Here in The City Beautiful, things come and go. In fact, it’s pretty hard to find anything that has stuck around for more than a decade. Since development rules supreme, buildings and attractions in Orlando often sit abandoned and neglected. What we have here are the five most notorious abandoned places that once called Orlando home.
Credit:Dustin WalkerThe abandoned Water Mania park
The park featured rides like the Double Bezerker, the Anaconda and the Cruisin’ Creek (their version of a lazy river), and it was also home to an inland surfing experience called “Wipe Out.”
Photo via Dustin Walker/FlickrCredit:Dustin WalkerCredit:Dustin WalkerThe abandoned Water Mania park
These days, the spot where the water park once stood, at 6073 W. Irlo Bronson Highway (U.S. 192), is inhabited by a Golden Corral and Pirate’s Island Mini-Golf course.
Photo via Dustin Walker/FlickrWalt Disney World’s abandoned River Country
This sure isn’t Typhoon Lagoon or Blizzard Beach but once upon a time, River Country was a popular water park at Walt Disney World.
Photo via gorillasdontblog/blogspotWalt Disney World’s abandoned River Country
The “theme” of River Country was old-fashioned swimming hole, with pools and crazy waterslides that used water pumped in from Bay Lake.
Photo via disneyparks.disney.go.comRiver Country closed in 2001, and Walt Disney World officials said at the time that it could reopen someday if there was enough guest demand. abandonedplaygrounds.comIts pools have been sitting intact but vacant ever since. Via abandonedplaygrounds.comSplendid China
The park was owned, in part, by the government of China. It was modeled on another park that existed in Shenzhen China, also called Splendid China.
Photo via Rhys Asplund,/FlickrA year later, many of the items on display were auctioned off. All that was left of the park were its structures and statuary, which stood on site for another 10 years. Via Rhys Asplundh, on Flickr.comVia Rhys Asplundh, on Flickr.comSplendid China
The buildings were left vacant and urban explorers and others documented the decay of the park.
Photo via Rhys Asplund,/FlickrSplendid China
As you can see, graffiti pretty much took over here.
Photo via abandonedfl.comSplendid China
As well as general vandalism.
Photo via Rhys Asplund,/FlickrDespite the message scrawled on this wall, nobody is here anymore. Splendid China was demolished in May of this year to make way for condos. Via Rhys Asplundh, on Flickr.comThe Sunland Mental Hospital, then known as the Florida State Tuberculosis Sanitarium in 1939Photo via State Archives of Florida, Florida Memory Credit:Paige Cherie HundleySunland Mental Hospital
The hospital cared for profoundly mentally and physically disabled children and adults during the ’60s and ’70s.
Photo by Paige Cherie HundleySunland Mental Hospital
The facility closed its doors for good in the mid-’80s, following many years of investigation into alleged neglect and abuse of patients.
Photo by Paige Cherie HundleySunland Mental Hospital
The main hospital was demolished in 1998, and all that remains is the old administration building, where these photos were taken on Sept. 10, 2006.
Photo by Paige Cherie HundleySunland Mental Hospital
The spot where the hospital once stood is now home to a playground rumored to be haunted by the spirits of the children who were once housed in the institution.
Photo by Paige Cherie HundleySunland Mental Hospital
Spoooky!
Photo by Paige Cherie HundleyThe Riddle House
Built in 1881, this house was one of the oldest structures in the area. It was built by a banker from New York for his wife as a wedding present, a summer country retreat at what was at the time, 500 acres of cattle and farm land, what is now Riddle Drive in Orlando.
Photo by abandonedfl.comPhoto via AbandonedFl.comPhoto via AbandonedFl.comPhoto via AbandonedFl.comPhoto via AbandonedFl.comThe Riddle House
It was purchased in 1966 by a family looking to escape the cold winters of Michigan. In the 1970s, it was known as the home of “The Orlando Wicker Man” and it’s exactly how it sounds; he made wicker furniture and other items.
Photo by abandonedfl.comPhoto via AbandonedFl.comPhoto via AbandonedFl.com
