The New Jersey Zinc Company Plant, Pennsylvania
Though the zinc market thrived during some time in Pennsylvania, its activity began to fall during the 80s. This is probably the main reason why the New Jersey Zinc Company closed during that decade and never opened its doors again. Another crucial factor was the immensely dangerous contamination it caused to the surroundings.
You can visit the abandoned factory any time you want, but rumor has it’s a risky visit… some of the courageous people who dared to take a walk inside have said that there are still many chemicals inside! Media reports have stated that the livewires of this factory in Pennsylvania have caused a death recently… so don’t take these places’ peril as a joke!
The Tillamook Rock Lighthouse, Oregon
Resting on top of that giant basalt rock amid the sea lies the Tillamook Rock Lighthouse. This Lighthouse carried off its job of guiding ships that got lost near Tillamook Head’s coast during the 19th Century, but it was shut down in 1957 because of the island’s tough conditions.
Several storms nearly destroyed the lighthouse, but the worst one took place in October 1934, before it closed down. The storm produced heavy floods for nearly a week, and Tilly’s lantern room was destroyed by boulders tossed by the winds. I wonder if someone was curious and reckless enough to visit the abandoned structure during these decades!
The Rhyolite Railroad Depot, Nevada
The fact that a thing like Las Vegas exists in the middle of the desert is pretty mindblowing, don’t you think so? The parties and casinos might be wild, but if you drive a couple of miles away from the city, the surroundings might be a little depressing.
Well, Rhyolite’s train station, which once was an attractive stop on the Las Vegas and Tonopah Railroad with a stunning design, is now completely abandoned. The town’s population was already almost nonexistent in the 20s… so if you visit the building and hear a couple of steps in the vast desert, it might be a ghost!
The Town Of Garnet’s Abandoned Buildings, Montana
This place might look far from spooky at first sight. A couple of scattered pine trees, some wooden cabins, the summer sun gleaming in the blue sky… Still, I wouldn’t feel so confident if I were you, fella. First of all, imagine yourself taking a walk through this place in the middle of the night.
It doesn’t sound so welcoming now, huh? As a matter of fact, you’re observing one of the best-maintained ghost towns in Montana. Garnet, originally a mining town in the 19th Century, was abandoned a couple of decades after its foundation when the gold reserves began to disappear.
The Flour Mill District, Minnesota
Montana’s old Garnet Town isn’t the only abandoned site on the list which appears to be safe for a visit, though. These deserted flour mills, located near the Mississippi River in Minnesota, are also a favorite for the ones who love scary places.
This place’s story is filled with tragedy. Once known as the country’s most successful flour milling region, this site suffered a terrible explosion in 1878 called The Great Mill Disaster, which killed 14 workers. After the region’s downfall, some of the mills were converted into museums, while others remain abandoned to this day.
The City Methodist Church, Indiana
This is the first place from the list that looks like it could be a tourist favorite. OK, maybe I’m exaggerating a little bit, and it’s only a good photograph, but come on, it does look pretty awesome IMO. Indeed, in the past, this was one of Indiana’s most striking buildings.
The City Methodist Church of the city of Gary was built in 1927. Wondering how much this massive church cost? The answer may outrage you: one million dollars! Unfortunately, the city’s rapid decline in the 70s also impacted the church’s membership, which saw a drastic fall.
The Albion State Normal School, Idaho
What once was Indiana’s most famous church was shut down and abandoned in 1975. However, it has recently been used as a filming set for _Transformers_ and the Netflix series _Sense 8_. But not every large, deserted building has been put to good use, sadly.
This is the case of the Albion State Normal School, in Idaho. This school excelled in training teachers from 1893 to 1951, but a sharp decrease in funding and enrollment resulted in it being closed for good. Slide on for more of the most notorious abandoned places in the U.S!
The Western Storefronts in St. Elmo, Colorado
Why would an entire community leave these stores with such a mesmerizing landscape behind them? The answer is easier than it looks: money. St. Elmo, a city in Colorado, flourished in the 1880s as a mining town. But what happened next?
The town’s population of 2000 started to flee in search of a more lucrative business when the gold and silver started to run out. This town has been in complete silence for almost 90 years! If you want to visit, we recommend a comfortable night at the nearby city of Salida, since you won’t find any hotel in St. Elmo.
The Babcock Asylum, South Carolina
Most people think that the scariest type of building is an abandoned factory. Perhaps it’s the idea of a gigantic building with lots of rusty machinery left by itself…
There’s just something disturbingly eerie about them, probably due to the fact that its patients used to be completely mistreated with all types of violent attitudes. One of these is South Carolina’s Babcock Asylum, whose broken windows make it even spookier.
The Ohio State Reformatory, Ohio
As was the case with the Methodist Church of Indiana, this forgotten building has been used as a filming location for a movie that you’ve probably enjoyed. Without further ado… _The Shawshank Redemption_ was filmed here!
If you haven’t seen it yet, you know what to do after reading this list! Going back to the Ohio State Reformatory, this famous prison was open for nearly 100 years, but it was shut down in 1990 after the prisoners filed a class-action suit protesting over the terrible conditions they endured. In recent years, the Ohio prison that we’ve just seen has been refurbished and it now offers tours around it.
The Wayne Hills Mall, New Jersey
Refurbishing a famous abandoned site and making it a tourist attraction is a very smart idea, right? Well, the Wayne Hills Mall of New Jersey is another creepy abandoned site that will soon be renovated, though for another purpose.
Well, renovation isn’t the right word exactly, it’s actually going to be completely demolished. This massive shopping was extremely popular in the past, but a fire, together with the rise of e-commerce, is to blame for its shut-down stores. State authorities have admitted that they’re planning on building a huge supermarket once the demolition is finished.
Cementland, Missouri
Another massive structure that is now lifeless is Missouri’s Cementland. It may seem odd after looking at the desolate building in the picture, but this former cement factory was set to be a major public art installation. Sadly, the public art exhibit was never finished, but can anyone guess why?
This ambitious plan was suddenly halted when Bob Cassilly, the man who had designed it, was mysteriously found dead. In 2014, several of the old buildings caught fire, so I guess this site will remain abandoned for quite a while.
The Enchanted Forest Theme Park, Maryland
The Enchanted Forest Theme Park, located in Maryland, is another intriguing abandoned site that is worth a visit. The castle may totally creep you out, or it may look like a fun thing to explore with your best friends.
The Enchanted Forest Amusement Park was actually inspired by Disneyland, and it was a huge success during the 60s and 70s. After losing customers to competitors in Baltimore, half of the park was transformed into a mall, but the other half remains untouched!
The Kaluakoi Resort, Hawaii
Most people picture Hawaii as a small group of islands. It’s true that eight islands constitute the main region of the state, but there are a whopping 137 official islands in the Hawaiian chain! Impressive, huh?
Amongst these smaller and less crowded areas of the Hawaiian paradise is Molokai. If you’re lucky enough to visit this beautiful place someday, you’ll probably come across what used to be the Kaluakoi resort. It was closed in 2001, so it’s not too run down, but the broken windows intimidate many.
The Central State Mental Hospital, Georgia
It seems that every state in the country has its own remarkably frightening abandoned building, and Georgia is no exception! As we’ve said before, buildings which used to be mental hospitals can be particularly eerie.
This is especially true for Georgia’s Central State Mental Hospital, which applied all types of brutal “treatments” for its patients, like electroshock therapy. Fortunately, the authorities slowly left those procedures behind, and though some parts of the hospital are still active, most of its huge campus is abandoned.
Alcatraz, California
Perhaps the one you’ve all been waiting for, Alcatraz is a no-brainer in any list of terrifying places. What can we say about Alcatraz that hasn’t been saying before? This is undoubtedly one of the world’s most famous prisons.
In fact, it has appeared in numerous series, and movies, such as _Escape From Alcatraz_ and _Catch Me If You Can_. The real Alcatraz, which was closed down in 1963, was used as a maximum security military prison. It’s located about 1.25 miles away from the coast of San Francisco, and some of the most notorious criminals like Al Capone have been behind its bars.
The Wild Water Rampage Tower, Arkansas
Rather than scary, this water slide looks like a whole lotta fun! When it was active, at least, cause it doesn’t seem to be very safe after taking a good look at it. Located in Arkansas, this is the Wild Water Rampage Tower of the Dogpatch USA theme park.
The park was inaugurated in 1968, but its declining number of customers resulted in its closure in the 90s. Though a businessman bought the place in 2014, some of the park’s old attractions, like the water slide, can still be seen.
Red Hook Grain Terminal, New York
Rumor has it that neighbors of Arkansas’ old Dogpatch USA theme park aren’t very keen on trespassers and tourists, though, and this is something you should be very careful of when visiting the places we selected for the list.
No warning is needed for the Red Hook Grain Terminal in New York cause usually, nobody dares to visit this derelict building. Located in Brooklyn, it was used in the 20s for grain storage, but it was shut down in the 60s, and it remains unused to this day.
The Portsmouth Naval Prison, Maine
Most people outside of Maine aren’t familiar with the Portsmouth Naval Prison, but its nickname is indicative of its fame. This former U.S. Navy prison is also called the “Alcatraz of the East”.
The similarities are uncanny: the Portsmouth Naval Prison, akin to Alcatraz’s location in San Francisco Bay, was built next to the Piscataqua River in order to prevent escapes. Moreover, this one was also eventually shut down (in 1974). Rumor has it that despite the multiple attempts of silently fleeing the Portsmouth Prison, only one lucky criminal achieved the feat!
The Savanna Army Depot, Illinois
Enough talk about prisons though, in this picture, we have the Savanna Army Depot of Illinois. This place is gigantic, and when we say gigantic, we mean it. The Savanna Army Depot is a 13 thousand-acre property which was inaugurated in 1917.
It was mainly used for weapon-testing, but it’s pretty much unused since 2000. Unfortunately, nobody is allowed to visit this abandoned army depot, but the pictures you can find on the Internet will give you the creeps!
The Vulture Mine In Maricopa County, Arizona
This place looks like its abandonment occurred like a century ago, and, indeed, Arizona’s Vulture Mine was closed in 1942, almost a hundred years from now! This place started operating in 1863, and it eventually became famous for its astounding results.
From America’s most proficient gold mine to a lonely ghost town… how did this sudden shift happen? Basically, the Vulture Mine was declared as “non-essential” during the Second World War since it was far from being a priority to the War Production Board. After appearing on an episode of the series _Ghost Adventures_ a couple of years ago, it regained popularity, and some tours are held around the desolate site.
The Old Remington Arms Factory, Connecticut
As you can see, many places on this list were, in fact, completely abandoned… until a brilliant capitalist mind came and saw the possibility of organizing a tour around it! Sadly, this is not the case of the Old Remington Arms Factory in Connecticut. If you want to visit this spooky site, you must go there by yourself!
The Old Remington Arms Factory used to be one of the biggest munitions factories, not only in the US but in the whole world. In fact, it employed nearly 17,000 people and manufactured tons of weapons each year. However, in 1970, a new and more modern plant was built in Arkansas, and the factory was completely abandoned by 1988. Plans for demolishing this spooky place started in 2012 and 2015, but they never happened.
The Cape Romano Dome Homes, Florida
These weird domes look pretty cool, but would you have enough courage to swim and get in there? These intriguing structures were made in 1981 by businessman Bob Lee. His dream was to have a far-flung site for a holiday with his wife.
It seems like a good idea if you have the money for it, and the location (near Marco Island’s coast, in Cape Romano) was well thought. The thing is, they were abandoned in 2007, and Hurricane Irma caused severe damage to them. However, they’re still standing, in case you want to visit.
The Kennecott Mines, Alaska
Alaska also has its good share of forlorn sites, and the Kennecott Mines is perhaps the most notorious of them. This place shared a similar fate to the other once-booming-now-ghost town mines on the list.
Located in the Wrangell-St. Elias National Park in Kennecott, it used to be one of the most notable copper mines in the country. After being active from 1911 to 1938, it was shut down. Slide on to discover our number one place in America!
St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, Alabama
The mesmerizing St. Luke’s Episcopal Church is one of the many deserted buildings which remain from what was once Alabama’s capital, the town of Cahaba. After a terrible flood in 1865, most of the town’s inhabitants fled.
That’s why many of its stunning landmarks, including the one you see in the picture, were left on their own. If you visit this site (and we recommend you to do so), you’ll come across cemeteries, homes, and this beautiful church which was built in 1854.