The coalfields of southern West Virginia, once teeming with life and industry, now stand as somber reminders of a bygone era. My recent journey through McDowell County, deep within the heart of the state’s coal country, unveiled a landscape etched with the remnants of a once-thriving mining empire, now grappling with the harsh realities of economic decline and depopulation.
Abandoned Posts
Deep within the once coal-rich veins of Buchanan County, Virginia, remnants of a bygone era of prosperity linger. This southwestern county, bordered by the coal-abundant Pike County, Kentucky, to the north and McDowell County, West Virginia, to the northeast – known for its billion-dollar coalfield – bears witness to a transformation.
We have all been there. A ominous derelict is on the horizon – this one being a hospital in Man, West Virginia.
Mother Nature wasn’t kind in some respects on the drive down into Wyoming County to visit the coal camp of Glen Rogers, West Virginia.
Opened in 1988 as Forest Fair Mall, Cincinnati Mall in Forest Park, Ohio, was once the region’s largest retail complex. Developed during the height of suburban expansion, the 1.5-million-square-foot center cycled through bankruptcies, rebrandings, and multimillion-dollar renovations under successive owners. Despite periods of renewed occupancy, structural vacancy persisted. By the late 2000s, ambitious redevelopment proposals—including a hotel, ice arena, and indoor water park—failed to secure financing. The mall’s trajectory reflects broader patterns of suburban retail instability in the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries.
Known as the Warren County Orphan Asylum and Children’s Home, the Mary Haven Home for Boys in Warren County, Ohio is threatened with demolition.
In its heyday in the 1930s, this Rust Belt town called itself the City of Homes, a place where a working-class man could be master of his own castle.
It is a measure of Spain’s giddy construction excesses that 250 row houses carpet a hill near this tiny rural village about an hour by car outside Madrid.
The Kentucky & Indiana Terminal Bridge is a railroad bridge connecting Louisville, Kentucky and New Albany, Indiana and features two abandoned auto lanes!
While Wheeling, West Virginia’s brewing heritage may be eclipsed by that of Cincinnati, Ohio or Milwaukee, Wisconsin, this can be attributed to the passage of Yost’s Law in 1914, which effectively extinguished the beer industry in the state. Wheeling, once home to more breweries than any other city in the Mountain State, was renowned as a major brewing center during the latter half of the 19th century and as a haven for German immigrants.
There are some new developments in Over-the-Rhine, Cincinnati, Ohio that could cause some old buildings to be razed for a school.
Weekend outings, particularly for photographing old abandoned sites, offer a refreshing break from the routine of weekday work life. There’s a unique satisfaction in encountering the distinct scent of abandonment and capturing the scenes that unfold. It’s even more enjoyable when sharing the exploration experience with someone eager to embrace the thrill of venturing into derelict places.