This is another Byberry story, but it fits it's own section.
Hey all, I've never been to Byberry, but am planning a trip very soon. I've been hearing all sorts of legends over the years, the most interesting and most frightening, because of it's likelyhood of being true, was the legend of the John Doe Morgue. I'm surprised it hasn't been listed on any web pages.
When I was younger, Eagle 106, a now defunct radio station had a haunted house set up at Byberry, I was about 12 or 13 at the time, and unfortuantly never got to go. However, because of the promo's on the radio, I was introduced to Byberry. I remember asking my mother and father about the place after the promo's, and they told me it used to be a mental institution, one with a gruesome history. They didn't go into details, but said they heard different stories of patient mistreatment. After that it had been years since I had heard anything. Then in 1998 I went to work at a local warehouse and made some friends. I was really into Ghost and the supernatural at the time, and a worker, who is normally quiet and anti-social approached me and told me about this eerie legend.
The worker was in his late 20's early 30's, and grew up across from Byberry. When it closed, he was a teen, so the legends weren't as big as they are now, (I suppose it was pre-cult era..lol) The big legend going around was about the John Doe morgue (Don't check your maps, this morgue can't be found there...it's unmarked.) According to this guy, there is a room in one of the basements that is huge and very empty. The floor of this room is vastly different from the rest of the basement floor, it's completly cemented. I know all basement floors are cemented, but this floor is different some how from the rest. This isn't my story, so please keep that in mind. Anyhow, this vast room was said to be the location of the "John Doe Morgue". Now for the actual legend....
Back when Byberry first openned, medicine was still in it's primitive state. On top of it, the medicine practiced there was government sanctioned, (Never a good thing). Mental illness at the time was by far the most complicated and misunderstood of all illinesses. Computers didn't exist to do test, or diagnostic machines like we have today. Apparently the government started a project, Byberry was one of the places chosen to particpate. This project involved only a select few, and was done in complete secretecy. The select few were doctors chosen to do what can only be discribed as gastly experiments on patients who had no identity (John doe's). These patients had no family or friends to claim them...or as the government saw it...to miss them. These unfortunate patients were so bad off in their illiness, that doing these things to them seemed not cruel as they couldn't comprehend what was happening to them, and after all, it was in the interest of science.
No one survived these experiments, they were that horrible. Each time an experiment ended, the bodies were taken to a basement wing for storage. Eventually the government stopped the program suddenly, as they usually do. All the body's amassed were still on ice in the basement. Almost over night construction began on the basement, exactly what was happening was never released to employee's, even doctors. Only the administrator and the people involved with the now defunct program knew. What was happening supposedly was the construction of a mass grave. The amount of bodies amassed was so great they couldn't burn them all in the morgue, it would be too suspicious, and moving them out to another location would be worse. So the government decided a mass grave would be built and the body's would be dumped into it, the grave would then be covered and cemented over, and that would be that. The room was then used as a storage area. From what I was told, an investigation was started.
What bothers me about this story is the probability of it being true. The government does do these things, and in the 50's and 60's especially, with the break through in new drugs and the rising wars on the horizon. The government at that time did things like this to test the effects of the drugs on people, they wanted to know the potential of it being used as a war weapon. A mental institution would be a perfect place for this. People are already crazy, so no one will notice strange behaivoir, and John Doe's are a perfect choice. This all makes too much perfect sense. Makes you think.
Like I said, this isn't my story, I'm telling you what I was told. I asked a few people about it, and they said they heard about it too. 3 people discribed the room to me and each description was basically the same, so I think the room does exist, but weither or not bodies lie under it's floor is still the million dollar question. From what I've been told, the floors in the basement are all bricked or tiled. This room is the only room that is not, and the room is said to be huge. When seeing this room I've been told, it's clearly obvious to the explorer that it's a room that was built later then everything else. I've been told that over the years the floor of the room have taken on wear and tear, due to people taking wacks at it in attempt to find bodies. The worker who told me the story said he was in the room once, and never wanted to go back because it was so frightening and eerie. He said the room is so vast and empty it gives this eerie depressing feeling. It's very unusual.
I don't know if this is true. I haven't been to Byberry yet, so I can't verify this room even exist. However, the very idea is not very far fetched. Cults, ghost and goblins, wacko's with guns and machete's pacing the place....that can be hard to swallow, but the government conducting top secret experiements on mental patients, not so far fetched. Let's face it, the government does these things, and if not at Byberry, they definatly did it somewhere, we all know this, some of these things are even documented. So to me, this story is very disturbing.
If you heard of this legend, or have seen a room like this, please email me here. I'll be visiting the place soon, but would like to find out more of this legend. Thanks.
Submitted by: Goblin