Inside the abandoned asylum that was home to the clinically insane for 100 years in South Carolina

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These haunting images show the crumbling remains of one of America's first lunatic asylums.

The South Carolina Lunatic Asylum was founded in 1821 and was one of the first public mental hospitals in the country.

In 1900, more than 1,000 patients in its first building, although many died. Known as the Mills Building after its architect Robert Mills, the structure is now a National Historic Landmark.

The South Carolina Lunatic Asylum was founded in 1821 and was one of the first public mental hospitals in the country

A photographer known as Abandoned Southeast captured the crumbling remains of the asylum. A broken rocking chair is seen inside the derelict building

The facility in the state capital of Columbia changed its name to South Carolina State Hospital for the Insane in 1896 and later became known simply as the South Carolina State Hospital. 

Patient numbers dwindled when the state began transitioning mental health care to centers in local communities. 

By the 1990s, the wards were slowly being closed as patients were discharged to homes or placed in local care facilities.  

And while the facade of the former asylum remains impressive, its interiors are deteriorating rapidly.

The South Carolina Lunatic Asylum was founded in 1821 and was one of the first public mental hospitals in the country

A piano's broken keys are seen scattered across inside one of the South Carolina Lunatic Asylum's buildings

A sprawling white corridor is seen with its doors still flung open inside the building that used to house the clinically insane

In 1900, more than 1,000 patients in its first building, although many died. Pictured,, the broken beds patients once slept in

The facility in the state capital of Columbia changed its name to South Carolina State Hospital for the Insane in 1896

A photographer known as Abandoned Southeast captured chilling images of the place as it is today.  

A sprawling white corridor is seen with its doors still flung open, a desolate rocking chair with an arm missing is still beside a window and a forgotten piano's misplaced keys are still scattered across its top. 

'After reading about the asylum online, I decided I wanted to visit and see it in person,' the photographer said.

'This is an abandoned state hospital that predates the Civil War, I love the historic aspect as well as the architecture in these old asylums.

A photographer known as Abandoned Southeast captured chilling images of the place as it is today. Pictured, graffiti is seen on the walls and windows of one building

Patient numbers dwindled when the state began transitioning mental health care to centers in local communities

By the 1990s, the wards were slowly being closed as patients were discharged to homes or placed in local care facilities

'There were no real issues whilst shooting other than watching where you step. The wooden floors were extremely rotten in some areas.'

He added: 'I've been exploring for years, I got involved in photography about three years ago. I wanted to capture the abandoned places I was visiting since most of them were being torn down or renovated.

'I love to explore and discover what could be left behind in many of these abandoned places and I want to share my explores with others through photography.' 

The psychiatric hospital in South Carolina's capital Columbia was ultimately left to the elements. Pictured, the hospital's dilapidated roof

'This is an abandoned state hospital that predates the Civil War, I love the historic aspect as well as the architecture in these old asylums,' the photographer said