like there you look them up. Go ahead look on
YouTube and all that. There's tons of EVPs. Um Charm City Paranormal is one in particular. They did a really good I've
never I haven't like watched any of their other videos so I know nothing about them. Uh but I do know this one
video I watched was very well put together and they did like a very deep dive on the history and stuff which
makes me think that they like really care about these places they go to. Yeah, of course. Um, so they visited
this place and when they were there they caught like crazy EVPs and there were like voices when they'd walk through
hallways of things like um one was I wanted you to find me Michael. Oh. And one of them was please take John. Oh.
Which makes me think of like somebody bringing their family member in and saying like please take him. Yeah. Which
like like I just got full chills from that. But Nicholas, I don't know what you think, but uh that that freaked me
out. And it's I've I highly recommend looking up those kind of like investigations that people have done
here. Yeah. Look up the Sam and Colby one and look up the Charm City Paranormal one. Those are the ones I I
took a peek at. Damn. Um but yeah, it's a wild just knowing that there is a makeshift graveyard, mass grave on site
that they have proven like it is 100% there. This is not like rumor. This isn't one of those things that they're
like, "They think there's bodies." Nope. They know there's bodies there. Uh they're all listed out. And on the the
marker, they are listed in the order of when they died and they're listed in the
order of where they are buried. How do they know? Um they were able to go through and I guess they had like um
some of them have markers but they're like buried in the ground and they're just like a a little marker with like a
number on it or like an initial or something. Don't leave me. Oh, said don't leave me. He said don't leave me.
Oh yeah, Nicholas. I was just thinking it's sad that they had to stay there. Like it's sad that they couldn't
obviously there's way too many bodies to exume and that's like a whole Oh, it's awful. the whole thing. It's awful to
think about. It's just sad that they're stuck there. Yeah. Like that's their resting place is this awful nightmare
and like the building where all that stuff happened to them is right there. Yeah. It makes me want to cry. It is.
It's awful. Very sad. I know. I'm sorry. It was just It was one of those that I looked at and I was like, I have to tell
this story cuz this is a horrific story and it's one that I'd never heard of. Thank goodness it closed. [ __ ] that
place. Yeah. It always closed. 1991 it was officially closed. open for like 70 years. Yeah. And it's it's really sad to
think about like the people's intention who got together and wanted to make that
a great place and like had the the baseball games and had, you know, let's let's teach people how to farm and give
back to the community. Like it started with such pure intentions. That's the thing. It seemed like they really wanted
that place to be like a place where people could thrive and get better. It just shows you when you take away
funding from things that matter. Yeah. Things get real [ __ ] up. It's true. which is so sad. I hate that. But yeah,
that is Forest Haven Asylum. Damn. Well, I'm taking us back to Massachusetts. Cool. Bring us here. We're going to
Lester. Lester. Lester. In Lester, Mass. There is a Quaker cemetery that dates all the way back to the 1700s. Wo.
Officially, the cemetery is known as Friend Cemetery. And still to this day, it's actually run by the local Quaker
community who are now called Worcester Friends Meeting. Worcester. Worusta, but to many, it's better known
as Spider Gates Cemetery. I knew I'd heard of this one. Spider Gates Cemetery. And it's said not only to be
haunted as [ __ ] but also to be the eighth gate to hell. Oh [ __ ] Ghost to Hades. Apparently, the other seven are
at uh various locations spread throughout the country. I don't know where they are. Oh, I want to know where
that is. Uh, but this here cemetery is kind of like the final boss. Oh [ __ ] Yeah. Once you're once you get to this
one, eighth. Boom. Hell. You're on your way. Yeah. I don't understand. Yeah. Why
you would want that? Yeah. I don't know, right? That's I mean Yeah. I mean, maybe like shit's tough.
You're curious. Yeah. Well, first things first, the cemetery got its nickname, Spider Gates, if you can imagine, from
its gates. From the gates. Yeah. The design that repeats through each panel was actually designed to be sunrays done
in kind of like an art deco style, but people think that they look like spiders more than anything else. And I kind of
agree if you look up a picture. Yeah, I think so, too. Um, unfortunately though,
the original gates aren't actually even there anymore because they got stolen. Oh [ __ ] Which is fake as [ __ ] Who
would steal those? Me. No, I would I don't steal things. But like I don't want those. I don't want those. They're
gorge. They are. But like, but don't steal. They're a cemetery gate. Exactly. Hollow ground. That's hallowed ground.
That's [ __ ] up. You don't steal from Yeah. You can't do that. Well, and the thing that sucks even more is that when
they got replaced, people vandalized them and graffitied them so often that the Lester Historical Society said,
"Okay, fine. You don't get them anymore and now they're safely storing the gates. Um, they had them removed in I
think it was back in 2022." I was just going to say it was it must have been recent. It was. Yeah. Um, but they've
been working out a plan on how to properly display the gates somewhere else most likely. As they should. Yeah.
So, they're working on something uh like a big project right now that's supposed
to be done in spring of this year. And then I think that's their next project is figuring out the gates. Figuring out
those [ __ ] gates. Just in case you were worried. But anyway, I was worried. When you first walk into the cemetery,
this is really sad. There's an oak tree off to the side. And legend has it that a young boy hanged himself on that tree
back in the 40s. Ooh. And for a while, people said that if you visited the cemetery, you would still see a line of
rope hanging from the tree, which is like [ __ ] But people who have visited recently say they don't see the rope
anymore. Um, but people do claim to hear voices in that particular area and see shadows. Damn. Yeah, that's scary. Now,
in the center there's a whole section. You're welcome. You said that's scary. Nicholas said you're welcome. Thanks,
bro. In the center there's a whole section of land that just never grows grass. Oh,
those are always the scary things. Like what what the [ __ ] up there, Kyle? Why? Why, Kyle? What's going on? Well,
apparently the old Quaker meeting house used to stand on this exact area. Which is interesting. But now it's just
surrounded by four posts made from stone and like a ton of large trees. Ooh. Which like maybe it has something to do
with the trees like blocking the sun. I don't know. I think that's pretty [ __ ] scary. I think that's scary.
Plenty of places have trees that are blocking. It's true. And they still grow grass. It's true. This place, not so
much. Not so much. Um, but like I said, people call it the altar, and they say it's a place where some seriously
nefarious people have come throughout the years to perform satanic sacrifices and
rituals. You know, my personal favorite legend uh connected to this cemetery is that of Marmaduke Earl. Let's go. Which
I'm probably going to name my future child. Let's go. Mr. Earl, if you're nasty, was buried all the way back in
1839. Damn. Legend has it that if you find his grave at midnight on the dot, circle it 10 times, then say aloud,
"Mama Duke, speak to me." And then you press your ear to his tombstone, he will speak to you. Oh, no. I don't know what
he says. Because every account I I saw, they said they didn't hear anything, but
people have said they have, but they won't say what Marmma told them. I'm not kid. I'm not going to lie. I
that I want to know what he has to say. I do as well. I desperately want to know
what he has to say. Well, you're not alone, girlfriend, because people do this so often that the area around his
grave also has no grass. Yeah, cuz it's just like trampled down. Yeah, it's literally trampled down. Um, there's
also a river on the property that a lot of people think is the river Sticks. Of course, of course. That river comes
from Greek mythology if you didn't know. And actually, it's very interesting. Oh,
I love this like tale. It's cool. Sticks is not just a river, but a goddess. Get
you a girl who could do both. Be a river and a goddess. Hello. She was the daughter of Ocean Oianis and was said to
be given onetenth of his water. And that water became a portal to hell to Hades.
To Hades. So that river being on this property pretty much lends itself to the fact that people think it's a portal or
gate to hell. Let's go really see what you did there. Hell yeah. It's [ __ ] metal. A lot of people who visit
Spidergate Cemetery will leave coins in or near the river to pay another figure from Greek mythology, Kaon, who it's
like kind of fair if you're nasty as well. Oh yeah, he's the fairyman. Yeah, I love that tale. I think Greek
mythology is cool. Greek mythology is super cool. We spent a lot of time on it in um like seventh grade and I remember
just getting like interested in this book. It's fascinating. It is. Um but so he's the fairyman who will guide you to
hell, but only if you give him a coin. He does not guide for free. No way. And if you show up with the intention of
heading to hell and you don't have payment, I don't recommend that personally because they say that if you
do that to the fairyman, he will [ __ ] you up and you will have to wander around the river. The shore river. The
river. The shore of the river. All of it. I'm all [ __ ] up right now. For over You didn't bring up a co for over a
hundred years. No, just wandering the shore of the river and the river. Shore. Wow. The shore river. No, that's I mean
I don't blame him because it's like he provides a service that you cannot provide yourself. Yeah. And it's not
like so don't expect him to do it for free. He can't contact a local lawyer. Yeah. So it's like come on. I just want
to say it's a little bit fake that Nicholas was like commenting a lot on your story but not on mine. I'm telling
you we are we have a connection. Yeah. I just wanted you to know that Nicholas. Okay. I'm feeling a little bit left out.
Are you sure you turned it back on? Nicholas, do you like me better? Oh, honey, put them up. Anyways, a woman
named April spoke with the Worcester Telegram and Gazette about an experience she had while poking around the
cemetery, and she told them, "I would definitely say the feel of the cemetery and surrounding area was spookier in the
evening compared with midday." Of course, April. She said, "Maybe it was because that time it was just my
daughter and me alone. Maybe it was the failing light. Lots of sounds in the woods. Both of us thought we saw another
cemeter another cemetery area down the path that leads to the river, but we didn't go down there. The next day, we
did walk the path and there was no second cemetery. Only a path in a river. I later read some lore for Spidergates
that says you will see a second cemetery once, but never again. That's cool. Isn't that [ __ ] rad? And that is
something that is reported on a lot. A ton of people say they go they will see like another cemetery in the distance,
but it's hard to get to and then they'll go back to be like, "Oh my god, no. I'm
like, I'm telling you, I saw that and it's not there." Oh, that's cool. I wonder what the significance of that is.
I think it's just like hellacious. It's just shenanigans. Yeah, it's just fun. It's just hellisha shenanigans, you
know? It's just like Hades being Hades. She also said that the second day they went back cuz I think she went back to
be like, "Am I going to see this again?" Yeah. Um, and when they were by the river, she said she swore she heard a
woman's voice. Which is another thing that's reported on a lot. A lot of people say that they
hear a woman's voice. And I couldn't find anything to substantiate this. It's really sad though. People say that a
woman was murdered in a cave nearby and dismembered. Oh [ __ ] Like way back when. But again, couldn't find anything
on it. Okay. But people do hear a woman screaming a lot. Damn. When they visit here. That's scary. Yeah. Um, and then
honorable mention goes to the mysterious rock formations that people will see with runes on them. That is so
Massachusetts. I can't even stand it. We love a rock wall. We love stones here. Stones. We just love rocks. Do you know
that I was literally thinking about putting a stone wall up in my like home like in my yard? Yeah, stones are our
thing. I like stones. It also affects the uh idiotic. Did he just say idiotic? I sure did. I
will not have this. I will not have this. He said that's stupid as [ __ ] He doesn't like stones. Okay. He didn't
like your idea. No, he doesn't like stones. Listen, I'm not going to be bullied and help. Yeah, you're going to
need it. So, Nicholas, I'm on your side. No, but um stones [ __ ] up. Like, isn't
it like the radon levels or something like that? Isn't that why the radon levels are so high in like
Massachusetts? Yeah, because we have like a lot of stone in the ground. Yeah, exactly. Stones. Stones. Um, honorable
mention also goes to the white ooze that visitors have seen emerging from random
spots in the earth. I don't like that. In the cemetery. I don't like that. It's pretty gross. And of course, the demon
creature said to be living in the surrounding forest. Failure. Yeah. Turn him off. Turn Why am I being
bullied? Like, let's just call me a failure. seen this [ __ ] during years. He literally has. Why are you being so mean
to Ash? Why being mean to me? Nicholas, don't be mean to Ash, okay? That won't that won't work. It won't endear you to
Elena. And I'm also going to have to like revisit this in therapy. Okay. Um, but anyway, don't make fun of anything
when I say this, Nicholas, because this is a listener tale that I found from one
of our good ass precious listeners, Nicholas. Nicholas. So, one of our listeners went here and had some crazy
experiences. Oh, girl. Okay. It says, "Hey, weirdos. I am so in love with your podcast. My name is D. You can use it."
Thanks, D. Hey, D. I'm a true crime enthusiast and I have to say out of all the podcasts I've listened to, yours is
by far the best. Oh, thanks. Thank you. You're beautiful. D says, "And I'm saying that with my whole chest, ass,
tits, everything." Thank you. I'm a fellow Mass Hole and I feel so connected when y'all talk about spooky references
or locations in Mass. However, there is one place I haven't heard you mention yet until now. I'm still catching up on
the pod, so if you have, please forgive me. You're forgiven. Spidergate Cemetery
uh was built in the 1700s, also known as the eighth gate to hell. This place is known to be haunted and has super weird
happenings. She shared some spooky facts, but I already told them, so um let me get to the story. D says, "I am a
full-out spooky [ __ ] all year round. I absolutely love fall. Yes, Halloween and
supernatural phenomena." I love you, D. We love you. I run into some demons back
in my day, but that's a story for another time. I feel you. What a casual sentence. Haven't we all? So, yeah. So,
here we go. I'm in my single hoe phase because a literal garbage human did me dirty. Oh, [ __ ] that. I found nudes of
another girl on his Nintendo DS. Shut the [ __ ] up. You dodged a [ __ ] bullet, my friend. Solid. Solid. That's
a See, Nicholas is like, "Yep, yep." I agree with you, Nicholas. Yes, you read that right. Pick up.
I am getting angry. I am getting angry. Nicholas, you can't make this [ __ ] up.
He's being so mean. You're friends with a bully. Your poltergeist mans is a bully.
Oh, all right. Yes, he read that right. Is having a bad day. Maybe. No, maybe he
meant stop. Like, that's crazy. Like, she found nudes on a DS. None. Yes, he read that right. Pixelated pictures of a
girl's bare ass on a [ __ ] DS. A grown ass man. So, yeah, I was done trying to find love and I hopped on Tinder. What
can I say? I was having a moment. That's where I met my date. We were supposed to
be a hookup, but eventually my hopeless romantic tendencies started to creep up.
But I fell for this guy. And the voice of that GTA character. Oh [ __ ] here we go again. I don't know that guy's voice.
I'm sorry. At this point, we've been dating for about a month and he knows how much I love spooky [ __ ] So, he
suggested we have a date at night in Spidergate Cemetery. Wow, that's a keeper. I know. I hope he was good to
you. Oh, just wait. Okay, y'all are probably thinking, "You dumb [ __ ] You just met this guy and you're letting him
take you to a cemetery in the woods." Meanwhile, I'm like, "Nailed it." Elena's like, "You should have gone."
Looking back, I realize how dangerous that was. But at the end of the story, it will make it all okay. I promise.
Okay. I didn't know much about spidergates, only that it was a haunted cemetery, but of course I agreed to go
there as any spooky [ __ ] would. Hell yeah. Keep in mind, it's super dark outside. 1:00 a.m. Oh, damn. The only
light came from the moon. We arrive at the trail that leads to spider gates. I had to use a flashlight on my phone to
see where we were stepping. We eventually reached the gates, and as soon as I saw them, I got goosebumps.
Goosebumps. My date opens them and gestures for me to walk in. It seemed like the moon shined the brightest
within the field of tombstones. Then he walked in and shut the gate behind him and told me, "You have to make sure the
gates are closed when you enter and when you leave so that the spirits don't escape." Oh, girls. I love that he knew
that. Yeah. He's just out here spitting knowledge about this cemetery. He's like, "Just so you know." He said, "From
one spooky [ __ ] to another." Yeah. He said, "Contain them." Yeah. He said, "Girls." I could feel poop knocking on
the back door. I was so [ __ ] scared. We both walked together toward the center of the cemetery where the grass
seemed to stop growing. Ooh, the altar. It was dead quiet. I could feel the wind
blowing, but I didn't hear trees rustling. Even as we walked, I could not hear our footsteps. It was such a
strange feeling. We stood in the center and looked up at the moon and stars. Not
going to lie, that [ __ ] was scary as [ __ ] but also super romantic at the time. Yeah. We stood in a quiet, please
go. What did he say? Please go. Please go. He doesn't want them to get hurt. He's like, "Leave." Yeah. We stood in
the quiet embrace for what seemed like an hour. As I was hugging him, I looked over his shoulder to the treeine and I
saw it. A foggy mist lingering among the trees resembling a human form. Oh, a [ __ ] has a stigmatism, so I didn't want
to react right away. I don't. I closed my eyes and opened them again, and the mist was gone. I brushed it off
considering I can't read the license plate of a car that's in front of me when I'm sitting in traffic. We let go
of each other and started walking around toward to look at the tombstones. My date is now on the other side of the
cemetery exploring. And as I bent down to read a name, I felt a hand go across my lower back softly. Oh. I jumped up
expecting to see my date, but he was still on the other side. Oh, goodbye. Lit. Literally. Goodbye. A shiver went down
my back, through my crack, and around the corner. I had never in my life been touched by a spirit, and it was the most
natural yet unnatural feeling ever. That's when I ran over to my date and told him what happened with the mist and
with the touch. He was so amused while I was just [ __ ] myself. So, we took one last walk around the tombstones and
decided it was time to leave. As we were heading toward the exit, I heard a scream coming from the forest. Oh. From
what sounded like a little girl. I looked at my date with eyes popping out of my head and said, "Did you [ __ ]
hear that?" And he looked at me dead in my eyes and chuckles, saying, "Stop trying to scare me. It's not going to
work." She said, "I swear on my life I just heard a girl scream." He got serious and promised me that he didn't
hear it, though. We both agreed it must have been some kind of spirit. If we had
both heard it, I would have called the police, obviously, because a girl screaming in the woods is cause for
concern. Yeah. As we left, I made sure those damn gates were shut. I said a small prayer to the spir so that the
spirits wouldn't stick to me and we were out. 5 years later, my date is now my husband. Oh, I knew it. I felt that in
my bones. I knew it cuz I read it. But I just knew it. Oh, I just knew it. It was
beautiful. I got pregnant on our honeymoon and my due date is December 2022. So, this was written like a while
ago. Oh my goodness. Congratulations. Um, to this day I talk about that experience with my husband and he still
laughs at how freaked out I got. But it's okay. I get him back with my constant jump scares and by hiding his
video game controller. Hope y'all enjoyed my story. I love it. Dgate Cemetery. I want to go to
Spidergate Cemetery. I do too because to talk to Marmadoo girl. Yeah, I need to.
And I need to hear what he has to say to me. I do too. Like I don't know. And I don't think I'll pay the furry men
because I'm not trying to go to hell. I'm not trying to go to hell right now. Right now. She said she just wanted to
clarifying. Iconic. Well, um, thanks Nicholas for joining us. Period. Thanks Elena's friend Nicholas. Thanks
Nicholas. Do you have anything any last comments that you want to leave everybody with? Nicholas, do you have
anything nice to say? Understand? Understand? Do you understand that I'm mad at you? I
do not understand. Do you have anything else you want to say? No. Okay. All right. We love you, Nicholas. Elena
loves you. I love you. I tolerate you. Oh, wow. He's being really mean to me. Mikey's face was like,
I'm I'm happy that he's here. It was a You had a rough day. I'm tolerant. You know, it was your first fight, too. It
was. Yeah. You know, went a little deeper. Yeah. Anyway, thanks for listening. We hope you keep listening
and we hope you keep it weird, but not so weird that you get bullied by a paranormal ghost. Thanks. Love you,
Nicholas. Stanic. You said static. Stanic. Stanic. What does that mean? Stanic. It's a surname.
Nicholas Stanic. Bad. What was bad? Tell me more. Nicholas, what is who's bad or
what's bad? Are you done telling us? Okay. All right. [Music]

As promised, we TRIED to get an episode on Creepy Butts, but the research proved TOO extensive! Instead, we ditched the theme, and dove into Spooky places that spoke to our souls, ESPECIALLY our resident PodLab Ghostie, Nicholas.

Alaina brings us Forest Haven Asylum where she discusses its dark history, as well tales of inhabitants that never left. Ash transports us to the eighth gate to hell- Spider Gate Cemetery!

If you’ve got Spooky place you'd like to recommend with a personal account- send it on over to Morbidpodcast@gmail.com with “Spooky places” somewhere in the subject line- and if you share pictures- please let us know if we can share them with fellow weirdos! :)

Stay in the know - wondery.fm/morbid-wondery.

Connect with Wondery http://wondery.com/shows http://facebook.com/WonderyMedia http://twitter.com/WonderyMedia http://instagram.com/WonderyMedia

Brief Summary

Ash and Elena discuss poltergeists, Forest Haven Asylum, and Spider Gates Cemetery, blending humor with dark history and listener tales.

Key points

Summer vs. Fall. Ash expresses her struggle between loving summer and longing for fall.
The Horrors of Forest Haven Asylum. A deep dive into the horrifying history of the Forest Haven Asylum.
Nicholas the Gay Icon. The hosts discuss their connection with a paranormal entity named Nicholas.
The Horrors of Forest Haven. A deep dive into the tragic history of Forest Haven Asylum reveals shocking abuse and neglect.
The Chilling Truth of Institutional Care. Families filed a class action lawsuit against Forest Haven for abuse and neglect.
The Haunted Experience. A listener recounts a chilling experience at Spidergate Cemetery, including a mysterious scream.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

This is a spooky episode.

Setting the tone for the episode.

3:20WatchMay 19, 2025

Tension

55/ 100Some tension

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