Centralia was a mining town that was a popular place for coal miners, but also unfortunately with the Molly Maguires, a 19th-century Irish secret society that had a taste for violence. Still, the town had 5 hotels and a couple of theatres, and at 1 point nearly 3,000 people lived there. But in the 1960s, an enormous fire was discovered burning through the mines below their feet.
Although no one took notice until things got so bad from the gasses that in 1992, the governor of Pennsylvania evoked the eminent domain act and condemned all property in the area.
The American Adventure Theme Park, Derbyshire
The American Adventure Theme park opened up in Derbyshire, England, in the late 1980’s. It started out with a wild, wild west and cowboys vs. Indians theme. But the park didn’t do as well as the original owners hoped, and it closed after less than 3 months.
It reopened a couple of years later under new ownership and with more thrill rides, which seemed to do the trick in getting people to show up. It went through a few more owners and renovations before it closed for good in 2006.
Divine Lorraine Hotel, Philadelphia
The shell of the once beautiful Divine Lorraine Hotel still sits on the corner of Fairmont Avenue and Broad Street in North Philadelphia, but the inside today is made up of crumbling, graffiti-covered walls and broken glass. The hotel was the first in the city to become integrated when Father Divine arrived on the scene and purchased it in 1948.
Father Divine set rules in place for his residents, which included that men and women lived on different floors, women weren’t able to wear pants (skirts only,) and there was no drinking or swearing. The building closed in 1999 and was left to sit and fall apart until 2015 when redevelopment plans began on it and other buildings in the area.
Lee Plaza Hotel, Detroit
The Lee Plaza Hotel building in Detroit, Michigan may still be standing today, but it’s anything but what it was in its days of glory. It was built in the late 1920s as an upscale apartment building with hotel services. But the Great Depression was just beginning, and everyone involved in owning the building found themselves with financial woes.
By 1935, the owner, Ralph T. Lee, and his building were bankrupt. In February of this year, the city announced they were selling the building to a development company to be made into a residential and retail complex.
Trellech, Wales
Trellech was one of the largest towns in Wales during the 13th century. Inhabited by royalty, knights, and rebels like Owain Glyndŵr, it was used as a hub for transporting medieval goods including weapons, iron, and armor.
Today, there is a small village left that includes a church building, but the area has been turned into a conservation area. It is surrounded by several nature preserves, which are owned by Gwent Wildlife Trust. The website lostcityoftrellech.org reports on annual archaeological digs that take place in the area.