The Veteran's Psychiatric Institute, (known more commonly as Parkwood), was the building upon which UEL was founded, although, ironically enough we explored several other places before finally getting inside.

Anyway, a bit of backstory here: The building was opened in 1920 and abandoned in 1987. It was, from what various people have told me (and a sign on the place's driveway), a Pyschiatric Institute. Haven't time or inclination enough to research the place more thoroughly. If any of this info is incorrect, or if you have any additional info related to the hospital, don't hesitate to send off a mail about it.

Anyway, the basic structure is like a star, three wings radiating out from a central point. The two of the wings, the front of the building, run almost paralell to Wellinton Rd. and at the centre of these is a small extension which has three large windows and three doors and a flagpole directly in front of it. The third wing extends back in the direction of New Parkwood Hospital. Also, around the back of one of the two Wellington-facing wings, there is a ramp (for cars) going up to a large entrance which we assumed was some kind of emergency room.

Parkwood has four floors, (the main floor being partially underground) and a basement with a tunnel system. The first time we went it was about three weeks before they had started to really clean to place out for demolition, but a fair amount of artifacts were left inside. We entered to the main floor, near the ramp. Asbestos masks were a must in here, the place was chock full of it, as well as who knows what else. The main hallway sections was pretty well gutted out, containing only a few pieces of furniture in nearly identical cell-like rooms. One room which was good was apparently some type of bathroom or something.... it was empty except for some kind of table, and two crazy and very deep tubs which were similar to those hydroshock-therapy tubs found in Danvers; at any rate they didn't look anything like the normal tubs found in other bathrooms inside. Back in the hallway: paint peeled from the walls and ceilings, and the air reeked of damp and decay. On this floor there were a few interesting things, however; namely the kitchen, some very large old walk-in freezers, and some cool old signage in the hallways. Also on this floor is a very small stairwell down to that small three-doored extension. We had previously thought this was some kind of main entrance, but in reality it was some kind of auditorium, complete with stage and projection booth, as well as some of kind of lifting machine, which was most likely used for wheelchair-bound people as the only other access is a small stairwell. This was the room with the most graffitti which we saw, it had the usual assortment like "DEATH" and "REDRUM" and various tags all over the walls. As well, in a small room at the end of one of the wings was an old bulliten board, a set of lawn-darts (of all things!) and a graf of a monkey eating a banana.

Down to the basement: the basement was chock full of all kinds of old furniture... desks, beds, chairs, vases, lamps.... all just lying around. There was even an old pack of cigarettes from way back before they had any warnings on the packages. Also there was a cool mechanical room, with all kinds of knobs, valves, huge boilers, chains, and random machines. Some sections of the basement had caged off areas, which had some old (1960s-70s) National Geographic magazines scattered in them. As we made our way to the end of one of the basement sections, we came across huge blue bags of yummy old asbestos which the hazmat guys had apparently removed, and a strange door. Behind the door was the entrance to the steam tunnels. The tunnels were a bit of a letdown. The main tunnel continued in a straight line towards Commisioner's Rd, with a couple overhead entrances to these little access-shacks you can see out on the big field in front of the hospital. After that, the tunnel made a slight curve and we were faced with a set of iron stairs leading down to a lower tunnel which was flooded with about 8" of icy water. Nobody had boots. God damn it. We left that section unexplored, and decided to hit the upper floors. In the stairwell up, numerous slips of paper were blowing around in the breeze from the open window-well. Upon examination, they turned out to be some type of patient's records dated in the 1980s.... such and such a thing preformed by Dr. So-and-So to such and such a person for X amount of dollars, with all kinds of personal info like birth dates, adresses, Ohip numbers, etc. Nice handling of medical records by the Ontario Healthcare System. At least the records will be destroyed shortly with the rest of the building.

Second floor had more of the cell-like rooms, mostly empty, and a few larger rooms which not much in them. However in one room we found a child's book and hairbrush. Also, at the end of each wing, from the 2nd-4th floors, is a large empty room (usually referred to as "Day Smoking Room", from the signs) at the end of which is the area we called "the cages"; basically a large open balcony spanning the width of the wing, but completely caged in with metal gratings on all sides. Anyway, on the 2nd floor, all the smoking rooms were empty except for some old drapes hanging from the windows. Right where the three wings met however, was what we took to be some type of emergency room, there was a huge door in the wall which led to the top of the ramp outside. Unfortunatly, we only saw this room on our second trip back, and by that time, half the wall was smashed in the room convered in rubble which was impassible from the doorway. Now up the stairwell to the third floor! (inside this stairwell somebody had written HELP ME backwards in red).

Third floor was similar to the second. It had the same smoking rooms, and general layout. However, whereas the first two floors middle (between the two wellington-facing wings) sections had been taken up with the auditorium, this had a long curved room which we took to be the lunchroom. It had signs on the walls stating that Food was Not to be Removed from Lunchroom by Patients or Staff. This room also contained a smashed water fountain which somebody had labelled "The Fountain of Death". The elevator was stopped on this floor, and it had a hilariously obvious Out of Order sign on it. The sign, however, was printed on the back of piece of ripped off printer paper, with the heading: "Westminster Pyschiatric Dept."

Fourth floor was the same as the third, except for an odd room which, if I remember right, was in place of the lunchroom. It was sectioned off into little "stalls" with waist-high walls, and had a washroom containing a long row of sinks directly off it. Some kind of operating room? Who knows.... A bit past this room was a weird stairwell/ladder to one of the wing's penthouses. I put my hand in pigeon shit on the way up the ladder. At the top was a nice view, roof access, some machinery, and about a foot's depth of dead pigeons and their shit on the floor. At the very center of the floor was another ladder up to the very center, and largest penthouse. This held not one but two mechanical rooms, and it had a big panel of breakers and some machinery which was used to haul the elevator up and down. Having seen all, we left without incident.

- Capone

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