In 1853 the doors of this psychiatric hospital opened. Mental patients used to got locked away with criminals but due to a change in the law in 1851, they got their own institution.

Due to a change of the term ‘lunatic’ to ‘psychiatric’, Meerenberg changed their name into Provinciaal Ziekenhuis.

Rumors go around that a some extreme things have taken place here; shock therapy, isolation cells, exchange baths, tapping blood. The outside had no idea what was going on here. In WW2 this place also functioned as a hiding place for Jews.

Many people say that you can still hear footsteps or even voices in this building; we only heard some coughing. That was probably another visitor, at least, that is what we hope.