Est. 1928 · Replaced a hospital lost to fire in 1926 · Served as Mingo County's primary hospital, 1928-1988 · Featured on Travel Channel's Destination Fear (2020)
Williamson Memorial Hospital opened on College Hill, overlooking the town of Williamson, West Virginia, on March 3, 1928. It replaced an earlier downtown hospital building that had burned in a fire during the winter of 1926, and it served as Mingo County's primary hospital for six decades.
The hospital operated until 1988, when a new, modern facility opened down the street and the College Hill building was retired from acute care. It continued to house physician offices for about 26 years afterward before falling into storage use and standing largely vacant.
A private investor purchased the building in late 2020, and in 2021 it reopened to the public as a combined historic and paranormal tour site. Its featured episode of Travel Channel's Destination Fear later that same season drew wider attention to the building beyond the immediate Tug Valley region.
Sources
- https://www.collegehillhospital.com
- https://www.collegehillhospital.com/about
- https://www.thescarefactor.com/haunted-places/west-virginia/the-old-hospital-on-college-hill/
- https://www.herald-dispatch.com/special/visitors_guide/old-hospital-home-to-thrills-haunts/article_b326988d-0f54-5a0b-a4b4-3d9641d7b96b.html
- https://www.williamsondailynews.com/news/old-hospital-on-college-hill-showcased-on-travel-channel-show/article_cb36ffd5-b075-5035-93e7-2590e57684de.html
- https://amyscrypt.com/haunted-old-hospital-college-hill-west-virginia/
- https://www.wymt.com/2021/02/06/haunted-hospital-resurrected-as-tourist-attraction-in-wva/
- https://www.hauntednightsevents.com/event-details/old-hospital-on-college-hill-6
- https://www.hauntedrooms.com/west-virginia/ghost-hunts/old-college-hill-hospital-williamson-wv
- https://phantomhistory.com/episodes/the-hospital-on-old-college-hill/
Apparition of a former nurseCold spotsDisembodied voices
Visitors and tour guides at the Old Hospital on College Hill most consistently describe the presence of a former nurse, believed by the operators to have died in the building during a shift, and reported still moving through the halls as though continuing her rounds. The claim has not been independently documented, and the venue's own materials present it as local lore rather than a confirmed incident.
Broader accounts from guided tours and paranormal groups describe cold spots, disembodied voices, and shadow movement concentrated in the former patient wings and stairwells, consistent with reports gathered at other long-running hospital buildings converted to tourism use. WBOY and other regional outlets have covered organized ghost-hunting events at the site featuring standard investigation equipment.
The building's profile rose substantially after Travel Channel's Destination Fear crew filmed an episode there that aired December 19, 2020, part of the show's second season. Local coverage in the Williamson Daily News and the Mingo Messenger followed the broadcast.
Notable Entities
Unnamed former nurse
Media Appearances
- Destination Fear: Old Hospital on College Hill (Travel Channel, 2020)