Alex Carson
Jordan Liles
Jordan Liles has a passion for photography. His hero is a legendary filmmaker and actor, Sir Charlie Chaplin. Liles is a director himself, but he is most well known for his photographs of abandoned places. When it comes to abandoned locations in the United States, there are plenty of them. As America has evolved, many places didn’t. Some places are left abandoned because they had prosperous beginnings only to fail. This has left these place abandoned and damaged.
Sinister Reasons
Some places are left behind for more sinister reasons. One example is the Lake Shawnee Amusement Park located in West Virginia. It was built in the 1920s on the site of an ancient indigenous burial ground. Shortly after the amusement park opened, six people died. It is believed that it had something to do with spirits on the fairgrounds. After these deaths, the amusement park was left abandoned and in disrepair. Today, the only visitors of the site are people looking to get scared on Halloween.
Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Jordan stumbled upon one of his creepiest finds in 2013. The site is in Elkmont, Tennessee, which is hidden deep within the woodlands of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Jordan is a Memphis native, and he has been to the Smokies plenty of times. He lived in the area for 26 years and still visits the park often when he has time. It was during one of his hiking expeditions that he found something incredible. A man was hiking in the Smoky Mountains when he stumbled across a seriously creepy discovery.
An Amazing Discovery
During Jordan’s trip, he went up an unnamed gravel road. At the end of the road, he found an abandoned neighborhood and a hotel. Some of the buildings were built over 100 years ago. One of the first structures that he came across was an abandoned cabin. It may have once been cozy, but today, it is an empty shell. When Jordan got closer to the cabin, he noticed that the windows were broken and the floorboards were pulled up. The cabin didn’t look safe, so he didn’t want to go inside. In his video, he is heard saying, “I don’t really think I want to go in there. It looks like the kitchen is on a slant which means that the property is not in good condition. From the outside, he could see decaying shelves and toppled containers all over the floor.
Exploring
After leaving the cabin, Jordan continued to explore. He went through some nearby trees and down a set of stone steps. He saw another home. Inside, there was a washer and dryer that had turned upside down on the broken floorboards. It was difficult to tell how long it had been since anyone lived there. He was sure that the abandoned town had much more to see; he just needed to keep exploring.
Another House
As Jordan continued exploring, he found another house. This one had steps. It was missing many of its walls, and there was a screen installed to replace the missing planks. The screens were torn and tattered. The screen made it possible for him to get a good look inside. There was old furniture in the house along with broken fixtures. The walls were stripped down to the bare wood and loose planks. Any doors that were once in the home are not gone.
Three More Houses
As Jordan walked down the gravel road, he came upon three more houses. It looked as though vandals had broken into one of the houses. There was a lock that had been smashed, leaving the doors wide open. This house wasn’t in such disrepair that entering wouldn’t be too dangerous. This home was in much better shape than the rest, and there will still blinds hanging from some of the windows. There was also a shower curtain hanging in the rust filled tub. The toilet had a matching seat cover. The bathroom was filthy, but it was in much better shape than the other houses in the ghost town.
A Hotel
Jordan came upon a large structure that he thought could have been a hotel. There was an enormous stone fireplace behind plenty of large windows. He assumed that it was a social area or the reception area. The stairs had collapsed so he couldn’t go upstairs and check out the rooms.
Wonderland Club
Finally, when Jordan came upon a sign, he figured out what the town once was. It was once the Wonderland Club, which was a very prosperous vacation community. When it was built, the owner chose this site because it was close to a busy logging town. It was open to the public in 1912 and operated for seven years before private owners purchased the land and the structures. The idea was for a group of men from Knoxville, TN to create their own private venture. Unfortunately, the plans were rejected. Instead, they created an exclusive social club called The Wonderland Club. In 1925, the logging industry in the area died, and people couldn’t afford to visit the Wonderland Club. Soon, the buildings fell into disrepair.
An Amazing Find
Jordan is shocked that he stumbled on an entire vacation property accidentally. Fortunately, he had his camera with him and was able to get some amazing shots. This is just one of America’s many abandoned properties. If you look hard enough, you never know what you are going to find.
