New York’s Forgotten North Brother Island

Located between Riker’s Island and the Bronx on the East River, North Brother Island currently sits in a state of disrepair, abandoned for the last fifty years.

But it wasn’t always this way. Back in the nineteenth century, the city of New York decided an isolated location was necessary to quarantine and treat those suffering from infectious disease. North Brother Island provided the perfect solution.

The existing Riverside Hospital was moved to North Brother Island in 1885 and re-established as a quarantine facility.

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Roanoke: The Lost Colony

Sometimes Interesting

Perhaps one of the biggest unsolved mysteries of American History is the fate of the English colony settled at Roanoke. Originally financed and organized by Sir Walter Raleigh, the attempts to colonize Roanoke failed and ultimately earned Roanoke the nickname “The Lost Colony.”

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What Happened to the Star Dust?

Sometimes Interesting

When it comes to airline crashes, few have posed as many unanswered questions as the Star Dust. Originally scheduled to fly from Buenos Aires, Argentina to Santiago, Chile, the Star Dust disappeared on August 2nd, 1947. However the flight would never reach its destination and the fate of the British South American Airways (BSAA) Lancastrian 3 airliner would remain unknown for over 50 years.

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Accidental Bodies of Water: The Salton Sea

Sometimes Interesting

In 1904 there was no Salton Sea. The Salton sink occupied the vast expanse of land 40 miles south of Palm Springs, California with an elevation 226 feet below sea level. The Salton trough was formed by the stretching and sinking of the San Andreas Fault, on which the Salton sink sits. A flood in 1905 saw the Colorado River pour into the sink, and by the time authorities managed to stop the flooding two years later, the largest lake in California had already formed. Fifty years later the Salton Sea would be seen as the American Riviera, one of the more popular destinations in California. But today, the lakeside communities sit in ruin and most are largely abandoned. Boarded-up houses and beach clubs litter the landscape. Along the coast, what looks like sand is actually crushed and rounded bones from millions of fish skeletons. What happened?

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Abandoned Airport: Ciudad Real

Sometimes Interesting

Nothing highlights the current Spanish financial problems like a new and abandoned airport. Opened in 2009 at a cost of €1.1bn, the Ciudad Real Central Airport saw light use before being shut down in April of 2012. Ciudad Real is a Spanish city about two and a half hours south of Madrid. The airport was to be the first linked to the Spanish high-speed AVE rail system, making the trip to Madrid only 50 minutes.

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Fort Carroll: Secure Bird Sanctuary?

Sometimes Interesting

In the mid-nineteenth century, Baltimore’s ports needed increased protection along the Patapsco River for the routes between Baltimore and Chesapeake Bay. By 1848, the United States War Department had the green light to begin construction on Fort Carroll, a hexagonal structure designed by Robert E. Lee. The fort would be named for Declaration of Independence-signer Charles Carroll in 1850, and saw use in the Civil War despite not yet being fully completed. Fort Carroll was planned to have four levels, the first of which cost one million dollars to complete.

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Giethoorn, Netherlands: the Town with No Roads

Sometimes Interesting

When thinking of traveling by water throughout a city, Venice is usually the first City name that springs to mind. What if waterways were the only way to get around town?

Such is the case for Giethoorn, Netherlands, a small town of about 2,600.

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Beach’s First Subway: Pneumatic Transit System

Sometimes Interesting

Alfred Beach was an inventor and editor of Scientific American magazine. He was also a visionary for subterranean rapid transit. By 1849, New York was already a bustling hub of activity. Beach saw a need to ease the congestion on the city streets, so he penned a piece proposing an intricate system of underground tunnels for transit.

When he learned of the advances being made in pneumatics, Beach adopted the technology for his underground transport concept. It was an innovative concept, but ultimately costs would be too high for it to be practical. The concept would ultimately be little more than an attraction, and it would quickly be forgotten when the novelty wore off.

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