Yesterday at the museum I overheard someone mention that the city of Cincinnati has an unused underground subway system. Apparently the subway tunnels and stations were built in the 1920’s for $6 million but the project was too expensive to complete and an additional $6 million would have been needed right around the time of inflation and the tightening of the economy. They gave up in 1927. Eventually the city got wise and sealed all the entrances to prevent illegal visitors. The majority of the completed tunnels lie beneath Central Parkway and Liberty Street – two of the streets I frequent nearly daily on my way to and from work! Who knew there was a mass transit system under those roads all this time!? Consider my interest piqued! I told Ted about it on the drive home and we spent a better portion of the evening looking up information and photographs about this illusive abandoned subway system. In the 1960’s one of the stations was used briefly as a nuclear fallout shelter – they went so far as to equip it with restrooms, ventilation, lighting, and food and water storage. Since then it has been considered for future use as a tornado shelter, underground mall, bar and nightlife district, and again for its original intended purpose, mass transportation. Rumor has it that a few times a year the city offers a rare special guided tour of it (that I desperately want to go on!), but as of now, there are no solid plans for its renovation or reinstatement. The debt and bonds for its construction were finally paid off in 1966. The result? A perfect waste of a staggering $13 million for what equates to a giant, useless hole in the ground. Excellent work Cincinnati. Wanna see?
- This is the blueprint of what they were going for
If you’re interested in seeing more pictures of it, Google’s got tons to choose from. The first few hits for “Cincinnati subway system” under Web and Images are especially informative and have some great pictures!
But at this point we were totally intrigued by the forgotten landmarks of Cincy, so we started looking up other abandoned Cincinnati treasures. It is simply fascinating to see pictures of amazing things that once were, and to see what they look like now.
Next we discovered Surf Cincinnati – a now defunct water and amusement park that was popular for several years in the 1990’s and early 2000’s. It faced financial difficulties and closed around 2002. When it was a flourishing fun park, it was home to a tidal wave pool, racing water slides, a sandy beach, a lazy river that circled the park, an arcade house, mini golf course, go-kart track, banquet halls, a food pavilion, and (like any good family amusement park), a night club. I can imagine it very similar to Schlitterbahn or Splashtown for you San Antonio natives out there (except with mini golf and go karts). I can definitely picture it being one of those fond memories places from your childhood. It looked quite smashing in its prime.
This webpage and this webpage have some amazing pictures of it! The deteriorated water slides are just so creepy!!
And finally there’s Union Terminal, home to the Cincinnati Museum Center (which houses the Cincinnati History Museum, Natural History & Science Museum, Duke Energy Children’s Museum, Amtrack station, Omnimax Theatre, and a library). This one has a happy ending though, as it is now mostly renovated and extremely useful. It started out in the 1930s as a major train station with nearly 20,000 people passing though a day at its peak. But after the railroads lost popularity, Union Terminal was abandoned for nearly 20 years! The building is absolutely massive so it cost a fortune to heat, cool, light and maintain. It was so expensive that the city offered to lease it for $1 a year and they couldn’t find any takers. I think at one time it was considered for a possible hospital, but eventually a company out of Columbus took the lease and turned it into a shopping mall in the 1980’s, which was an utter, dismal failure. Luckily, after much needed renovation, the space works beautifully for the museums that inhabit it.
I searched but couldn’t find a picture of it when it was empty, unfortunately. The other day we got a tour of one of the original back hallways that is still un-renovated and it was was crazy! There was probably a 4 ft. x 6 ft. hole in the wall, cracked paints and ceiling, and exposed old piping. It was definitely sketchy, to say the least. However, a vast majority of it was renovated in 1930s art deco style and is gorgeous.
- Modern extetior view
So there’s a small sampling of Cincinnati’s forgotten hotspots. Do you ever pass by anything like these? I know there’s an old abandoned carnival and permanent fair that used to exist near downtown San Antonio that some of my friends at the Magik Theatre remember frequenting as a child. It’s now overgrown with weeds and shells of the pavilions and rides are all that remain, coated with faded, chipping paint. I think Pear Apple County Fair sat empty and overgrown for a while too. What other abandoned San Antonio treasures can you think of (besides the monorail transportation system built for the 1968 World’s Fair)?
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