Past all the big cars, bagel shops, and gated communities of McMansions lie frightening legends that the town seems to hide. Next to Big Brook park once lied the grounds of a terrifying place, the Marlboro Psychiatric Hospital, where patients would be locked naked in basements, where the staff had undergone no background checks, and where deceased patients are buried, unmarked, with no family to claim them. This dark history uncovers a depressing lesson in treating mental health, as its failed management and numerous accusations of abuse remain its legacy. This historical monument, demolished in 2015, is now a bare forest with few remaining artifacts to even tell its tale. As it is now gone, many may have forgotten the history of this structure and the nearby buildings that encapsulate the history of Marlboro, New Jersey.

A majority of these legends come from the demolished hospital, which, in the 2000s, became a hotspot for trespassers, eager to experience the colonial revival style building, overgrown with vines, with graffiti in every corner. One legend has it that a local farmer, “Allen,” had his pig slaughterhouse forcibly taken by the hospital, driving him insane, a tragic story ending in twisted irony. With his land gone, he wandered the hospital site, brooding over the loss of his business. He was subsequently committed, but is said to have soon disappeared, with various chilling occurrences happening afterward, such as the sounds of squealing pigs scaring patients during the night, and the sight of cryptic messages written in pig blood on the hospital walls, such as “Tonight all will die,” or “I see you.” In an even more unbelievable story, a watchman was sent out to the slaughterhouse, only to have been murdered, with his body hanging from a hook, and a pig’s head to replace his own. Of course, these stories have little weight to them, but they are spread across many websites, recounting a similar story, adding to the allure. Overall, there is very little evidence to suggest that a farmer Allen even existed, aside from the namesake of the nearby “Allen road.” 

Another legend has it that Igoe Road, or the “phantom road” as one blog put it, is the site where a girl was hanged, or where a mother drowned her baby. These two stories exemplify the unreliable nature of creepy legends, as they are completely different yet grouped together in the myth of Igoe Road. Nonetheless, the road, which is really just a dirt path cars can drive on, has had its share of horror stories, and some even claim that they can hear the screams of ghosts. According to this youtube video, this road is also the site of cult activity, satanism, witchcraft, and spirits. In my experience driving, I accidentally made a detour on the infamous Igoe Road, which twisted and continued endlessly, with sharp rocks loudly proclaiming each tire revolution. During the daylight, little was actually creepy about the road, other than the loud noises and the fear that something would get caught in my tire. I noticed some eerie signs warning trespassers of getting shot, but the road seemed inconsequential overall. While my experience was uneventful, the narrow lane and rocky path surely added to the allure of the site known for death.

After getting a look at the path and the road near the slaughterhouse, I concluded that Marlboro is no longer as ‘scary’ as it once was. The real ‘haunted’ places, such as the slaughterhouse or the hospital, have since been demolished, and Igoe Road has little to worry about, either. With these places now shells of their past, it begs the question: How do these rumors start? Perhaps the real horror is our ability to sway so many minds, injecting fear through made-up stories of the past.