Abandoned America

Brownsville, Pennsylvania used to be a prosperous town - what happened to turn it into a ghost town of dozens of rotting buildings that include the former train station, hotel, hospital, banks, churches, apartments and homes, and stores? The answer is a haunting mystery centering around how one man purchased scores of properties to build a dream, and why when it failed he left them to rot. In this episode I interview former mayor and lifelong resident Norma Marcolini-Ryan and we discuss Brownsville's glory days as a coal and steamship building city, what led to its decline, what it's like living in a city of ruins, and what the town's hopes for the future are. 

Show Notes and Links: https://www.abandonedamerica.us/what-happened-to-brownsville-abandoned

Support the Abandoned America podcast on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/AbandonedAmerica

View the Brownsville Photo Gallery on Abandoned America: https://www.abandonedamerica.us/brownsville-pa

View the Brownsville General Hospital Photo Gallery on Abandoned America: https://www.abandonedamerica.us/brownsville-general-hospital

Chernobyl and its neighboring city Pripyat are two of the most haunting abandoned places on earth - but what is it really like in the exclusion zone today? In this season finale we'll hear from Mykhailo "Misha" Teslenko, a Ukrainian guide who has spend years exploring the remains of the worst nuclear disaster ever. We'll talk about what the real risks of radiation exposure are, the people who still live and work in the exclusion zone, and why so many things you may assume about Chernobyl are wrong. We'll also cover the dangerous and foolish actions of the Russian soldiers who recently invaded it, and why they posed such a danger to the rest of the world. Finally, we'll discuss Misha's return to his home in Bucha after the Russian massacres there, and what it is like living through one of the most horrifying genocides in modern history. Special thanks to musician Elizaveta, who allowed us to share her beautiful song "Home" at the end of the episode.

Show Notes: https://www.abandonedamerica.us/the-myths-realities-of-chernobyl

Misha's links: Website | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter

Elizaveta's links: Website | Twitch | Spotify | Twitter 

Save the Children Ukraine

Donate to the Government of Ukraine: https://war.ukraine.ua/donate/

View Abandoned America's Chernobyl/Pripyat Photo Gallery: https://www.abandonedamerica.us/chernobyl-pripyat

Support the Abandoned America podcast on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/AbandonedAmerica

One of the more controversial subjects in the exploration of abandoned buildings is whether or not to keep locations secret. Join host Matthew Christopher of Abandoned America, guest host Matt Lambros, creator of the After the Final Curtain podcast, book series, and website, and Drew Scavello, the photographer behind Truth and Destruction Photography, as we chat about the reasons behind our approaches, and when/why we choose to keep locations to ourselves when sharing our photography, and what some of the consequences can be when locations gain notoriety on the internet.

Show Notes

Support the Abandoned America podcast on Patreon

Truth In Destruction Website | Facebook | Twitter

Follow Matt Lambros' work on After the Final Curtain

Intro/Outro music credit: Odyssey by Rival Consoles

The Catskill Game Farm grew from one man's collection of animals into the largest privately owned zoo in the United States and an incredibly popular tourist attraction that hundreds of thousands of people visited over the course of several decades. In this episode of the Abandoned America podcast, we'll talk about how the Catskill Game Farm became such a legend in the area, what factors ultimately led to its closure, and the huge controversies that erupted in its final days. I'll also talk with Cathy Ballone who, along with her husband Ben, purchased the property after the zoo closed and worked for years to open a bed and breakfast that honored the fond memories so many people had from their visits there. I'm joined for the interview by Matt Lambros of the After the Final Curtain book series and podcast, and together we'll find out how they managed to beat the odds and succeed. 

Show Notes: https://www.abandonedamerica.us/the-catskill-game-farm-abandoned

View The Catskill Game Farm Gallery on Abandoned America: https://www.abandonedamerica.us/catskill-game-farm

Hire Cathy Ballone as Your Wedding Planner: http://www.cathyselegantevents.com/

Support the Abandoned America podcast on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/AbandonedAmerica

Follow Matt Lambros' work on After the Final Curtain: https://linktr.ee/Mattlambros

Visit Route 1 Views: https://route1views.com/

Intro/Outro music credit: Odyssey by Rival Consoles

The Catskills region of New York has had two different periods of incredible popularity among vacationers and two different periods of decline that saw many of its most popular resorts left in ruins. In this episode I'm joined by guest co-host Matt Lambros, creator of the After the Final Curtain podcast, website, and book series, and we'll explore what led to its establishment as the place to get away from the city in the late 1800s, and what led to many of the most popular hotels left being left vacant. We'll talk about its subsequent rise as the Borscht Belt and how so many huge resorts from this period like the Pines, the Concord, and Kutsher's that were so influential in American culture were abandoned and eventually destroyed. We'll also cover some wild stories from the area's heyday, like poet Oscar Wilde getting publicly beaten with a sunflower and a bitter, years-long war over fried chicken. 

Show Notes: https://www.abandonedamerica.us/the-abandoned-resorts-of-the

Support the Abandoned America podcast on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/AbandonedAmerica

Follow Matt Lambros' work on After the Final Curtain: https://linktr.ee/Mattlambros

Intro/Outro music credit: Odyssey by Rival Consoles

The vacant Third Presbyterian Church in Chester, Pennsylvania was an endangered architectural treasure in a city that has already lost many. A team of dedicated preservationists were making strides toward rehabilitating it into a much-needed community art center, but a sudden and horrific turn of events resulted in the destruction of the church. Join host Matthew Christopher and guest host Matt Lambros of After the Final Curtain as they interview Dave Guleke, a member of the Chester Historical Preservation Committee, and discuss what made the church so special and important, and why things went tragically awry.

Show Notes

Support the Abandoned America podcast on Patreon

Learn more about and support the Chester Historical Preservation Committee

Follow Matt Lambros' work on After the Final Curtain

Abandoned America Photo Gallery of the Third Presbyterian Church 

Intro/Outro music credit: Odyssey by Rival Consoles

Aside from homes, abandoned churches may be the most prevalent type of abandoned building in the United States - but why is that? In this episode I'm joined by Matt Lambros, author/photographer of the After the Final Curtain book series, and we'll discuss why churches are closing in such staggering numbers. The answers may surprise you! We'll also look at the history of the Ascension of Our Lord Church in Philadelphia, which was the third largest parish in the city and is now a stripped out husk in a once prosperous area now known for being an open air drug market. What happened to the church and the neighborhood around it, and how does that reflect on other urban churches that are struggling? Finally, we'll explore some of the challenges reuse projects face and some of the outlandish new lives closed churches have found. 

Support the Abandoned America podcast on Patreon

Follow Matt Lambros' work on After the Final Curtain

View more abandoned churches on Abandoned America

Photo Gallery of the Ascension of Our Lord Church in Philadelphia

Intro/Outro music credit: Rival Consoles

In this episode I'm joined by my guest Matt Lambros, creator of the After the Final Curtain podcast and book series, and we'll discuss Danvers State Hospital, one of the most infamous of the abandoned American asylums. Starting with the fascinating history and lore surrounding the site and journeying to the hospital's closure and the impact that had on the surrounding community, we'll wrap up with the role it played in Matt's interest in abandoned buildings and what it's like to explore a massive, crumbling asylum while searching for fragments of its past. 

Show Notes

(Episode Art Photo Credit: Matt Lambros)

Support the Abandoned America podcast on Patreon

Follow Matt Lambros' work on After the Final Curtain

View more abandoned state hospitals on Abandoned America

Intro/Outro music credit: Rival Consoles

In part 2 of our exploration of America's abandoned asylums, we'll discuss what led to the closure of so many state hospitals across the United States. Why was such an expensive, ambitious system dismantled and why is the word "asylum" now associated with such stigma and sadness? Together with my guest Matt Lambros, creator of the After The Final Curtain podcast and book series, we'll dive into what happened after the state hospitals were left to decay and why their closure may not have been as much of a victory for mental health care as we might assume.  

Show Notes

Support the Abandoned America podcast on Patreon

Follow Matt Lambros' work on After the Final Curtain 

View more abandoned state hospitals on Abandoned America 

Intro/Outro music credit: Rival Consoles

Of all the American ruins, asylums are perhaps the most iconic - but how did so many come to be left to rot across the country? In this two part episode we'll cover the history of the American state hospital system with my guest, Matt Lambros, creator of the After the Final Curtain podcast and book series. How were individuals with mental illness treated before the asylums were built? What led to their foundation, which was so idealistic and progressive, and how did the ambitious plan to provide humane care go so wrong that the term asylum became synonymous with a house of horrors?  

Show Notes

Support the Abandoned America podcast on Patreon

Follow Matt Lambros' work on After the Final Curtain

View more abandoned state hospitals on Abandoned America

Intro/Outro music credit: Rival Consoles