Another installment in our series on abandoned places in the world. Please note, the series will be on hiatus until the Fall.
1. Vidin Synagogue, Vidin, Bulgaria
Construction on Bulgaria’s second largest synagogue commenced in 1878 and was completed in 1894. The neo-Gothic styled temple had identical towers in its four corners and its prayer hall measured 10 meters wide and 21 meters in length. Beginning in the 1950s, Vidin Synagogue was seized by the communist government and used as a storehouse. The Bulgarian Jewish population, while safeguarded during WW2 (the same fate cannot be said for Jews living in Bulgarian-occupied Vardar Macedonia, Greece and Yugoslavia), has largely relocated to Israel. The Balkan-Assist program hopes to transform the crumbling building into a museum complex and cultural centre.
2. Bell Labs Holmdel Complex, New Jersey, United States
Prior to its remarkable design pedigree a la Eero Saarinen in the late 1950s, Bell Telephone Laboratories used the location for research. This resulted in Karl Guthe Jansky’s invention of Radio Astronomy. Information like that makes me wish I paid more attention to PBS Nova Jody Foster’s astronaut movie. The mirrored exterior modernist building located on a 472-acre campus employed over 6,000 engineers (what a nightmare!) and contained 2 million square feet of office and laboratory space. Overall, it served as a research and design centre for Bell Systems, AT&T, Lucent, and Alcatel-Lucent for 44 years. Many thanks to Haysi for this recommendation.
3. Atlantis Marine Park, Two Rocks, Western Australia, Australia
This awful place forced dolphins to perform for stupid humans. Built by businessman John Bond in 1981 on 20,000 acres of land, the theme park closed in 1990.
For previous entries, please click here.
