Charles Camsell Hospital

10/31/13 11:22 PM

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On 8 February, 1876, Charles Camsell was born in Fort Liard, Northwest Territories. In 1946, a hospital was built in Edmonton in his name, remaining open until 1996. Few hospitals have such stigma attached to them, and for good cause. A quick online search yields numerous accounts of horrific goings-on and tales of ghosts and evil spirits with bad attitudes. I’m sure it’s a combination of gullible people looking for something that may or may not be there and actually spooky stuff. True or not, the place is creepy (side note-Gene Dub owns it now, and plans have been underway since 2008 to redevelop it. At present, asbestos removal is in progress). The most unnerving thing I’ve read about is forced sterilization. Could you imagine? So wrong. There’s also something sadly ironic about the fact that Camsell was born in the Northwest Territories and the fact that the victims of malpractice at this experimental hospital were largely Inuits and Aboriginals.
Intrigued by the history of the place, I drove by it to take a look at what condition it was in, and to take some photos of the exterior. I know many have gone inside. I did not.

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Porto Corsa

Powerless

Asbestos bag

Asbestos removal underway

Poor drainage

Card holders only

Vacant parking lot

Reflections of the way life used to be

DIamond alley

Shine bright like a diamond

Special delivery

Camsell grafitti at the loading dock

Looking up

Camsell in distress

The bird got caught

Dead electric

Angry sky