Are you a fan of urban decay photography? For those that don't know what that is, it's defined as photography that shows photos of abandoned buildings, malls, and homes. Here in New York, you're able to tour a lot of these settings through many ghost towns. Here's the top ones to check out across the state. 

1) Doodletown, New York

 

Doodletown was an isolated hamlet located in the town of Stony Point, Rockland County, New York. The settlement was a crossroads for soldiers during the Revolutionary War during battles at Bear Mountain's Fort Montgomery.  Early residents worked as loggers and miners, and the remains of the mines are still visible today. Currently the ghost town is part of Bear Mountain State Park and a popular destination for hikers, birdwatchers, botanists, and local historians.

 

2) Jayville, New York

 

Jayville was a hamlet located in the southwest part of St. Lawrence County. The hamlet started as a mining community in 1850 on what eventually became the Carthage and Adirondack Railroad. Its existence was short lived,  and after mining stopped in the community, other industries such as saw mills kept the population busy. A further attempt to reopen the mines in 1914 failed and an eventual fire ended the existence of the hamlet of Jayville. Today you can find remnants of the town at the abandoned railroad station located southeast of Harrisville on Jayville Road.

 

3) North and South Brother Islands, New York

 

North and South Brother Islands are a pair of small islands located in New York City's East River between the Bronx and Rikers Island. Both North Brother Island and South Brother Island were claimed by the Dutch West India Company in 1614. Riverside Hospital was founded on the island in the 1850s as the Smallpox Hospital to treat and isolate victims of that disease. The island was also the site of the wreck of the General Slocum, a steamship which burned on June 15th, 1904. Over 1,000 people died either from the fire on board the ship or from drowning before the ship was beached on the island's shores. Now the island is designated as a bird sanctuary.

 

4) Tahawus, New York

 

Tahawus was a village in the Town of Newcomb located in Essex County. Tahawus was the site of major mining and iron smelting operations in the 19th century. Although standing as recently as 2005, the last mining facilities have since been demolished and removed. The remains of at least 10 buildings remain on the former village site; most of them were constructed between 1890 and 1930 by the Tahawus Club.

5) Trapps Mountain Hamlet Historic District

 

The Trapps Mountain Hamlet Historic District is located on the Shawangunk Ridge in Gardiner. It is a large area that covers the site of a settlement that thrived there from the late 18th to mid-20th centuries. Inhabitants practiced subsistence farming, supplemented that with a variety of other trades, primarily in the forest products industry, with most inhabitants gradually coming to work at nearby mountain resorts in the 20th century. The last resident died in 1956. Only foundations remain for most of the buildings, and only six remain standing.

 

 

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