"Mysteries Of The Abandoned" is currently viewable on the Discovery channel. There are 12 seasons total. The final season was renamed "Mysteries Of The Abandoned: Hidden America". See my previous reviews here
Each episode visits three (or more) abandoned structures. The number of episodes per season varies from 7 to 22 (so it's sometimes hard to keep track of). For instance season 8 is listed on the Discovery website as having 9 episodes, on Wikipedia as having 11 episodes and it's lists 10 episodes when streaming.
I've included some of favorite segments below:
- World's Strangest Disaster Zones- top 10 list- Montsarrat is a British Overseas Territory located in the Caribbean-- north of Venezuala and east of Puerto Rico. It's long dormant volcano erupted in 1995. Some 11,000 inhabitants had earlier been moved to the northern part of the island (out of reach of the volcano). A small group of 19 remained to tend their crops. Only one person survived. Two thirds of the island currently remains uninhabitable.
- Swamp of Despair- In Invergordon, Scotland on the North Sea lies a hidden relic of This location gave it a key advantage. Six massive fuel tanks (each holding 5.6 million gallons of fuel) were buried deep underground. The fuel flowed down 4 miles of piping down to the naval base.
- End Times on Lake Michigan- Vindolanda was a Roman fort that existed near what would later be the England and Scotland border. I is dated between 85 and 370 AD. When wooden tablets were excavated there, they were the earliest written documentation found in the UK at that time. Vindolanda apparently exists as a small town for the families and soldiers stationed on Hadrian's Wall (a 72 mile wall that existed to keep the Picts from the north from attacking. The uncovered tablets show us what life was like in a Roman fort-- birthday part invites, etc.
- Hell on Blood Island- Some 20,000 bodies are buried in stacks as high as five deep at The Royal Navy Hospital at Haslar The enormous facility was built in the 1740s and operated for some 250 years. When built it was the largest hospital in the world and largest brick building in Europe. It closed in 2009. The remaining buildings are now being converted into residential facilities (and are being preserved for historical purposes).
- Florida's Doomsday Castle- The forts on the Gold Coast in Ghana, Africa were built by the Portuguese to protect the vast amounts of gold they were extracting the area. Soon other European powers arrived.
- The Killer in the Castle- Cachtice Castle in Slovakia is currently in ruins. It was the home of the infamous Elizabeth Bathory. She may have been one of the most prolific serial killers in history.. Estimates are she killed some 600 people. She enjoyed torturing local girls and bathing in their blood (to keep herself young). Her demose came when she started doing the same to the local noble's daughters, In 1610 she was finally captured and walled up in her castle to die.
- Towers of Blood- Mani Peninsula, Greece- The Maniots arrived in this area and constructions what is known as the Maniot Towers btwn 1770 and 1830. This group is believed to be descendants of the ancient Spartans. They were excellent warriors. The towers (at one time there were some 800) were built to depend them from the Ottomans (who had taken over much of the area. This is only part of Greece that never fell to the Ottomans (Turks).
- The Thing on Hell Mountain- The Remains of the 13 Levels is a plant for smeltering copper and gold located in Taiwan. The facility was constructed in 1933 when the area was under the control of the Japanese. Worker conditions were very poor. During WWII the Japanese Empire sent 1000+ POWs to work at the plant. There is currently a monument to those who perished..
- Anarchy on Ireland's Alcatraz- This episode seems to be repeats of previous episodes.
- House of Horror- The Colonial Exhibition of 1907 was very popular. France at one time controlled ~7% of the world's population. Unfortunately this exhibit also put people on display. Today part of the park is open to the public while part remains an overgrown relic.
- Nightime at Fort Paranoia- Some 173,000 concrete bunkers were built across Albania when it was under the rule of communist dictator Enver Hoxha. He ruled for 40 years (between 1944 and 1985). His regime was considered one of the most oppressive in modern history. Due his paranoia, he left the country completely isolated. He modeled himself after Stalin and thought everyone else was too soft. He broke ties with Yugoslavia, the Soviet Union and Maoist China. His secret police (called the Sigurmi) spied on all citizens and killed anyone for minor offenses (including complaining about the lack of food). In 1967 Hoxha declared Albania the first atheist country and destroyed or repurposed thousands of churches and mosques. Communism finally collapsed in 1991 but the country was left frozen in time.
Grade: No grade assigned since this is not a scripted series
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