When smallpox began taking lives, it was no small case, nor was the end anywhere in sight for the first few to suffer from the disease. Furthermore, smallpox still exists - more than 3,000 years after it was first discovered. Similar to the Black Plague, the disease has also taken the lives of famous figureheads, not to mention decimated entire towns and cities. A vaccine was finally procured in 1796, but not before 400,000 people lost their lives per year due to the monstrous illness.
In order to isolate and treat the sick, institutions were created and were often set up in remote locations. One of those was Renwick on what's now Roosevelt Island in New York City. Back then, it was Blackwell's Island, and it served to treat patients from 1856 until 1875. The intention of Renwick was isolation, as the institution was built by James Renwick Jr. in the same Gothic style that can be seen in St. Patrick's Cathedral and Grace Church. Today, only the institution's walls remain as a morbidly photogenic reminder, but it's enough to paint a grim picture of the two decades during which roughly 133,000 patients were treated.
It Was Only Accessible By Water And The Goal Was To Cut Off Patients From The Rest Of The Population
When the Renwick Smallbox Institute was first built in 1956, it came with two intentions: To treat the patients of a disease that was still ravaging through cities, and to isolate them completely so as to stop the spread. The hospital saw an influx of roughly 7,000 patients per year and out of that 7,000, about 450 lost their lives every year.
Despite the fact that a vaccine had been created, New York City still faced a significant number of cases, mainly due to the immigration that was happening through its ports. In order to prevent the disease from spreading through the city since housing was being built, patients were sent to the southernmost tip of the City, where they could be cared for away from those who had not yet been infected.
Why It Fell Into Disuse And How It Was Abandoned
In 1875, the hospital fell into disuse as Roosevelt Island became strictly a training school for nurses. Patients were moved to North Brother's Island to maintain the quarantine. The hospital was named Charity Hospital, and given expansions to support the growing training programs for nurses, including maternity wards.
Around 1921, as the island lessened in popularity and in funds, it was renamed Welfare Island and was completely abandoned, leaving behind Renwick and its empty rooms. By 1972, the hospital had been inspected for structural stability and added the to National Register of Historic Places.
This made it the first ruined landmark in New York City. Since then, many plans have been made and approved to open the island fully to the public in an effort to preserve the land and its history, despite it being a crumbling and abandoned hospital.
Visiting The Ruins Now As One Of "The Most Haunted Places In America"
Nowadays, visitors can still visit Roosevelt Island. While it can be accessed via ferry or the tram from Manhattan, visitors should know that these grounds are considered some of the most haunted in the country. Renwick Institute, as any hospital that treated patients suffering from a deadly disease, has a dark history and one that has claimed thousands of lives.
Those who are bold enough to visit after dark will find that lights have been installed as part of the plan to preserve the area, although many will claim it's simply not safe, for structural reasons as well as bump-in-the-night reasons.