Flooded Interior, Kings Park Psychiatric Center, New York

Kings Park Psychiatric Center opened in 1885 as the Kings County Farm for the Insane, later expanding under state control into one of New York's largest psychiatric institutions, with more than 150 buildings across its campus on Long Island's north shore. At its peak in the 1950s, the facility housed over 9,000 patients and operated its own power plant, farm, and rail spur for deliveries. Deinstitutionalization policies and funding cuts led to a steady decline through the latter half of the 20th century, and the hospital closed in 1996. Many of its brick structures, left to the elements for decades, have suffered collapsed roofs and interior flooring damage as groundwater and rain infiltrate the abandoned interiors. Portions of the site are now managed by the state as parkland, while the remaining derelict buildings await stabilization or demolition.

Photo taken in September 2008.