Hauntings

I am a current student of California Sate University Channel Islands, formerly Camarillo State Mental Hospital. The hospital was established in the late 1930’s and treated many different forms of mental health issues, addictions and cared for the mentally and severally disabled. About one third of the hospital has had interior renovations and is currently being used. When the hospital was fully function it was completely self sufficient, including a working hospital with a morgue and a dairy. This beautiful location was ideal fro creating a new California State school when the hospital closed sometime in 1997.

I once visited the hospital in the early 1990’s while it was still functioning. Now, more then ten years later I have returned to attend school. The history of this location has many curious and egger to explore, this includes myself. The currently unused portions of the old hospital still have electricity and water running through them. Most of the windows and doors to the building are open. There are several no trespassing signs posted every few feet and the abandon buildings have constant police surveillance. Yet many of us have been able to still enter and explore. I worry about sharing this because I fear others will attempt to visit the campus and do some investigating of their own. I encourage further education ones self, but I am adamantly apposed to those who wish to visit to do harm to the buildings. This is an incredibly beautiful old facility that deserves respect and protection. I take great pride in it and do what I can to care for it and educate others.

Much of the abandon buildings have been completely emptied of any furniture or amenities. I did find several rooms that still had curtains up and pictures from magazines or drawings hanging on walls. Through most of the building I did not experience other then a few drafts of air or a noise. However, I did experience something that is hard to explain while visiting the old children’s ward. Up many stairs and through several rooms you come to what looks like a recreation/school room of some sort. There are still a few children’s drawings on the walls. You then enter into another long narrow room with a nurse’s station on the far end. Once you reach the nurses station and turn right you come to two doors. One straight ahead, and one directly to the right. The door directly ahead is referred to as the “black room.” It is a very small room, no bigger then 10x10. It is painted all black from floor to ceiling. There are small black cubbyholes and a small black bench. In the very center of the room is a very tall, very narrow, very deep white tub on a black platform.

There is a white linen sheet that can be pulled around to enclose the tub. Directly in front of the tub and above it are two large mirrors, so that in a person where to lay in the tub the only thing they could see was themselves directly above and ahead of them. The room next to the black room was incredibly small and narrow with three showerheads next to one another. Both rooms felt rather warm to me, but other than feeling incredibly uncomfortable I experienced nothing. As I head back out, past the nurses station, into the large room, the best I can explain is that I suddenly became very dizzy. I sort of stumbled my way across the room and back to the door connecting to the recreation room. With both hands on the door, bracing myself I looked back into the room. I felt like the room was zipping around me in a circle, I looked up to the ceiling where there are several ceiling fans on. I looked at the fan furthest away from me, near the nurse’s station, and it seemed to suddenly stop spinning. I felt a wave of heat come over me, and then freezing cold. I felt like I could not get my footing although I was standing completely still and holding onto the door. I let go of the door and stepped out of the room where I immediately felt perfectly fine. I have since told this to others who have explored this building and they explained that they have had similar experiences.

Before leaving the children’s ward I entered into another section of the building. It was rather windy that day and because all the windows and doors to all the buildings are opened, it can become quite drafty, but nothing to cause any discomfort. I felt nothing else as I walked around. I then came to a closed door, as soon as I opened it a large gust of ice cold wind came rushing out and over me. I assumed this was from all the open windows and doors, but as I peered into the room not a single window was open. The room was several degrees colder, to the point where I was freezing and uncomfortable. I could not find any explanation into the temperature change and immediately left the room.

I recently visited a steam room that is down below another abandon building. From ground level one can hear a great deal of noise that sounds like banging pipes, but once you head below ground you find a room that is completely empty with no pipes. The sounds can still be heard, but slightly stifled. In that steam room there is a large cut out on one of the walls. While nothing was seen while there, later, pictures showed a light source appear that was not there at the time. It is a small stream of light that is different in every picture, and not in some pictures. The building that is above the steam room has a lot of noises similar to the pipes but you can also hear doors slam closed. While watching through a window I have heard this noise, yet no doors are closed. Every time the noises are verbally acknowledge a noise that sounds like a human voice/moan/mumble can be heard from outside the window.

I hope to further explore more of this beautiful place, while respecting its past and those who have come here before me. I have no professional training and do not claim any of my experiences to be facts or proof of any sort of paranormal. I have amateur photographs that show things I cannot explain. I have in no way gone out to find anything or prove anything, but through my exploring things have been brought to me that make me question what I see. I hope others enjoy these experiences ass much as I have

By: Dita1207@aol.com