By 2002, it was completely depopulated and merged with a neighboring village. Officially claimed by Morocco, the population got up to about 1,200 until the town was abandoned. Many American soldiers on the Western Front during World War 2 purchased cars for personal use. It had a post office, church, cemetery, China Town and brass band. Pyramiden is an abandoned Russian mining village on an island thats only accessible by sea or snowmobile. Oradour-Sur-Glane is a commune in theNouvelle-Aquitaineregionin west-centralFrance. Lynnewood Hall, Pennsylvania. It was later reestablished in 1979 as a mining community for molybdenum. Some of the largest abandoned cities in the world used to be full of life. The size. However, after the war, diesel engines took over steam engines, and there was no longer any need for trains to stop in Kelso. Sited on 12-square miles of rural China, the city has a population of just 2,000 people, with many complaining that it doesn't have enough Chinese heritage. Greeks fled the city during the Turkish-Greek war and they left an architectural heritage that is almost unlike anywhere else. Almost all ghost towns around the world today are open history book pages that we can use to learn from and not to repeat the mistakes of the past. The area is considered to be the largest contaminated site in the Southern Hemisphere. In the 1970s, Varosha was a vibrant city in Cyprus, visited by famous Hollywood celebrities like Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton and Bridget Bardot. 1. Currently, the island is not open to tourists but has been visited by journalists. By 2017, just five remained. Just think how long your lawns grow when you head away on vacation. Lukangol was a town in Jonglei,South Sudan. Useful things. Others have had to deal with chemicals seeping into the water, as well. This is just one of a series of new cities in China that are replicas of famous towns in Europe and the US. All across the world, there are mysterious abandoned cities that stand as ominous time capsules . But if you are, we have compiled for you a list of the biggest abandoned cities, or ghost towns in the world that you absolutely must visit. The city was the biggest military zone in Azerbaijani, and officials considered it a military necessity. During that time, 2,000 people worked in or near Kelso, California, in the mines and in iron processing for the war efforts. What is the most famous ghost town in the world? It was mined until the nitrate-bust, and then promptly abandoned like Humberstone. Craco, Italy 5. Towns become abandoned for many reasons but rarely is it because anything paranormal or supernatural is thought to be going on. Laborers were employed and forced to live in cramped conditions for months. But, as human beings are sometimes unpredictable, unstable and, frankly, weird, we find ourselves with abandoned or semi-abandoned cities dotted all around the world. By 1963, the remaining 1,800 people who called Craco home were relocated to a new town called Craco Peschiera nearby. Its population surged around 1910 thanks to thediamond rush inGerman South West Africa. The miners sought the nitrate-rich dirt, which was used to make fertilizer. As of 1985, the State of Missouri disincorporated Times Beach as a city. From a Californian town frozen in time to a ghost town in a forbidden zone, here are 15 of the largest abandoned cities in the world. 35 years later, the town is still radioactive and abandoned, but it is a popular tourist destination that's considered to be relatively safe. Is it abandoned, or merely a paradise for those who want to escape? Today, a few thousand Greek speakers remain. These castles dont tick either of those boxes. It was the adjacent town located next to Humberstone. Recently named a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the industrialized island of Hashima is a former undersea coal mine. It had a post office, ice factory, a butcher and baker, and families were moving to the area in search of riches. After negotiating with local tribal chiefs, La Gera was founded in 1920 when Spanish colonizer Francisco Bens established a fort and an airbase in Western Sahara. It is also one of the more popular locations for visitors. But if you do happen to visit Goldfield, there will be somewhere for you to stay. Now, its off-limits to sightseeing and is completely desolate. By 1950, it was restored for the sake of tourism. Archaeologists have been working in the area over the past 60 years to gain more knowledge about past. Location: Hanumangarh, Rajasthan Established in: 3700 BC Abandoned in: 1750 BC Discovered in: 1919 AD; by Luigi Pio Tessitori, an Italian Indologist, who was doing work on Ram Charit Manas by Tulsidas Today you can find the ghost town15km south ofElizabeth Bay, in a restricted diamond mining zone calledSperrgebiet. Due to the ethnic wars of 2011 in Southern Sudan, many cities were abandoned as villagers fled for their lives. Organized tours for day trips and overnight stays are available. Everglades Jetport, Florida, USA This lonely airstrip was once part of a planned intercontinental hub for supersonic planes, which was supposed to become the world's largest airport. He restored many of the buildings, with the exception of five, to their original condition of how they would have looked in the 1880s. Whats even sadder is that these cities are found in vast numbers across China. Tianducheng, China 9. By the 1950s, around 6,000 people called it home until the coal ran out. In just a few months, once whispers of closure became more than just rumors, everyone had left. Craco has been a town since as early as 1060 AD, with many of its buildings dating back to medieval times. However, this city was abandoned until the late 1800s when groups of Circassians settled in the area. If you happen to be passing through, its well worth paying a visit to this abandoned town. 15 Creatures That Can Actually Self-Destruct! Its natural beauty and historical significance will blow you away. Today, no trace of them remains. Before long, this barren desert became a thriving town. Even though this city had all the makings of something great, a series of events meant it was entirely abandoned just two years later. 15 Largest Abandoned Cities on Earth 6,328,605 views Aug 15, 2020 58K Dislike Share Save Top Fives 2.39M subscribers Cities long left abandoned. Whatever the reason, these eerie ghost cities stand apart from ghost towns. The white gold (as it was called) was immensely expensive and needed to grow food quickly. Soon, though, gold was discovered elsewhere too, and people started to move on. There are. And the 419-acre area now encompasses astate parkcommemoratingU.S. Route 66, a highway that travels from Chicago, Illinois to Santa Monica, California. Colorful new apartment complexes sit empty, waiting for new occupants. The houses were promptly boarded up, and the civilians had to leave. They can also fall off the map for the same reasons. It's pretty creepy, to be honest. The decline is unknown, and no one is sure where everyone went or why. At one point, Santa Laura was placed on the World Heritage List in Danger but that status was removed in 2019. In the early 20th century, it was home to 1,200 people, including the gruesome Ruby Murderers. David Mendhelson dreamt of a newer, grander Las Vegas in the Mojave desert. 5. Welcome to The World's Largest Ghost City: Ordos, China. Pomona was another mining town, though it was known as particularlyfertile in diamonds, so much so that you could pick them up out of the ground with your bare hands. The toxin was caused by chemical waste disposal by the Northeastern Pharmaceutical and Chemical Company, Inc a facility that was owned by the same company that created Agent Orange. It supported a large population with Pueblo Bonito supporting around 1,200 at its height. You can barely make your way around these buildings today as many have been raided and the streets are overgrown with nature claiming back its territory. Gunkanjima is the abandoned city in Japan. In 1962, a heavy storm destroyed the pipeline and cut the inhabitants off from the mainland, making it an island overnight. While most people may think that Chernobyl was the main casualty of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, the city of Pripyat was actually located closer to the plant and had a population of nearly 50,000 residents (compared to Chernobyl's 14,000). Two Greek Orthodox churches that remain at the site are considered to be the most important to uphold. They lived in barracks and tent cities until more suitable housing options were arranged. Most people would remain oblivious to this islands existence if it werent for photos taken in 2015. Among the building still standing are the Centralia Municipal Building along with its fire station garage. Spoonfeedz is the place to be for everything from sports fails to funny videos and captivating content. The cold weather has preserved the original structures to a great degree and the town's hotel has even been renovated and reopened in 2013. There has been talk of Akarmara becoming a resort town, but the chances of getting funding to make it happen are low. The ghost town is located 10 kilometers inland from the port town ofLderitz. The land was settled by humans as far back as 3,000 BC until the 1700s. Since becoming abandoned, it is known as theBoston Mills Historic District. Since then, the Turkish government has developed new building regulations, which means that these castles may no longer comply. St. Elmo was founded in 1880, in the heart of theSawatch Mountain Range. The church reportedly cost a whopping $1 million to build back in 1926, which would be about $7 million by today's standards. Wittenoom is home to a blue asbestos mine, and it didnt take long for the town to boom when asbestos was needed during WWII. Akarmara used to be a mining town, but the unprofitability of the coal industry took its toll. If youre looking for a post-Apocalyptic vacation destination, here are 40 cities that have been abandoned for one reason or another. He restored the majority of the buildings to look as they did back in the 1880s and created a tourist attraction in the process. Once a haven for upward of 33,000 people and dubbed "the most crowded place on earth" in the second half of the 20th century, Kowloon Walled City in Hong Kong is now completely deserted. A gold rush caused thousands of people to flock to Rhyolite to try and find their fortune, eventually building up a population of almost 5,000. Nowadays, only 35 people are allowed into the town at once because it is slowly crumbling to dust. Kelso was a railroad stop that was built in 1905 between Los Angeles to Salt Lake. That spelled the beginning of the end for the once-thriving township. While once thriving, Pyramiden fell silent in the late 1990s. The area of Kilamba encompasses30.5 square kilometers and currently offers homes for over 200,000 residents, which includes 750 apartment blocks. The park encompasses 2,200 acres but that's only a fraction of what the actual ancient city was. It was the capital of the Seljuk Sultanate and had a massive population. Around 40,000 people used to live in Akarmara, Georgia, but if you happen to visit the township, youll only find visitors like yourself and few actual residents. Kolmanskop, Namibia 6. Gary, Indiana had a tough reputation throughout the 1900s thanks to political violence, racial violence, labor unrest, and industrial pollution. Video: Open Yourself To Love! It also appeared in multiple movies. While tens of thousands of people used to live here, now mere hundreds do. Located in San Bernardino County in the Mojave Desert, Calico had around 3,500 people at its peak in the late 1800s. Unfortunately, the fertilizer wasnt needed by WWI, and the industry collapsed. Detroit isn't an abandoned city in technicality, but so many people are leaving the area that there are large "ghost neighborhoods" of abandoned homes and commercial areas. It was open for residents of the Chernobyl Nuclear Plant in 1970. But the degree to which the military made Copehill Down is impressive. Initially, the town was founded by the name La Palma in 1872 but that name didn't stick as you can see. He was a British chemical engineer who made a fortune mining the desert for saltpetre, a mineral used to produce fertiliser. Wharram Percy is a deserted medieval village in the United Kingdom. Like Cahokia, the people there just left one day and never looked back. Another town was built close by and the original stands as a memorial. The island also stands as a reminder to Japanese war crimes of the time, as the island was used as a site of forced labor before and during WWII. While some communities disappeared as the money dried up, others were victim to the destructive power of nature. Today, you can visit the area for free but there is a small parking fee. If you think these cities or their ruins cant be seen today, you need to check this list. The ghost town of Lybia is now under the jurisdiction of Misrata. Home of the ancient Lycian region, humans have lived in this area since 1400s BCE. . Cahokia is an ancient Native American city that was one of the biggest cities north of Mexico (at the time). Others thought that the destruction of an ornament dragon caused chaos and carnage. Pripyat, Ukraine Pripyat is perhaps the most famous abandoned city in the world. Located about 50 miles north of Hong Kong in Dongguan, China, the New South China Mall is the largest abandoned mall in the world by gross leasable area. And during WWII, it was invaded by Japanese forces until it was reoccupied by Allied Forces in 1945. By 1915, the town was already empty. There's a good chance that wherever you are, you can live rent-free in one of these. Once Mitsubishi closed the mine, the city was left abandoned. Designed to hold up to 1,500 residents, the neighborhood houses (complete with streets and streetlights) have beencompletely abandoned since 1982. Boston Mills is a strange town, and there are tons of rumors about it. Same Thing! However, the weather was far too much for the island, and the settlers promptly abandoned it. Pripyat housed 50,000 people until the power plant next door exploded. Now, its a UNESCO World Heritage Site that visitors can tour with its original structures still intact to learn more about the towns. It was originally founded by Sweden and sold to the Soviet Union at that time. After a series of wars and occupations, the city was destroyed by settlers in 1974. By 1912, Kolmanskop had produced millions of carats annually, which equated to a little under 12 percent of the worlds diamond production. Ruby is a long-abandoned mining town that looks like it was made for a Hollywood cowboy horror flick. Kolmanskop was a huge diamond mine in the early 1900s. Merv once sat along one of the most prosperous routes of the Silk Road. Touch device users, explore by touch or with swipe gestures. This coal-mining town in Pennsylvania, U.S.A., was abandoned after a fire hit the underground coal deposits. But, not including Ordos, these examples are all towns or villages, a relatively small investment to abandon. Most of the workers in the mine were forced laborers from Korea. Article Tags: Viral Ghost towns world Abandoned cities Italy Ukraine Chernobyl Pripyat Namibia China Shangai Thames town . Go figure. Mandu was a fortress town and the Muslim capital of an Indian northern state from 1401 to 1561. The rest of the villagers up and left, abandoning their homes forever. While Goldfield in Nevada is not entirely abandoned, its pretty close. It is also one of the more popular locations for visitors. As quickly as they arrived, everyone left in search of the next sure thing. Today, Cahokia is theCahokia Mounds State Historic Site. Before long, a giant mine fire began, and the local mines were closed. This city impresses with its overall architecture since it sits high on a mountain peak. Kayakoy was abandoned and its residents headed back Greece. The name Zacharias Lewala may not mean much to most people, but hes the reason why the township of Kolmanskop in southern Africas Namib Desert came to exist. Kennecott, Alaska was located in the Copper River Census Area -a central area forcopper mines. However, population loss doesnt just affect small, rural citiesit can also affect larger towns. What is the largest abandoned city in the US? Kevin. From closed mining camps and disaster areas to former battlefields, many of. By the 1930s, however, the area was nearly depleted of diamonds. Today it serves as a museum. 15 Most Surprising Fishing Moments You Will Ever See! A resort in Varosha, Cyprus, is also a largely abandoned city. Virginia City now has a population of 219, so there are some people living there at the historic site according to the 2020 census. Many of them had thousands of residents, shops, schools, churches, houses, or flats. There are nearly four-thousand ghost towns in the United States alone, and many more dotted around the world. The historic city of Craco in Southern Italy still looks very impressive. There used to be a time when the California gold rush was drawing in people from all over North America. The waste, also known as chat, was left in giant piles all over Picher, and left large amounts of toxins to blow in the wind. Ordos is a city designed from scratch and built within 10 years. Floods and earthquakes damaged the area further, and by 1980, the site was completely abandoned for safety reasons. Unlike previous cities on the list, Kilamba New City is a completely new residential area hoping to draw in residents. By the 1990s, the siege of Tkvarcheli caused Akarmara to be cut off from the rest of Abkhazia for over 400 days, which meant supplies had to be helicoptered in. It seems the small town of Cody was one that was never meant to survive. The city of Detroit is the largest in the state of Michigan. Pripyat, Ukraine is a ghost city in Northern Ukraine, named after the Pripyat River. In 1986, the famous Chernobyl nuclear plant explosion meant that all people had to leave the town in a rush. After realizing how rich the area was in diamonds, the residents quickly built a hospital, ballroom, power station, school, skittle-alley, theater, casino, ice factory, and the first x-ray station in the southern hemisphere. Oregon has more ghost towns than any other state, largely a result of early booming mining and lumber industries that have since faded from prominence in the modern world. In 1950, the area had just under 1.9 million residents! SpoonFeedz Is a SSL encrypted site to protect
The goal was to create a simulated environment for troops to prepare them for European combat in Cold War operations or otherwise. After the area of Austria was annexed by Nazi Germany, the town was slated to be turned into a military training area. From deserted subway stations to forgotten hotels, we take . In the early 20th century, it was home to 1,200 people, including the gruesome Ruby Murderers. Now, the city lays abandoned under the guard of the Turkish army who will shoot trespassers on the spot. There are many out there, but this is a list of 15 of the largest. The new village was built on the order of presidentCharles de Gaulle. People lived here, that is, until the Greco-Turkish War of 1919 to 1922. You can visit the place yourself as its not far from Hangzhou. Now, it has well under 700,000. It has been completely made to resemble Paris. Its positioned on the archipelago of Svalbard, which sits above the arctic circle of Norway. 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