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• Abandon All Hope: 4 Derelict Lunatic Asylums

  In Abandoned, Europe, Lists / By Tom / 27 October 2009

  

  It isn’t long since “lunatic asylums” were common-place in the world’s more advanced societies. The taboo of mental illness combined with a lack of understanding of the issue meant sufferers were often isolated from society for long periods – sometimes indefinitely. Take into account the horrifying conditions within and the terrifyingly institutional look of the buildings themselves, and entering the asylum must have evoked the inscription from Dante’s Inferno: Abandon all hope ye who enter…

   

• Abandoned Detroit: Images of a Lost City

  In Abandoned, North America / By Tom / 22 October 2009

  

  We’ve all heard of the Lost City of Atlantis, but what about the Lost City of Detroit? It is staggering to think that the once proud Motor City could disintegrate into such total decay.

   

• Abandoned MiGs & Other Aircraft: Former Soviet Hardware From Iraq to Russia

  In Abandoned, Military, Transportation / By Tom / 21 October 2009

  

  “The Mig” and all the aircraft variants that name covers, has become a veritable icon of the Cold War. The vast number built by Russia over the last half century and heavily exported means that, while some remain airborne, others lie derelict or destroyed from Siberia to Iraq and beyond. Here are just a few that continue to languish on in various states of disrepair.

   

• Chernobyl Rescue Operation: The Vehicle Graveyard

  In Abandoned, Europe, Transportation / By Tom / 19 October 2009

  

  The Chernobyl disaster is widely believed to be the worst of its kind in the history of nuclear power. The nearby city of Pripyat, which was built to house the plant’s workers, has become a well known ghost town in the wake of the catastrophe. But what became of the scores of military vehicles – helicopters, fire engines and tanks – that fought the burning nuclear fuel spewing out of the remains of the station’s fourth reactor?

   

• Urban Decay: 7 Abandoned Swimming Pools

  In Abandoned, Europe, Lists / By Tom / 17 October 2009

  

  Urban decay is often at its most poignant in former recreational buildings, such as old cinemas. Abandoned swimming baths also have a unique character to them, often with ornate tiling and elaborate iron work decorating their balconies and staircases. Designed to offer a touch of elegance, stepping inside is like travelling through time.

   

• Bodie Ghost Town: Spectres, Curses and “Arrested Decay”

  In Abandoned, History, North America, Travel & Living / By Tom / 14 October 2009

  

  The old mining settlement at Bodie in California is arguably America’s best preserved ghost town. Dating back to around 1859, Bodie is frozen in a state of “arrested decay”, looked after as a historic park but not restored to its original condition. This makes the town both authentic and mysterious.

   

• World War Two Meets Science Fiction: Pirate Radio and Micronations

  In Abandoned, Europe, Military / By Tom / 13 October 2009

  

  These bizarre fortified towers look more like a cross between the Imperial Walkers from Star Wars and the Martians from War of the Worlds. In the context of the time they were built – the Second World War – they must have looked impossibly futuristic. Today, their rusting shells seem like an invading hoard of mechanical monsters – the opposite, in fact, of what they actually are.

   

• Abandoned Aircraft From Across the World

  In Abandoned, Transportation / By Tom / 11 October 2009

  

  Modern aircraft are at the forefront of cutting edge technology and science, defying the laws of physics on a daily basis through a myriad of computer-controlled interventions. But once their service lives are over, military aircraft in particular can go from being multi-million dollar front-line hardware to mere scrap value.

   

• The Road to Bagram

  In Abandoned, Asia, Military, Transportation / By Tom / 8 October 2009

  

  The road to Bagram Airfield in the Parwan Province of Afghanistan is littered with the spoils of war, most of it now completely destroyed. The desert floor abounds with the wreckage of Soviet era military equipment, including tanks and other armoured vehicles.

   

• Exploring Mysterious Abandoned Mansions

  In Abandoned / By Tom / 6 October 2009

  

  Many of us would jump at the opportunity to live in a period property. The thought of reclaiming the character intrinsic within those old features and integrating it into a modern living space is irresistable, barring the price tag of course! Here’s a small selection of some very fine yet derelict mansions. If money were no object, how would you fancy taking on one of these as a renovation project?

   

• The Abandoned City of Pripyat

  In Abandoned, Europe, Travel & Living / By Tom / 28 September 2009

  

  As seen in this earlier post, there are numerous reasons why settlements become deserted and are reduced to ghost towns. Depletion of natural resources, surplus industry and lawlessness have all contributed to settlers uprooting themselves and their families and moving on. But sometimes disasters on an unprecedented scale can lead to larger urban areas – even whole cities – being abandoned.

   

• Alaska’s Amazing Abandoned Stilt Village of Ukivok

  In Abandoned, North America, Travel & Living / By Tom / 25 September 2009

  

  The abandoned village of Ukivok is one of the world’s most amazing ghost towns, clinging precariously to the edge of a cliff in one of the most bleak corners of the world.

   

• Images of Abandoned RAF Binbrook

  In Abandoned, Europe, Military / By Tom / 17 September 2009

  

  For those who enjoyed the article several days ago about the former RAF base at Binbrook and the associated mystery that surrounds it, here are some photographs of the disused base, taken yesterday!  While the […]

   

• The Land Time Forgot: Sheffield General Cemetery

  In Abandoned, Europe, Travel & Living / By Tom / 16 September 2009

  

  Since its closure in 1978, Sheffield’s General Cemetery has become a tangled exhibition of plants and undergrowth. Coveted by urban explorers, the final resting place of 87,000 people is ironically now a tranquil haven where plant and animal life blossoms.

   

• Abandoned Bandvagn 202 in East Ayrshire, Scotland

  In Military / By Tom / 14 September 2009

  

  This abandoned Bandvagn 202 was found lying around three miles from Maneight in East Ayrshire, Scotland, in 2008.