

October 1, 2014 was an important dayEllis Island's massive hospital complex, which had been closed to the public for 60 years, opened up for hard hat tours. French artist JR also took to the sprawling compound, where 10 percent of all arriving immigrants were screened for diseases, and plastered haunting portraits and other historical imagery to all surfaces, from deteriorating walls to chairs stacked akimbo. Save Ellis Island is still running these tours. They cost $43 a pop, with the money going to raise money for a $300 million restoration. But, as Bowery Boogie reports from a trip out there over two detailed posts, it's totally worth it. (It's also popular, given that slots are booked months in advance.)

"The contagious disease ward, the laundry room (for washing thousands of sheets daily), the doctor's quarters, the autopsy theater, the kitchen, the mattress autoclave room (for sterilization from the highly contagious diseases), the power plant, the dormitory rooms for tuberculosis patients..." Check. And who knows, you might even get possessed in the process.

· Ellis Island Tours [Save Ellis Island]

· Exhuming the Ghosts Within the Ellis Island Hospital Compound [BB]

· Touring the Creepy Abandoned Hospital Complex on Ellis Island [BB]

· All Ellis Island coverage [Curbed]