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Punched Cards: 12 Closed & Abandoned Bingo Halls

12 Oct

[ By Steve in Abandoned Places & Architecture. ]

abandoned Hippodrome bingo hall Dudley 1
These 12 closed and abandoned bingo halls couldn’t compete with an increasing variety of online gaming options and the gradual spread of gambling casinos.

Down & Out In Dudley

abandoned Hippodrome bingo hall Dudley 2

abandoned Hippodrome bingo hall Dudley 3

Bingo can trace its history back to early 16th century Italy but the classic cards & numbers game really took off in the 1920s when its rules, format and equipment were standardized. Bingo boomed in Great Britain as well when, following the flight from movie theaters to in-home television in the 1950s, many newly-closed cinemas were converted to bingo halls.

abandoned Hippodrome bingo hall Dudley 4

abandoned Hippodrome bingo hall Dudley 5

The Hippodrome in Dudley, just northwest of the city of Birmingham, was one of these re-purposed silver screens. The 1,750-person capacity Hippodrome opened in 1938, closed (as a theater) in 1964, reopened as a bingo hall operated by Gala Bingo, and finally closed for good in 2009. Cheers to Flickr user Mikey Jones (donebythehandsofabrokenartist) for capturing the once-grand Hippodrome in its current (as of November 2010) sad state.

Punched Card

abandoned church bingo card Brownsville

Bingo was (and still is) popular at traditional social gatherings held at and by churches so when the church is abandoned, so is the bingo. Credit Flickr user Forsaken Fotos for the evocative image above depicting a scattered remnant of fun times past from Brownsville, PA.

Odeon, Odeoff

abandoned Bradford Odeon bingo hall 1

abandoned Bradford Odeon bingo hall 2

abandoned Bradford Odeon bingo hall 4

When Bradford’s New Victoria cinema opened in 1930 it was the first such theater to be designed especially for showing “talkies”. The stately Renaissance Revival building underwent multiple changes in ownership over the next few decades until it was bought by Odeon Cinemas in the late 1960s. Odeon converted part of the building into the 1,000-seat Top Rank bingo hall, which shut its doors in the late 1990s. Credit Flickr user jST. with photographically capturing the abandoned bingo hall in mid-March of 2011.

Under The B: INGO

abandoned bingo hall sign

The photographer who snapped the image above didn’t give any details whatsoever on where the sign is located or what bingo hall it advertised – and the striking yet generic sign itself offers no clue either. Give Flickr user geo3pea credit, however, for bending over backwards (literally) to create an outstanding image that gives real perspective on the current state of the bingo “industry”.

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Punched Cards 12 Closed Abandoned Bingo Halls

[ By Steve in Abandoned Places & Architecture. ]

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Empty Chambers: 10 Closed & Abandoned Gun Stores & Shops

06 Oct

[ By Steve in Abandoned Places & Architecture. ]

abandoned Chet's Gun Shop Detroit 1
If your business involves getting fired, going off half cocked or triggering bankruptcy, you just might be one of these 10 closed and/or abandoned gun shops.

abandoned Chet's Gun Shop Detroit 2

abandoned Chet's Gun Shop Detroit 3

“Chet” sold guns (and gun accessories) in Highland Park, Michigan for a very long time – his weatherbeaten but still-legible store sign appears to predate the neon era. Eventually, economic conditions and crime got so bad in Detroit that even a gun shop couldn’t make ends meet. Remarkably, Chet’s Gun Shop has been reborn into the world of online gaming – you can find it (or a representation thereof) at Second Life, for instance.

Guns & Butches

closed Butch's Guns 1

closed Butch's Guns 2

closed Butch's Gun Shop

Someone better buy Butch’s Gun Shop (just $ 499,000!) before the rest of the letters decay. One has to wonder why Butch’s couldn’t cut the mustard… maybe it was just too wild & woolly for today’s Seattle. Then again, who wouldn’t want to get a haircut at a combo gun shop / pawn shop?

House Of Gunja?

abandoned House Of Guns 1

abandoned House Of Guns 2

When Washington state’s started taking applications for retail marijuana stores, prospective operators found they had to clear a number of regulatory hurdles. One of these was a requirement that such stores had to be more than 1,000 feet from day care centers and similarly classed facilities. As the Trike Stop Infant Care Center was just 381 feet (as the crow flies) from the former House Of Guns, an application to open a “pot shop” in the abandoned gun shop was rejected. Selling guns less than 400 feet from a day care center was perfectly OK, though.

Last Meal

abandoned Hollywood gun shop diner Grants NM 1

abandoned Hollywood gun shop diner Grants NM 2

Was the “Hollywood” in Grants, New Mexico a gun shop or a diner… OR BOTH?? Flickr user Robby Virus came across the tattered remnants of the odd old establishment’s sign while traveling through Cross County in December of 2010. What would it have been like to enjoy a meal at the Hollywood? It seems we’ll never know but one thing’s for certain: it was probably the WORST place to try a dine & dash.

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Empty Chambers 10 Closed Abandoned Gun Shops

[ By Steve in Abandoned Places & Architecture. ]

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The Bucks Stop Here: 9 Closed & Abandoned Dollar Stores

25 Aug

[ By Steve in Abandoned Places & Architecture. ]

abandoned closed Big Lots dollar store
Dollar Stores may be the new face of retail in post-9/11 America but when they close or are abandoned, that’s change we don’t want to believe in.

Big Lots? More like Big Lost, know what I’m sayin’? A big lot of credit goes out to Flickr user Andrew T…has left the building for capturing the forlorn state of the above former Green Bay, WI, Big Lots store in August of 2011. Good thing he did – by December of the same year, the store had been demolished and all that was left was an open field.

General Retreat

abandoned closed Dollar General Columbia dollar store 1a

abandoned closed Dollar General Columbia dollar store 1b

abandoned closed Dollar General Columbia dollar store 1c

abandoned closed Dollar General Columbia dollar store Radio Shack

It’s getting to the point where not much remains open in Columbia, SC… Columbia Closings’ alphabetical list goes on and on and on. Very few failed local businesses are dollar stores, however, which may say something about the city’s economy. Here’s a Dollar General that just couldn’t cut the mustard in early 2012 but if the strip mall’s landlord thinks he’s getting the last laugh, they’d best think again: the store re-opened as a Radio Shack.

Detroit Buck City

abandoned closed Detroit dollar store 2

abandoned closed Detroit dollar store 1

You know the neighborhood’s going downhill fast when the local dollar store accepts food stamps… and then closes… and then gets tagged. Such is the sad case of Y OLLAR TORE (formerly MY DOLLAR STORE), not part of a chain though it’s doubtful that would have helped save them. If you haven’t already guessed, this post-apocalyptic ex-business is located on Detroit’s east side, which is definitely not its best side.

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The Bucks Stop Here 9 Closed Abandoned Dollar Stores

[ By Steve in Abandoned Places & Architecture. ]

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No Spoking: 11 Closed & Abandoned Bicycle Shops

02 Jun

[ By Steve in Abandoned Places & Architecture. ]

abandoned bicycle shops
Bicycle shops should be doing great in this era of energy conservation but the cold equations of business economics are, for many bike shops, all two wheel.

Nelson Schmelsson

abandoned closed Nelson's Bicycle Shop Brooklyn NY (image via: notsodigital)

Nelson’s Bicycle Shop at 251 Bushwick Ave in Brooklyn, NY was a neighborhood icon for over thirty years. Nelson, the eponymous owner, was a store fixture as was his huge-headed cat who sadly passed away in 2001. Perhaps the loss of his kitty-cat companion was the last straw for Nelson, as he closed his shop sometime in 2012. A tip of the bike helmet to Diego of notsodigital for the vaguely disturbing image above.

The Discontinuing Story Of Bicycle Bill

Bicycle Bill's Allston closed bike shop (images via: Bicyclebillboston.com and Yelp)

After 35-odd years at the corner of North Harvard and Bayard in Allston, MA, Bicycle Bill’s has shut the shop and gone digital.. or virtual. They’ve abandoned bricks & mortar and embraced the online retail revolution, is what we’re trying to say. In any case, buying bikes online should prove challenging, not to mention servicing them. Then again, if dozens of highly critical reviews on Yelp are any indication, dealing with Bicycle Bill’s might be more satisfying if it’s not done in person.

Spokes, Spares & Misses

abandoned bike shop Oxford (image via: Wiki/OpenStreetMap)

We could say this derelict bicycle sales, repair and rental shop is the poster child for abandoned retail stores and we would be right: the image above was chosen by OpenStreetMap Wiki to illustrate the keyword “abandoned”. The shop is located in Oxford, presumably England – where else would bikes be offered for “hire”?

Cascade Of Misfortune

Cascade Cycling closed bike shop Portland (images via: BikePortland.org and BikePortland.org)

Portland, Oregon is a cycling mecca with a plethora of bike shops… make that a plethora minus one. Cascade Cycling in north Portland found a comfortable market niche serving the city and surrounding area’s older market demographic after opening their doors in 2006 but a break-in in 2010 and the owner’s chronic health problems forced the shop to slam on the brakes in October of 2013.

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No Spoking 11 Closed Abandoned Bicycle Shops

[ By Steve in Abandoned Places & Architecture. ]

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No Más: 15 Closed, Abandoned & Vacant Taco Bells

14 Apr

[ By Steve in Abandoned Places & Architecture. ]

abandoned Taco Bells
Don’t make a run for the border, most of Taco Bell’s 6,500 fast food restaurants are in the USA… not counting those that have been abandoned.

Olé Toledo!

abandoned taco bell Toledo (images via: Brad Raye)

The future as depicted in the film Demolition Man posits that “all restaurants are Taco Bell”, but they sure didn’t look as decrepit and, well, post-apocalyptic as the one above. Located at 708 N Reynolds Rd in Toledo, Ohio, the bleached remains of this outlet markedly contrast with the site’s thriving vegetation and clear blue sky.

abandoned taco bell Toledo (images via: Brad Raye)

Kudos to Flickr user Brad Raye for these images of the former Taco Bell taken on September 17th of 2013. The utter desolation of the scene and the distinct lack of maintenance add an eerie aura to what is outwardly a peaceful, silent tableau of a future that never was.

Express Yourself

abandoned Taco Express Two Rivers WI (image via: Andrew T)

This former Taco Express location in Two Rivers, Wisconsin, may have shut its drive-thru window for good but that didn’t stop one disgruntled customer from getting the last word… or last pictograph, as the case may be. Full props to Flickr user Andrew T for capturing the frustration of a consumer unable to consume.

There’s A Sale At Penney’s!

abandoned taco bell Torrington CT (images via: MJBarnes)

Welcome to retail plaza hell, otherwise known as Torrington, Connecticut, where both a Taco Bell outlet and the JCPenney anchor store both appear to have bitten the biscuit. What can you make of this, Johnny? Flickr user MJBarnes photo-documented the current state of the for-sale unit on an otherwise beautiful spring day in 2012.

Copper Bell

Baltimore police taco bell (image via: BETSY R)

Anyone considering a dine & dash in East Baltimore has best avoid this particular Taco Bell. You’d think the police would really prefer to work out of a donut shop, and maybe they would, so you’d best pay for your order without using any two-dollar bills. A tip of the hat to Flickr user BETSY R for snapping the “only in East Baltimore” image above.

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No Mas 15 Closed Abandoned Vacant Taco Bells

[ By Steve in Abandoned Places & Architecture. ]

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Pawn Scars: 10 Closed & Abandoned Pawn Shops

10 Feb

[ By Steve in Abandoned Places & Architecture. ]

closed and abandoned pawnshops
Pawn shops and pawnbrokers typically thrive in economic downturns so how tough must the times be when even pawn shops throw in the towel?

Sold Out, Shut Down & Forgotten

abandoned pawnshop (image via: A City Of Gold)

Urban explorer and talented photographer iamrobbiejones captured the essence of a down-on-its-luck, abused and abandoned pawnshop in the striking image above. The photo in its sobering entirety can be viewed at the artist’s Instagram page, which admirably offers no hint of the closed pawnshop’s name or location.

Post-apocalyptic Pawn

Sam's Loans closed pawnshop Corktown Detroit (images via: Fireplace Chats and BBC World Service)

Sam’s Loans was a fixture of Detroit’s Corktown neighborhood through good times and bad. Opening in 1920, the three-story brick building gradually grew garish with painted and stenciled come-ons enticing Corktowners to cash in their valuables while the going was good.

Sam's Loans closed pawnshop Corktown Detroit (image via: Deano Around The World)

When the going gets tough, the tough get going and after 86 years in the pawnbroker biz, Sam decided he’d be going… out of business, that is. Besides the red-printed posted notice of retirement, one of the last additions to the cluttered exterior was a sign advertising “Pawn License For Sale”. That was in 2006 and years later there have been no takers. Full credit to Deano for the ominous and eerie image of Sam’s Loans posted a mere month before press time.

Flat Broke In Flatbush

Church Avenue pawn shop Flatbush New York (images via: Messy Nessy Chic, Barbara Snow and Fading Ad Blog)

The Church Ave. Pawn Shop in Flatbush, one of Brooklyn’s historic communities, occupied a majestic and reserved multistory building that was originally a bank. The transition from a bank to a pawnshop graphically illustrates the decline of this and many other inner city neighborhoods. Nothing against pawn shops and pawnbrokers, but this type of business is often one of the last to successfully operate in urban areas sinking towards the lowest level of decay.

Hong Kong Pawn

closed Hong Kong pawnshop Fu Yan Street Kwun Tong (image via: StrippedPixel.com)

Pawnshops are plentiful in Hong Kong where they often take on the functions of a neighborhood bank. To find a closed and abandoned pawnshop in urban Hong Kong is a rarity; the shop above is located on Fu Yan Street in Kwun Tong, an old and decrepit neighborhood slated for wholesale redevelopment.

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Pawn Scars 10 Closed Abandoned Pawn Shops

[ By Steve in Abandoned Places & Architecture. ]

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Nix Tape: 10 Closed & Abandoned Blockbuster Stores

06 Jan

[ By Steve in Abandoned Places & Architecture. ]

abandoned closed Blockbuster Video stores
Blockbuster Video’s torn-ticket logo once fronted thousands of stores worldwide. That was then, this is now… by late 2013, Blockbuster was officially busted.

This Is The End

closed Blockbuster Video Hawaii (images via: 2 Oceans Vibe)

Blockbuster Video did not go gentle into that good night; it went loudly, painfully and messily. The final curtain (for all intents and purposes) finally came down at 11pm on November 9th of 2013 when a Blockbuster store in Hawaii became the last store to rent out a movie. According to Blockbuster themselves, the film was “This Is The End” starring James Franco and Seth Rogen.

Scots On The Rocks

blockbuster video Scotland storm sign (image via: Daily Record)

A vicious storm that struck Scotland in late 2011 only damaged the Blockbuster Video location above; it took a tsunami of red ink to sink the chain for good. It’s a pity the hapless owner above didn’t see the signs of impending doom while he was occupied in repairing the sign of his franchise store.

closed abandoned Blockbuster Video Dunoon Scotland (images via: Past The Pixels and Zoopla)

The Blockbuster Video location in Dunoon, on the scenic Cowal Peninsula in western Scotland, had little area competition but local success was meaningless in the face of global mismanagement on an epic scale. In the case of the Dunoon store, deterioration had begun even as the chain was in its final death throes… and rapidly accelerated once the store shut its doors for good. View more interior shots and learn more about this now-for-sale ex-Blockbuster at the Zoopla site.

That Socks!

Penarth closing Blockbuster Video socks (images via: Penarth News)

The last days of Blockbuster somewhat resembled the last hours on the Titanic – lots of rearranging the deck chairs for no discernible purpose and neglible useful results. Take the above doomed Blockbuster store in Penarth, Cornwall, UK. for example. With customers spending their hard-earned pence on internet-based entertainment, the desperate store began stocking socks instead. Evidently in Cornwall one cannot purchase socks online.

VA Means Vacant

closed Poquoson Virginia Blockbuster Video (images via: RetailByRyan95)

Flickr user RetailByRyan95 was in the right place at the right times when a Blockbuster store in Virgina’s Poquoson Commons shopping center closed in early May of 2009. Presciently documenting the store as it was before closing, Ryan returned almost exactly one month later, camera in hand, to observe what remained.

closed Poquoson Virginia Blockbuster Video (images via: RetailByRyan95)

Critiques of today’s supposedly disposable society ring true when the differences between an open and a closed Blockbuster are so evident after only a short time. Removal of stock, signage and branding also reveals the essentially sterile nature of modern retail-commercial McArchitecture, which is shown to have little if any appeal once tenants have flown the coop.

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Nix Tape 10 Closed Abandoned Blockbuster Stores

[ By Steve in Abandoned Places & Architecture. ]

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Past Food: 10 Creepy Closed & Abandoned McDonald’s

21 Dec

[ By Steve in Abandoned Places & Architecture. ]

abandoned closed McDonald's
I’m leavin’ it! You can bet your sesame seed buns these 10 closed and abandoned McDonald’s have swirled their last McFlurry and will bag burgers no more.

Archless In America

abandoned McDonald's (image via: Flavio Grana)

The usual knock against modern architecture (or should we say, “ARCH-itecture”) is that it lacks character, and the stereotypical mansard-roofed “McStore” style of McDonald’s outlets is the poster child for the genre. With that said, Flickr user Flavio Grana has managed to coax a supersized amount of depth out of the anonymous abandoned McDonald’s location above. Stripped of all brand identity yet instantly recognizable, the moonlit McD’s stands alone in silent glory, a washed-out monument to conspicuous consumer culture.

Sweet & Sour Saucer

Megatron McDonald's Alconbury (images via: Reddit, Comfortable Disorientation and Geograph UK))

If you thought the UFO-shaped McDonald’s in Roswell, NM was out of this world, then feast your eyes on the former McDonald’s restaurant in Alconbury, UK. First opened in 1990 as The Megatron, the distinctive saucer-shaped eatery was an interplanetary flop: in 1993 it closed but soon re-opened under the McDonald’s banner.

McDonald's Megatron Alconbury (images via: Daz, Comfortable Disorientation and HuntsPost24/Geoff Soden)

After roughly 15 years serving up burgers, fries & shakes to hungry Huntingdonshire locals, the location shut down for good and (oddly for a closed McDonald’s franchise) remained shuttered for a further half-decade before finally being demolished in mid-2008. Plans are now afoot to allow six “gypsy pitches” to occupy the land where the McUFO once stood. Tramps and thieves are advised to look elsewhere.

Arch-Criminal?

abandoned McDonald's golden arches sign (image via: rustyjaw)

It’s not often an item (with emphasis on the “em”) this large and obtrusive escapes the watchful eyes of the McBrand Police but it seems to have happened here. Flickr user rustyjaw doesn’t explain what the Big M is doing inside an abandoned naval communications station or what plans (if any) he has for this piece of fast food M-orabilia, and that’s probably in his own best interest. Imagine refurbishing and re-electrifying the signage, then mounting it on your dining room wall… awesome to be sure, though it would definitely ruin the mood during intimate gourmet dinners.

Supersize My Storm

abandoned McDonald's Biloxi clown (images via: Imgur/1RgbS and Joel Carranza))

If Ronald McDonald wasn’t creepy enough already, check out his zombie clown alter-ego, still (barely) standing in Biloxi, MS, shortly after Hurricane Katrina devastated the area in September 2005. It took a while for reconstruction to get into full swing around Biloxi and the neighboring gulf coast but it was too late for both this shattered & shuttered McDonald’s and the tilted Ronald – they’ve been replaced by a Wendy’s.

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Past Food 10 Creepy Closed Abandoned Mcdonalds

[ By Steve in Abandoned Places & Architecture. ]

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Past Food: 10 Creepy Closed & Abandoned McDonald’s

16 Dec

[ By Steve in Abandoned Places & Architecture. ]

abandoned closed McDonald's
I’m leavin’ it! You can bet your sesame seed buns these 10 closed and abandoned McDonald’s have swirled their last McFlurry and will bag burgers no more.