What a wild, fruitful year it's been. 2018 made last year (my previous best exploring year) forgettable at best. Kil.lil and I ended up visiting more spots than last year, which I honestly didn't think was possible. Most of the best places we visited this year were new to us as well, which is always better than a bunch of repeats or places that have already been posted by others. In addition, I had to leave more spots out of this write up than any previous year, since the photos from those 40 or so places wont be made public any time soon. We finally made it to Chicago and Detroit, as well as several visits to Buffalo, Pittsburgh, Baltimore, and a few other favorite cities in 12 different states (plus one congressional district). We also attended a couple wild rooftop parties which are always a good time. I highly doubt I'll ever top this year, but then again I'm sure I said that last year so who knows. So here is 2018 as I saw it. A huge thanks to everyone who made it one to remember. JaneDoe, TheSwanStation, Mookster, abandonedaperatures, SanitariumSean, IndoAnomaly, Starman, PorcelainDoll, and anyone I may have missed, I hope I get the chance to see you all again in 2019. Thanks for reading, and enjoy!



One photo per location as usual, broken up into genre sets for easier viewing.



Theaters



1.



The Altamira Theater by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



2.



The Box Theater by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



3.



The Drop Theater by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



4.



Franklin Theater by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



5.



The Handshake Theater by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



6.



Whitewashed Operahouse by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



7. [undergoing demolition]



The Quatro Theater by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



8.



The Serf Theater by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



9.



Palace Theater by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



10. [demolished]



The Seafoam Theater by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



11. [undergoing renovation]



The Crispy Theater by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



12. [undergoing renovation]



Arabian Theater by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



13.



The Star Theater by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



14.



The Goldendome Theater by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



15.



The Pharoh Theater by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



16.



The Creekline Theater by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



17.



Mural Theater by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



18.



Embassy Theater by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



19.



The Liberty Theater by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



20.



The Lion Theater by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



21.



Big City Theater by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



22.



Arthur Deco Theater by EsseXploreR, on Flickr





Hospitals/Training Schools





23.



Silverbox Hospital by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



24. [undergoing renovation]



Archangel Hospital Center by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



25.



Creedmoore Psychiatric Center by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



26.



Autops Hospital by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



27.



Lakewater State Hospital by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



28. [undergoing demolition]



Longhall Hospital Center by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



29.



Marsden Hospital Center by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



30.



Midcent State Hospital by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



31. [demolished]



Modern Medical Center by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



32.



Mount State Hospital by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



33.



Loch State Hospital by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



34.



Oakridge Developmental Center by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



35.



Modyrn Psychiatric Center by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



36. [demolished]



Northern Regional Developmental Center by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



37.



Capital County Hospital by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



38.



Pretty State School by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



39.



Office Park State Hospital by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



40.



State Forensic Psychiatric Hospital by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



41. [undergoing demolition]



Criminal State Hospital by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



42. [undergoing demolition]



R.M.E. Hospital by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



43.



Pond Grove Hospital by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



44.



RCH by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



45. [undergoing demolition]



Salamander General Hospital by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



46.



Santa Amanda Hospital by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



47.



Stainless State Hospital by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



48.



Tintown State Hospital by EsseXploreR, on Flickr





RELIGIOUS





49.



St. Consec's Church by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



50.



Broken Windows Church by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



51.



Butchered Church by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



52.



The Church of the Cover Up by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



53.



Uni Church by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



54. [demolished]



Christian Street Baptist Church by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



55.



Manor Seminary by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



56.



Our Lady of the Lake Church by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



57. [undergoing renovation]



New Faith Church by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



58.



2018-11-13_10.31.07 by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



59.



The Church of Abrupt Closure by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



60. [renovated]



Cubicle Presbyterian Church by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



61.



Church of the Basics by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



62. [undergoing renovation]



The Gutout Church by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



63. [demolished]



Mater Dolarosa by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



64.



Center City Presbetyrian Church by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



65.



All Saints Church by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



66.



Patrons Church by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



67.



Round Church by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



68.



St. Greatest Church by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



69.



Kings Sacrament Church by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



70.



Little Lancets Church by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



71.



Skylight Synagogue by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



72.



St. Antifa Church by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



73. [undergoing renovation]



St. Baroque Church by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



74.



St. Paul Missionary Baptist Church by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



75.



St. Redone Church by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



76.



Church of the Angels by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



77. [undergoing demolition]



Stripped RC Church by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



78. [renovated]



St. Sealin Church by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



79. [undergoing renovation]



Little Church by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



80.



White Church by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



81.



Cotton Candy Church by EsseXploreR, on Flickr





SCHOOLS





82.



Butcher School by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



83. [undergoing renovation]



Cardinal School by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



84.



Cath Middle School by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



85.



D. Best Middle School by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



86.



Small Town School by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



87.



Lurker School by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



88. [undergoing renovation]



Harbor City High School by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



89.



Half-Scrap School by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



90. [undergoing renovation]



Shady Street School by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



91. [undergoing renovation]



Reloch Academy by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



92.



Peligro High School by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



93.



Church School by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



94.



The Spotless School by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



95.



Midnight School by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



96.



Pohatcong School by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



97.



Scrapped School by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



98.



Sidekick School by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



99.



Splitquick High School by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



100.



Updated Middle School by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



101.



St. Sums School by EsseXploreR, on Flickr







Generating Stations





102.



Waterside Generating Station by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



103.



Clean Generating Station by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



104. [undergoing demolition]



Decap Generating Station by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



105. [undergoing demolition]



Insta-Fuck Generating Station by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



106.



Dusty Generating Station by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



107.



Eddys Edge Generating Station by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



108. [demolished]



Mt. Tom Generating Station by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



109.



Topple River Generating Station by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



110.



Portsmouth Generating Station by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



111.



Sketchy Generating Station by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



112. [undergoing demolition]



Sunflower Generating Station by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



113.



Pancake Generating Station by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



114.



Windchill Generating Station by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



115.



Richmond Generating Station by EsseXploreR, on Flickr





116.



Turbless Generating Station by EsseXploreR, on Flickr





Miscellaneous





117.



South Penn Square Concourse by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



118.



M'loa Mansion by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



119.



Lockout Prison by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



120.



Command Center by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



121.



Methodist Manor by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



122.



City Hall by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



123. [demolished]





Verde Correctional Institude by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



124.



The Base Hall by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



125.



The Boulevard Mansion by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



126.



Wastelands Steel and Coke co. by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



127.



Hidden Train Cars by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



128.



Germantown Concourse by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



129.



McMyler Coal Dumper by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



130.



Elephant Mall by EsseXploreR, on Flickr



131.



Kings Manor by EsseXploreR, on Flickr





Thanks for reading! I wish you folks all the best for 2019.

Sensory overload.
Thanks a lot for posting these up.
So jealous.

..........REMARKABLE!...........
What a Splendid Theater collection.
Great to see some are being renovated.
Thanks so much for the Awesome pics!!!

So, do you like churches?

Dayum. Son.

What a year.

125 is a cool and rare type of shot for you. Cool.

Lets see you top 2018 in 2019!

This is abusive lol

Good job!

Maybe we can meet up next year!

Thanks so much for the kind words everyone!

Posted by MisUnderstood! What a Splendid Theater collection. Great to see some are being renovated.

Unfortunately they are both residential conversions. In the one case there is barely a shred of detail left in the building. Thankfully for the other one the owners have gone on record saying they want to find a way to reuse the space. Let's hope that happens!!

Posted by YotaMan20 So, do you like churches?

I sure do.

Posted by randomesquephoto 125 is a cool and rare type of shot for you. Cool. Lets see you top 2018 in 2019!

You're totally right, I usually wont even try to get photos like that. I only have a wide angle lens and it's currently duct taped to the camera body haha. My goal is usually to show as much of the space as I possibly can. I just loved how that looked so I went for it.

If I'm fortunate enough to see half as much cool shit in 2019 I'll consider myself very lucky. I've become a bit of a snob for locations too, which doesn't help that. If I'm going to risk any sort of trouble I don't want it to be for a place that I regret. Thankfully there are enough beautiful places around to facilitate that. As more and more disappear it will inevitably get harder. I'm just thankful I still have anything to see at all.

stellar work Essex!

Utterly incredible man...I feel so pleased to have joined you on some of those trips.

You've done more power stations in one year than many of us dream of doing in a lifetime.

131.

Distinct.

Locations.

And not a spoiler in the bunch. When do you even sleep?

And all excellently shot. I'd be interested to see your duct-taped lens setup.

Dayum.

You're pretty busy for someone born in 2010

You fucking animal. I am so grateful we were finally able to cross paths. Throwing those fireworks at police made me happier than any exploring I did all year. Here is to actually linking up and exploring in 2019!

Posted by mookster You've done more power stations in one year than many of us dream of doing in a lifetime.

Hahaha I sure have. And you would know, since I've sent photos from all the best ones that I didn't include here! Looking forward to taking you through some of these when you're stateside again.

Posted by Baldran 131. Distinct. Locations. And not a spoiler in the bunch. When do you even sleep? And all excellently shot. I'd be interested to see your duct-taped lens setup.

I sleep like an old man during the week! Occasionally though I'll just blow off sleep entirely and drive to Philly, NYC, or honestly anywhere reasonably close (3hrs or under). As a result the official number for this year was 169. Seems like I keep forgetting places I visited though, so I'll have to add a few photos to this thread later. We should definitely try and get together sometime in 2019!

Posted by IndoAnomaly You fucking animal. I am so grateful we were finally able to cross paths. Throwing those fireworks at police made me happier than any exploring I did all year. Here is to actually linking up and exploring in 2019!

Likewise dude!! And yes, the image of that man scrambling back to his cruiser will forever be etched in my brain. What a downright lawless evening that was. You need to come back to the east for the next KP event!

Jesus, those theater photos. Every one is incredible. So jealous.

Amazing collection man! Hopefully your 2019 is just as full of adventure.

169 places? fuck you. jk, you really got around this year.

I think I made it out a total of 4 times last year, one being a road trip.

Thanks so much folks!

Posted by macgruder 169 places? fuck you. jk, you really got around this year. I think I made it out a total of 4 times last year, one being a road trip.

Hahahaha I sure did. I'm very fortunate that I was able to travel so much. Seems like most of what I want to see is between 6 to 12 hours away now, so traveling is a must. That being said if you ever get a Sunday off and want to do some local stuff let me know! There are a handful of places I'd like to get back to that are right in our neck of the woods.

Posted by EsseXploreR Thanks so much folks! Hahahaha I sure did. I'm very fortunate that I was able to travel so much. Seems like most of what I want to see is between 6 to 12 hours away now, so traveling is a must. That being said if you ever get a Sunday off and want to do some local stuff let me know! There are a handful of places I'd like to get back to that are right in our neck of the woods.

will do! My goal is to explore more this year. Last year was a big bust.

Here are a few more things I forgot to add!

1.

Moonrise Generating Station by EsseXploreR, on Flickr

2.

Quiet Funeral Home by EsseXploreR, on Flickr

3.

Hinchcliffe Stadium by EsseXploreR, on Flickr

4.

Skyline Prison by EsseXploreR, on Flickr

Jesus christ man

XploRor ov tEh yeAr!1!!.


But really, good job, stunning set of work.