This abandoned doctor's house is filled with creepy surprises

Discover the secrets of this derelict home

Bryan Sansivero

Located deep within Virginia's remote Northern Neck peninsula, this former doctor's house, which was mysteriously abandoned some time ago, quite literally has a skeleton in its cupboard. Following a surreptitious tip-off, photographer Bryan Sansivero ventured inside to capture the curious property in all its eerie glory. Are you ready to see what lurks inside its walls?

Eerie entrance hall

Bryan Sansivero

Stepping through the creaky front door, you're confronted with the rather gruesome sight of a wolf-skin rug. Emitting an eerie orange glow, the coloured window panes around the door only serve to heighten the sense of foreboding. Wallpaper peels away from the walls and old furniture and debris litter the dark hallway.

Startling wolf-skin

Bryan Sansivero

Complete with a mounted taxidermy head baring menacing teeth, the rug was fashioned from the pelt of an Arctic wolf that could well have been captured in the wilds of Northern Canada, suggesting the owner of the property might have been a hunter.

Panelled parlour

Bryan Sansivero

Moving into the parlour, a fine fireplace takes centre stage, one of many in the house, as well as handsome wall panelling in a grey-blue hue. Apart from the mess of crockery and glassware sprawled out across the floor, the room appears to be in pretty decent shape. Note the black and white family photographs on the shelf above the hearth, likely the faces of family members who resided here.

Furnishings of yesteryear

Bryan Sansivero

Many Americans of a certain age will recognise a number of old-fashioned homewares and furnishings, including the room's console TV. These fancy wood-surround models with brass coffin handles were all the rage during the late 1970s and early 1980s. This particular model is a Zenith, dating from around the mid-1980s.

Library wall

Bryan Sansivero

The parlour also features a large fitted bookcase and a couple of attractive sofas, though their design is hard to discern due to the discarded belongings covering them. Piles of books fill the lower shelves of the vast unit behind, perhaps collected by the home's previous owners.

Hunting for clues

Bryan Sansivero

Peering closer at the bookcase, you can make out the titles of some of the tomes, which offer a tantalising clue as to who resided in the house. In addition to several biographies of former US presidents and other important figures, there are numerous medical books on surgery, midwifery and more.

1970s kitchen

Bryan Sansivero

The nostalgic kitchen is quintessentially 1970s with its chocolate-brown tiling and colour scheme – an especially popular design choice at the time. It's kitted out with a 1970s General Electric double wall oven, extractor and hob, while to the right sits a microwave from the 1980s.

Modern alarm

Bryan Sansivero

Secured to the peeling kitchen wall, there's a well-used 1980s Comdial extension phone, along with an old decorative plate, a small wooden spice cabinet, sconce, faded artwork and, tellingly, a modern alarm control panel, implying the property was abandoned fairly recently.

Nature encroaches

Bryan Sansivero

Despite the modern touches, this abandoned home is losing the fight with Mother Nature. A wayward branch is growing through a window in one of the ground-floor rooms, which looks like it’s seen much better days.

Neglected windows

Bryan Sansivero

Many of the original sash windows in the house are showing signs of neglect and possibly damp, perhaps caused by exposure to the elements. Here, paintwork is peeling away from this once-regal frame, though the panes seem to be in a decent condition.

Faded sunroom

Bryan Sansivero

Clearly a glorious space way back when, the property's grand sunroom features swathes of stunning arched glass windows that frame the overgrown garden outside. While debris now covers the floor, we can just imagine the home's former residents enjoying breakfast here as sunlight pours through the glass.

Waiting room

Bryan Sansivero

Delving further into the house, the building's dark secret starts to become clear. The home of a doctor, this wood-panelled space is actually a waiting room. Another macabre wolf-skin rug decorates the floor of the room, which also contains a mid-century console radio and built-in bookcase.

Examination space

Bryan Sansivero

From the waiting room, a door leads through into an examination room, though the space looks untouched for some time. There's an examination couch pushed against the wall, as well as a discarded wheelchair and oxygen tank.

Skeletal surprise

Bryan Sansivero

On the other side of the room, you can spot many of the tools of the former owner's trade, from a miniature skeleton to other anatomical models including a human heart. There's also a vintage Ritter M7 SpeedClave for sterilising equipment, plus a plethora of old medicine bottles.

Curious potions

Bryan Sansivero

It seems this physician wasn't one to throw away their wares because many of the bottles look decidedly ancient. This close-up shot shows old bottles of Amolin nappy rash cream and Cepacol Original Gold mouthwash, among others.

Bygone concoctions

Bryan Sansivero

While these dusty old bottles sport yellowed labels, some of these concoctions are still used today, including a tension-headache medication called Butapap, the blood-pressure-controlling Reserpine and Raldrate, an old-fashioned sedative.

Clinic room

Bryan Sansivero

More than simply a family doctor's office, the in-house facility looks to have been a full-blown clinic. This room, which has an ever so slightly spine-chilling Silent Hill vibe, may have been used to deliver babies or even undertake minor procedures.

Operating theatre

Bryan Sansivero

Even more reminiscent of a horror film, the spooky abandoned house appears to contain a bona fide operating theatre, but like the other medical rooms in the house, it's more likely to have been used for examining patients or carrying out less serious procedures.

Venturing upstairs

Bryan Sansivero

Amongst the maze of medical rooms downstairs, it's easy to forget that this abandoned property was first and foremost a family home. Venturing upstairs, the dwelling's first floor reveals more of what domestic life was like here.

Time-warp landing

Bryan Sansivero

The upstairs landing might be a little dated but it's actually in a decent condition compared to the state of a lot of abandoned old houses. Nevertheless, if you look closely, you'll see that the wallpaper is peeling away from the wall on the left and the paintwork is flaking from the doo frames, indicating an issue with damp.

Cracked photograph

Bryan Sansivero

A mysterious cracked picture frame sits beside one of the bedroom doors. The image likely depicts one of the former owner's ancestors, maybe their father or grandfather. Exactly how the glass covering came to be damaged is anyone's guess.

Founding Father

Bryan Sansivero

Given the biographies of US presidents on the bookshelves downstairs, the past resident seems to have been pretty patriotic and more than a little interested in American history. This silhouette profile portrait is of Virginian Founding Father, Richard Henry Lee.

Master bedroom

Bryan Sansivero

The largest upstairs space is the master bedroom, which still has an air of grandeur about it. An eerie time warp, a grand four-poster bed, adorned with an intricate tasselled crochet canopy, takes pride of place in the room.

Elegant proportions

Bryan Sansivero

Despite its disordered state, there's no mistaking the elegant proportions of the main bedroom. Painted in the same soft blue, the regal fireplace makes a grand focal point, while the sizeable wardrobe has been cleared out, with only a couple of garments left hanging.

Discarded clothing

Bryan Sansivero

Moving into another of the bedrooms, two large built-in wardrobes are brimming with brightly-coloured dresses, shoes and hat boxes. Inexplicably left to rot, we wonder why these opulent garments were abandoned?

Hunting boots

Bryan Sansivero

Stood by the hearth, a pair of hunting boots suggest the family had a shared pastime. Though viewed by many as an Old World sport reserved for the English aristocracy, fox hunting has long been a tradition in Virginia, having been imported by the British during Colonial times.

Old photographs

Bryan Sansivero

A trio of 19th-century photographs can be seen on the mantelpiece in this room, presumably ancestors of the former owner. To the left there's a bottle of the 'medicinal' French liqueur, Bénédictine DOM, dating from the 1960s.

Charming bedroom

Bryan Sansivero

Framed by more colourful wood panelling, this charming bedroom has yet another large fireplace – ideal for keeping cosy in the winter months. Above the mantelpiece, an old framed picture depicts a fox hunt, in case we were in any doubt as to the past residents' interests.

Rustic furnishings

Bryan Sansivero

Snug and homely, this smaller bedroom, possibly belonging to the younger generation of the family, contains a maple cannonball bed and rustic rocking chair. A traditional crocheted rag rug lies on the floor, while the decor appears to be in a reasonably good state of repair.

Curious clue

Bryan Sansivero

A photograph of what could well be the home's enigmatic owner – and perhaps the doctor – lies on the bed. Nevertheless, the unmarked picture gives nothing away as to the identity of the former residents or the reason the home was so hastily vacated.

Unanswered questions

Bryan Sansivero

While this dilapidated dream home offers up a fascinating snapshot of yesteryear, including a treasure trove of eerie medical paraphernalia and hunting trophies, it still keeps its secrets close to its chest. What made the family up sticks and abandon their life here, leaving an array of personal belongings to weather the test of time? If only walls could talk...

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