CAIRO, IL: GHOSTLY Abandoned Decaying Small Town - Victorian Mansions, Rich History & Almost EMPTY

June 27, 2024
Exploring small historic abandoned town, Cairo, Illinois. The population as of 2022 is said to be 1,611. The population has rapidly declined from a high of over 15,000 in the early 20th century. The small town is in Alexander County and is located at the confluence of the Ohio River and the Mississippi. It is the most southern city in the state of Illinois. The city was completely evacuated in 2011 due to flooding. Now the town has ghost town vibes, as many of the buildings and houses have been abandoned and are in decay. In contrast, the historic district called "Millionaires Row" still stands and is lined with beautiful historic Victorian style houses.
In parts of the historic district, it is overgrown and dilapidated. In some areas, the houses are completely overgrown with trees and vegetation. This video serves as a quick tour of the town, as I did not go down every street. The crime rate is considered high in Cairo and so is the poverty rate. (www.bestplaces...)
The historic district is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. General Ulysses S. Grant used Fort Defiance as a military base in the Civil War. In the early 19th century, racial tensions were extremely high, and a significant amount of horrifying violence happened in the town.
To learn more about Cairo, IL, please read the interesting and infamous history about Cario, IL: en.wikipedia.o...
Cairo, Illinois:
en.wikipedia.o...
www.thetravel....
Old Custom House:
en.wikipedia.o...)
Magnolia Manor:
visitmagnoliama...
www.ksdk.com/a...
Riverlore Mansion:
www.riverlorem...
Thomas Wyatt Halliday House:
www.waymarking...
www.flickr.com...
#cairo #illinois #dying #disappingsmalltown #disappearing #smalltown #customhouse #postoffice #courthouse #alongtheway #travel #confluence #mississippi #ohio #river #kentucky #missouri #nationalguard #civilwar #victorian #mansion #millionaire #dilapidated #abandoned #ghosttown #eerie #alexander
Ghost Town Vibes: Abandoned Cairo, IL - Decaying Buildings & Victorian Mansions in a Poor Dying Town

[@SoniaIbarra-n1e]

Hello and first time Watching your videos.🙂 Beautiful Church and Homes, especially the $245,000 home. 👍🏻

[@along-the-way]

Thank you for stopping by! It is a beautiful old town! The older buildings seem to be built to withstand time and turn heads at the same time! 😊 I thought that price was reasonable for a spot on "Millionaire's Row". There are so many nice houses in Cairo! Thanks again for sharing and watching!

[@keith_holland]

Very nice, informative video. Others have Cairo videos but each person brings their own perspectives to a place. I liked yours.
Too bad about "D's Chicken" being closed. I was going to treat you to lunch there, then drop you off at Dollar General to shop while I waited across the road at the Carnegie Library to read about Alexander County history...(just joking....).
So you got "bad vibrations" in Cairo? Yes, history is all gray, a mixture of progress and regression when it comes to human interactions. I too have received bad vibrations from places. The important thing is you were willing to explore even places where you felt uncomfortable. Strange the psychohistorical perspectives of a place like Cairo. Millionaires Row and (once) low income housing projects just down the road. Cairo, Ill. is like a mirror of the U.S. in many ways: black, white, and mainly gray...

[@along-the-way]

@keith_holland Well, thank goodness that beautiful Queen Anne library is still open! It looks like I would have to shop at the Dollar General since there appears to be nowhere else to shop...for miles...until you get to the other Dollar General on the outside of town! BUT I looked online, and Cairo does have a community grocery store called Rise Market! They opened a little over a year ago, but already started struggling a few months later. Now, there are rumors they might close when barely being opened over a year. I wonder why? Well it's because their prices can't compete with the Dollar General! I'm not talking about monopolizing communities or anything, just the fact that many small grocery stores can't compete with a large chain that has over 20,000 stores in a country. Here's a link about the government funded grocery store, and it even mentions how locals keep shopping at the Dollar General due to prices. ipmnewsroom.org/the-government-spends-millions-in-food-deserts-to-open-grocery-stores-why-arent-they-surviving/
I could say more...much more but I appreciate the opportunity to rant a little bit about that "Dollar Store".
I'm sad about Ds Chicken, but I'm taking note of the lunch treat comment and consider it a coupon in my back pocket! 😆...i did feel a little uncomfortable, but if I hadn't read the history and had that energy in my mind, I do not think I would have been. I'm glad you liked the video! I was hoping to receive more views like some of the others, but I know I'm still small and need to work on my video style and editing a little more but I don't want it to become a lot of work. I want to record history and there is a lot of ground to cover. Every day I feel like they are about to close the gate. How's that for some stream of consciousness? LOL...thank you for your support and watching! I appreciate you!