Located in the countryside near the village of Sainte-Clotilde-de-Horton, the Notre-Dame de la Chesnaie house is abandoned since 2002. Over the past decade, it was a real festival of vandalism inside the building. Graffiti, destruction, partial roof collapse under the weight of explorers, etc. This is a short list of the various abuses which it was subjected.

Abuse have unfortunately not been made only to the building. Several blood curdling stories show a troubled and inglorious past about this place.

The building's history begins in 1939, when the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart settled on the land that once housed the abandoned farm of a certain Alexandre Martel. They erected the building which became the monastery of the Fathers of the Sacred Heart. Sold around 1954 to the Brothers of Christian Instruction, they will open the novitiate of Frères de l'Instruction chrétienne. An indication in stone adorns the wall of the main entrance as well as a picture embedded in the main hall of the names of owners and their motto: "Ad Sinite parvulos venire Me" which means "Let come the children to me. "

Unfortunately, these words take on a whole new meaning December 25, 1959 when a fire, caused by kids hiding in a closet with cigarettes, burned part the building. These three boys will die.

In 1969, the building passed into the hands of the provincial government. It's converted in rehabilitation center for people with intellectual disabilities. 90 patients were living there. Many people will tell you that the doctors have practiced for several years, electroshocks, lobotomies and other abuses reminiscent of another era.

In January 1988, a massive fire broke out for a second time, this time causing nine dead.

Following the fire, the building have been sold to the 7th day Adventist Church. Wishing to convert it into camps (Val-Espoir), they have abandoned the project for lack of money probably. The building have been finally abandoned in 2002.

The land and building now belongs to the neighbor located just in front. Abandoned and vandalized repeatedly, the former asylum, according to the owner, is visited regularly by photographers, ghost hunters and teens. Moreover, if you would to go, you must know that the owner will charge you $10 to give you the right to venture inside. And it is at your own risk, of course. Not sure if this is legal or approved by its insurers, but hey, it worth a visit.

Finally, several websites dedicated pages on this place, because they believe that this place is haunted. They wrote stories about people who have seen ghosts and other unexplained presences. A man would have seen, among other things, a girl of 3 or 4 years in the woods at night.

Unfortunately, I cannot testify in their favor, because we didn't felt any presence or strange feeling during our visit, just as we haven't discovered any unknown faces in our photos.