There are so many abandoned mansions around the world. By looking at these pictures, you can still imagine their “good old days.” Check out 20 places that were prominent back in the day, but now are kind of creepy!
1. Pidhirtsi Castle – Ukraine
Built in the 1630s, Pidhirtsi Castle overlooks the Styr River valley in Ukraine. It was abandoned in 1939 before Nazi and Soviet aggression in Poland. Although the castle briefly ran as a sanitarium after the war, it was gutted by a fire in 1956. Now, you can still visit it as part of the Lviv Historical Museum and Lviv Art Gallery.
2. Sutton Scarsdale Hall – UK
The original Sutton Scarsdale Hall was believed to have been built before 1002. The ruins nowadays, located in Chesterfield, Derbyshire, UK, are said to be the 4th or 5th structure built on the site. Under the care of the English Heritage, it can still be accessed by visitors.
3. Château Des Versannes – France
You may think the Château des Versannes is still in good condition at first glance, but you’ll see a gaping hole in the roof if you look through the window. After being abandoned for too long, the mansion is now available to explore near Vichy.
4. Villa De Vecchi – Italy
Villa de Vecchi has a tragic past. It’s said that the head of Italian National Guard, Count Felice de Vecchi, built the Lake Como residence for his wife. Sadly, he came back from a trip only to find his wife murdered and his daughter missing. Overcome with despair, the Count committed suicide inside the villa. The place was eventually abandoned in the 1960s.
5. Wyndclyffe Castle – USA
Constructed by NYC socialite Elizabeth Schermerhorn Jones in 1983, Wyndclyffe Castle was used for weekends and summers. The mansion was built in a Norman style with delicate brickwork, which inspired so many other New Yorkers to build their own fancy homes, to “keep up with the Joneses.”
6. Castle Of Dona Chica – Portugal
The Castle of Dona Chica was created by Swiss-born architect Ernesto Korrodi. With an impressive neo-romantic style, the project sadly went over budget, and Korrodi had to sell it. In 1938, the construction of the house was continued by an English nobleman, but the work was never finished.
7. Mesen Castle – Belgium
Having been built in 1794, Mesen Castle has served multiple functions. It was once a gin distillery, a tobacco factory, and finally converted into a girls boarding school. After fulfilling so many uses, the place was finally abandoned in 1971 and eventually demolished in 2010.
8. Swannanoa – USA
This imposing Italian Renaissance Revival mansion was built in 1912 for philanthropist Major James H. Dooley. At a cost of over $51 million, the property took 300 artisans 8 years to finish. Swannanoa was a romantic escape for Dooley and his wife Sarah. Such a lovely place was later leased to polymath Walter Russell and wife and is now used for weddings and other events.
9. Bamboo Palace – Congo
The luxurious Bamboo Palace was built with government money by a corrupt leader during the ’70s. To be even more extravagant, there was an international airport built nearby so that the whole family could fly to Paris for a shopping spree. After his death, the place was left ruined and abandoned.
10. Chaonei No. 81 – China
Rumor has it that the building known as Chaonei No. 81 was created in 1910 as a church for British residents of Beijing by the Qing imperial family. After the civil war, a high-ranking official deserted his wife and fled elsewhere, which left the wife so devastated that she hung herself in the mansion. The story gave the house a reputation as a haunted place and has been an abandoned home ever since.
11. Kinmel Hall – UK
Kinmel Hall was a splendid chateau-style mansion that dates back to the 1870s. The place passed through several families and was last used as a private home in 1929 before being converted into a boy’s school. There have been multiple renovation plans for the mansion, but none of them came to fruition. Now, with its worsening state, the house has been pretty much left to wrack and ruin.
12. Tyrone House – Ireland
Tyrone House was originally built in the 1770s in County Galway, Ireland. The now ruined manor house has been in disrepair since the early 1900s. During the Irish War of Independence, instead of actually using it as an infirmary, the Irish Republican Army destroyed the house.
13. Neverland Ranch – USA
Named after the magical land in Peter Pan, the Neverland Ranch was Michael Jackson’s own amusement park. It also held some personal events, including the wedding of Elizabeth Taylor and Larry Fortensky in 1991. After being charged in 2003, Jackson vowed never to live at the ranch again. The place eventually shut down in 2006, remained unsold, and was removed from the market in Feb. 2020.
14. Selma Mansion – USA
Sitting on 212 acres in Leesburg, Virginia, Selma Mansion dates back to 1700. The house featured one of America’s first intercom systems. After passing through several families, it was also rented out as a wedding venue. Abandoned in the early 2000s, the mansion started to fall apart, but now it has been rescued and is being restored to its former glory.
15. Cambusnethan House – UK
Cambusnethan House is one of the last remaining Gothic mansions in the UK. Built by Scottish architect James Gillespie in 1819, it was used as a hotel, restaurant, and to host mock medieval banquets in the ’70s. The property was damaged by a fire in the ‘80s, and has suffered vandalism ever since. Now, it’s been saved from further deterioration by a group called “Friends of Cambusnethan Priory.”
16. Bannerman Castle – USA
Bannerman Castle was originally built in 1900 by a Scottish-born arms dealer who bought the island where it sits to house his munitions arsenal. 2 years after his death, 200 tons of ammunition exploded, which left several parts of the house completely destroyed. The island has been vacant since the ’50s, but it’s still open for tours nowadays.
17. Ha Ha Tonka Mansion – USA
The Ha Ha Tonka Mansion was the dream of businessman Robert Snyder, who wanted to build a mansion modeled on a grand 16th-century European fortress. The construction started in 1905, but Snyder never got to see the work finished. After being damaged by a fire, the former mansion now remains largely in ruins.
18. McNeal Mansion – USA
Sitting alongside the Delaware River in New Jersey, McNeal Mansion was built by industrialist Andrew McNeal in 1890. It was used as his company’s headquarters until 1953. In 2016, the place was bought by the city, but the restoration efforts have stalled, which has meant the home has remained empty.
19. Wyckoff Villa – USA
Built in 1894 for William Wyckoff, who became rich by selling Remington typewriters, the Wyckoff Villa is located on an island near St. Lawrence River in New York. Unfortunately, Wyckoff died of a heart attack the first night in the home, and his wife passed away from cancer a month prior. The house has been abandoned for over 6 decades.
20. Lillesden Estate Mansion – UK
The Lillesden Estate Mansion was built by banker Edward Lloyd in 1855. The property later became Lillesden Schools for Girls, and was later renamed the Bedgebury Public School for Girls. It was last in operation in 1999.
