See Eerie Ruins of Creepy Abandoned Hospital in the Ozark Mountains

As the spooky month arrives on October 1, it's time for a road trip and a hike to see a creepy abandoned hospital left in ruins in the middle of the woods in the Ozark Mountains in Missouri, about 115 miles from Harrison, Arkansas.

The Ruins of Welch Spring Hospital in the Ozarks

The hospital was originally built in 1913 and was known as the Welch Spring Hospital because it was built over the mouth of a cave.

An Illinois doctor named C.H. Diel acquired the property in 1913 and believed that the natural spring water, with the pollen-free cave air, had healing powers that could cure illnesses such as asthma, emphysema, and tuberculosis.

Additionally, a small, low-water dam was also added around the spring.

READ MORE: This Arkansas Town Became a Ghost Town With a Secret Oasis

Hospital or Sanatorium? You Be The Judge

The stone-cut rock walls resemble something from Medieval times, with wrought iron bars covering the windows; it looks more like a jail than a hospital, or, as thatawaydad says, a sanatorium.

The hospital failed due to a lack of roads to get there back then, and Dr. Diel died in 1940. All that remains of its eerie past is the stone walls and a few entryways and steps leading into the tree-covered building.

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How to Get There

The Welch Spring Trailhead is right off Highway K, just north of Akers, Missouri.  Take Route K, turn left on the first gravel road past Akers Group Camp, and then drive to the end and park by the river, and take a short hike down the half-mile trail to the ruins.

If you're looking for some spooky vibes this October, the ruins of the Welch Spring Hospital in the Ozarks await you.