The Trans-Allegheny Lunatic Asylum ("TALA") is an abandoned psychiatric hospital that was built in Weston, WV in the mid-19th century. After almost 150 years of treating the mentally ill, it was closed in 1994 after it became over-crowded and outdated. Since then, TALA has offered tours of its historic grounds and once a year it offers photographers relatively unrestricted access to the grounds and buildings.
As a psychologist and photographer the campus holds a special interest to me, so I eagerly anticipated a trip for the photographers' access this September. Seven of us journeyed to Weston, located in the middle of West Virginia.
