17 Abandoned Places Around The World That You Probably Didn’t Know About

Abandoned cities — even buildings — capture our imagination. From their history to their current dilapidated state, they never fail to invoke the curiosity within us. Who lived there? Why is it abandoned? Why did they settle there in the first place?

1. Kolmanskop, Namibia

image - Wikipedia
image – Wikipedia

German miners settled on this desolate place after finding that the area was rich in diamonds. After WWI, the diamonds were on the verge of depletion and the residents left one by one, until the town was completely abandoned in 1954.

image - Wikipedia
image – Wikipedia

Destination Truth had a “ghost hunt” and heard some eerie things in Kolmanskop.

[googlemaps https://maps.google.com/maps?sll=40.69778509242401,-73.98088458207796&sspn=1.3784650558344362,3.191346651930948&t=h&q=Kolmanskop,+Karas,+Namibia&dg=opt&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Kolmanskop,+Karas,+Namibia&ll=-26.70958,15.224562&spn=0.029902,0.050039&z=14&iwloc=A&output=embed&w=584&h=390%5D

The town is now bathed with sand, with the grit filling up the first floor of some buildings. Tourists supposedly have to wade knee-deep through sand to take in the majestic ghost town that is Kolmanskop.

2. Humberstone, Chile

image - Wikipedia
image – Wikipedia

Humberstone used to be a saltpeter refinery in northern Chile — it has since been designated a UNESCO World Heritage site.

[googlemaps https://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=humberstone,+chile&aq=&sll=-23.648925,-70.399546&sspn=0.024039,0.041585&t=h&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Humberstone,+Chile&ll=-20.205823,-69.794168&spn=0.031414,0.050039&z=14&iwloc=A&output=embed&w=584&h=390%5D

The closest city is located 48 kilometers (or roughly 30 miles) west of Humberstone. It was ultimately abandoned in 1960 after its parent company, COSATAN disappeared through bankruptcy.

3. Hashima Island, Japan

Also known as Battleship Island, Hashima Island is approximately 9 kilometers (roughly 5.6 miles) off the coast of Nagasaki.

image - Wikipedia
image – Wikipedia

The island was developed to mine coal and was bought by Mitsubishi in 1890. By 1959, the island’s population had ballooned to an incredible 5,259 residents. By the 60s, Japan phased out coal in favor of petroleum.

Hashima Island was completely left abandoned 1974 — after Mitsubishi formally closed the mines.

[googlemaps https://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Hashima+Island,+Nagasaki,+Nagasaki+Prefecture,+Japan&aq=0&oq=hashi&sll=-20.205833,-69.794167&sspn=0.024628,0.041585&t=h&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Hashima+Island&ll=32.62781,129.738579&spn=0.028191,0.050039&z=14&iwloc=A&output=embed&w=584&h=390%5D

And it was just in 2009 that the island was reopened for tourism.

4. Centralia, Pennsylvania, USA

There are so many ghost towns in Pennsylvania that there is a separate Wikipedia page just dedicated to them.

But Centralia takes the cake from the list. A mine caught fire in 1962 — how it started is still in dispute today — and it has been burning underneath the town ever since.

image - Wikipedia
image – Wikipedia

In 1979, a gas station attendant realized that the fuel tanks were hot (172ªF), which alerted the locals as well as the county. In 1981, Centralia made the news again with a 12-year-old boy falling into a sinkhole caused by the fires underneath the earth. He was saved by his cousin, and the air that billowed out from the sinkhole was said to be concentrated carbon monoxide.

image - Wikipedia
image – Wikipedia

One account has it that a dump site was set on fire and was not extinguished properly, where an exposed opening in the pit entered the mine underneath the town, causing a chain reaction.

[googlemaps https://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Centralia,+PA&aq=0&oq=centralia+PA&sll=32.627833,129.738588&sspn=0.011051,0.020792&t=h&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Centralia,+Columbia,+Pennsylvania&ll=40.804259,-76.340475&spn=0.025338,0.050039&z=14&iwloc=A&output=embed&w=584&h=390%5D

5. Sanzhi District, New Taipei, Taiwan

Futuristic pod-style houses were built in Taiwan to resemble Futuro houses, but the project came to a screeching halt in 1980 — just two years after breaking ground for construction — because the company behind the project had lost their investment.

image - Wikipedia
image – Wikipedia

Reasons why the investments dried up ranges from theories that say the ground was a cemetery for Dutch soldiers, to blaming the series of odd car accidents that killed workers due to cutting the Chinese dragon that had been located near the resort gates.

image - Wikipedia
image – Wikipedia

No one wanted to live in UFO-shaped houses anyway.

[googlemaps https://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Sanzhi+UFO+houses,+Sanzhi+District,+Taiwan&aq=1&oq=sanzhi+&sll=40.804254,-76.340504&sspn=0.009932,0.020792&t=h&g=Centralia,+PA&ie=UTF8&hq=Sanzhi+UFO+houses,+Sanzhi+District,+Taiwan&ll=25.260493,121.477289&spn=0.015137,0.02502&z=15&iwloc=A&output=embed&w=584&h=390%5D

6. Craco, Basilicata, Italy

Craco is a medieval village in Italy that has been left for nature to creep back in — well — abandoned, actually, because of nature.

image - Wikipedia
image – Wikipedia

It was first inhabited by the Greeks in 540 AD. From then until 1959, the town saw an average 1,500 inhabitants living in its grounds. However, from then on, until about 1972, landslides due to earthquakes damaged much of the structures in Craco.

image - Wikipedia
image – Wikipedia

All 1,800 residents packed their bags and left Craco in 1963. Interestingly, some movies have been filmed in Craco, most notably The Passion Of The Christ and Quantum Of Solace.

[googlemaps https://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Craco,+Province+of+Matera,+Italy&aq=0&oq=craco+&sll=25.26061,121.477394&sspn=0.002967,0.005198&t=h&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Craco,+Matera,+Basilicata,+Italy&ll=40.379767,16.438036&spn=0.025499,0.050039&z=14&iwloc=A&output=embed&w=584&h=390%5D

7. Oradour-sur-Glane, Limousin, France

Oradour-sur-Glane is a commune in west-central France. In June, 1944, a Nazi Panzer division (2nd SS) was informed by the paratrooper division of the Vichy regime that Oradour-sur-Vayres held a Waffen-SS officer.

image - Wikipedia
image – Wikipedia

Little did the Nazis know that Oradour-sur-Vayres was 40 kilometers (roughly 25 miles) northeast of Oradour-sur-Glane. They mistook the town for where the officer was held and ordered all of the townspeople out. Women and children were locked in the local church and the men were led to barns where they were shot in the legs with machine guns. Once the men were unable to move, the Nazis set fire to the barn. At the church, the soldiers placed a napalm-like bomb on to the church, setting it on fire. The women and children ran out, only to be met by a barrage of bullets. 642 residents were murdered within a matter of hours.

image - Wikipedia
image – Wikipedia

The current village today preserves the Oradour-sur-Glane of 1944, to pay respects to the residents that were brutally murdered by the Nazi troops.

[googlemaps https://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Oradour-sur-Glane,+France&aq=0&oq=orado&sll=40.379808,16.437666&sspn=0.004998,0.010396&t=h&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Oradour-sur-Glane,+Haute-Vienne,+Limousin,+France&ll=45.931095,1.032715&spn=0.023282,0.050039&z=14&iwloc=A&output=embed&w=584&h=390%5D

8. Fordlândia, Brazil

Literally in the middle of fucking nowhere, Henry Ford thought it would be a great idea to start an industrial, prefabricated town to further glorify his automobile manufacturing industry.

image - Wikipedia
image – Wikipedia

He wanted rubber for his Model-Ts and apparently, he didn’t like the thought of being dependent on the British for rubber.

image - WIkipedia
image – Wikipedia

Ford’s men forced the indigenous to live the American way — eating hamburgers, living in American-style housing, ID badges, as well as the Puritanical dream — and more often than not, the natives would refuse and would get a beating. In 1930, a revolt was held by the natives and the managers of Fordlândia fled into the tropical forest until the Brazilian Army made their way into the jungle to quell the uprising.

[googlemaps https://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Fordl%C3%A2ndia,+Aveiro,+Brazil&aq=0&oq=Fordl%C3%A2ndia&sll=45.831741,0.932667&sspn=0.292561,0.665359&t=h&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Fordl%C3%A2ndia,+Aveiro,+Brazil&ll=-3.666671,-55.500011&spn=0.033405,0.050039&z=14&iwloc=A&output=embed&w=584&h=390%5D

9. Varosha, Cyprus

Varosha used to be a very popular tourist attraction before 1974.

image - Wikipedia
image – Wikipedia

In 1974, the Turkish army invaded, causing the tourists and the inhabitants of Varosha to flee. They fled in fear of becoming massacred by the Turks.

image - Wikipedia
image – Wikipedia

The area has since been fenced off by the Turkish government and has been declared — by the UN Security Council — that “attempts to settle any part of Varosha by people other than its inhabitants is inadmissible.”

[googlemaps https://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Varosha,+Ammochostos&aq=0&oq=varosha+cyprus&sll=-3.671125,-55.476665&sspn=0.104756,0.16634&t=h&doflg=ptk&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Varosha,+Ammochostos&ll=35.105866,33.955479&spn=0.027385,0.050039&z=14&iwloc=A&output=embed&w=584&h=390%5D

10. Quneitra, Syria

Located in southwestern Syria, this destroyed city used to be the capital of the region.

image - Wikipedia
image – Wikipedia

Quneitra was captured by the Israel military forces on June 10, 1967, the last day of the Six-Day War. It was briefly recaptured by the Syrian forces in the 1974 Yom Kippur War, but was quickly taken back by the Israeli counter-offensive.

The city was destroyed in June 1974 as the Israeli forces left Quneitra. The Syrian government to this day actively dissuades resettlement and rebuilding Quneitra.

[googlemaps https://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Quneitra+Governorate,+Syria&aq=0&oq=Quneitra&sll=35.115415,33.700562&sspn=2.747531,5.322876&t=h&doflg=ptk&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Quneitra+Governorate,+Syria&ll=33.077662,35.89345&spn=0.028049,0.050039&z=14&iwloc=A&output=embed&w=584&h=390%5D

11. Skarvanes, Faroe Islands

Skarvanes is a deserted village on Sandoy. Its last permanent resident died in 2000, leaving the village for summer settlers.

[googlemaps https://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Skarvanes,+Faroe+Islands&aq=0&oq=Skarvanes+&sll=59.390271,27.257595&sspn=0.05345,0.16634&t=h&doflg=ptk&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Skarvanes,+Faroe+Islands&ll=61.794915,-6.748695&spn=0.015821,0.050211&z=14&iwloc=A&output=embed&w=584&h=390%5D

12. Jussarö, Finland

Jussarö is the only ghost town in Finland.

image - Wikipedia
image – Wikipedia

There was an iron ore mine that closed in 1967 — which prisoners worked in until the 19th century.

image - Wikipedia
image – Wikipedia

It’s also famous for its lighthouse.

[googlemaps https://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Jussar%C3%B6,+Raseborg,+Finland&aq=0&oq=Jussar%C3%B6&sll=61.794778,-6.748534&sspn=0.006202,0.020792&t=h&doflg=ptk&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Jussar%C3%B6&ll=59.827434,23.567648&spn=0.016824,0.050039&z=14&iwloc=A&output=embed&w=584&h=390%5D

13. Spinalonga, Crete, Greece

Spinalonga used to be a leper colony — the oldest in Europe until it closed in 1957.

image - Wikipedia
image – Wikipedia

The last inhabitant of Spinalonga was a priest, who left in 1962. Lepers were to have entered the island through “Dante’s Tunnel” partly because they didn’t know what would happen to them, but once in Spinalonga, they were treated fairly well, receiving food, water and even social security from the government.

[googlemaps https://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Spinalonga,+Agios+Nikolaos,+Lasithi,+Greece&aq=0&oq=Spinalonga&sll=59.827413,23.567681&sspn=0.02638,0.08317&t=h&doflg=ptk&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Spinalonga&ll=35.274844,25.745173&spn=0.027328,0.050039&z=14&iwloc=A&output=embed&w=584&h=390%5D

14. Te Wairoa, New Zealand

On June 10, 1886, Mount Tarawera erupted, killing 120 natives in the area and burying a village.

Te_Wairoa_Dwelling_n
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This particular village was destroyed from the eruption, but has since been excavated and is now open to the public.

[googlemaps https://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Te+Wairoa,+Tarawera+Road,+Rotorua,+Bay+Of+Plenty,+New+Zealand&aq=0&oq=Te+Wairoa+&sll=35.851213,25.32074&sspn=2.722502,5.322876&t=h&doflg=ptk&ie=UTF8&hq=Te+Wairoa,&hnear=Tarawera+Rd,+Rotorua,+New+Zealand&ll=-38.212423,176.362667&spn=0.052603,0.100079&z=13&iwloc=A&output=embed&w=584&h=390%5D

15. St. Kilda, Scotland

After World War I, the population on this desolate island fell from 73 in 1920 to 37 in 1928.

image - Wikipedia
image – Wikipedia

Four men died from influenza in the late 20s and a series of crop failure further plagued the inhabitants on the island.

image - Wikipedia
image – Wikipedia

It was on August 29, 1930 that the St Kilans requested to be moved to a different location. They were moved to Morvern, on the Scottish mainland.

[googlemaps https://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=St+Kilda,+Scotland,+United+Kingdom&aq=0&oq=St.+Kilda,+Scotland&sll=-38.216739,176.368032&sspn=0.041237,0.08317&vpsrc=0&t=h&doflg=ptk&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=St+Kilda&z=14&ll=57.813532,-8.585495&output=embed&w=584&h=390%5D

16. Civita di Bagnoregio, Province of Viterbo, Italy

This particular town was founded by Etruscans in 500 BC. It is the birthplace of Saint Bonaventure, who died in 1274.

image - Wikipedia
image – Wikipedia

Saint Bonaventure’s childhood home has long since disappeared, falling off the cliff edge from disrepair.

image - Wikipedia
image – Wikipedia

The town is striking in its architecture and location, constructed overlooking the Tiber valley.

[googlemaps https://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Civita,+Province+of+Viterbo,+Italy&aq=1&oq=Civita+di+Bagnoregio&sll=42.624723,12.092739&sspn=0.009655,0.020792&t=h&doflg=ptk&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Civita,+Viterbo,+Lazio,+Italy&ll=42.624739,12.092772&spn=0.02463,0.050039&z=14&iwloc=A&output=embed&w=584&h=390%5D

17. Phnom Bokor, Kampot Province, Cambodia

Phnom Bokor was constructed by the French to escape the hot, humid and wet Cambodian summer. An estimated 900 people died in the construction of this resort.

image - Wikipedia
image – Wikipedia

The French abandoned the resort in the 1940s. It is said to have been one of the last strongholds of the Khmer Rouge.

image - Wikipedia
image – Wikipedia

To get to Phnom Bokor, one can only access it via motorbike.

[googlemaps https://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Phnom+Bokor,+Kampot+Province,+Cambodia&aq=0&oq=Phnom+Bokor&sll=12.631,76.529356&sspn=0.012804,0.020792&t=h&doflg=ptk&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Phnom+Bokor&ll=10.612103,104.037609&spn=0.032901,0.050039&z=14&output=embed&w=584&h=390%5D

An incredible sight indeed. Thought Catalog Logo Mark


About the author

Michael Koh

Follow Michael at @UghHugs.

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