urban exploration Archives | Salem House Press

Cool Places in America~ Haunted Toys ‘R’ Us

December 21, 2017February 14, 2020 adminLeave a comment

Once my parents moved me to Sunnydale California to work on a warehouse program for Toys R Us. Well of course I went to work with them several times. In fact I went there so much I was on first name basis with the ghost in the aisles.

The story starts decades earlier when much of the area was farmlands, including the area where the store itself was built. On this location the Murphy’s had an orchard. One of the farm hands, Johnny Johnson, fell in love with the orchard’s owner’s daughter in vain. To get his mind off his sorrow, he took to chopping wood. While he was doing this he hit himself in the leg and bled to death.

He now roams the aisles of the Toys ‘R Us and plays with the toys. He likes bouncing balls down the aisle looking for someone to play with him. I picked up the ball once and threw it back. That is how I met him. After that we used to play air hockey all of the time, sometimes he would cheat though…He is a practical joker also, he likes running the faucet when customers walk into the bathroom.

~Tyler

To find out more about Tyler visit Salem House Press and buy Tyler’s latest book “Tyler Moves to Gibsonton Florida” on Amazon.com. Keep checking back often for great cheap vacation ideas that might end up surprising you and becoming the best vacation you ever had! Red proved to be always full of surprises…

Cool Places in America~ Dixie Square Mall and the Blues Brothers

October 29, 2017February 14, 2020 adminLeave a comment

Here is a tale from a few years ago before this building got torn down. I always loved the Blues Brothers. It was my father’s favorite too. So I was overjoyed when my parents got a contract to work in Harvey, Illinois. Well not at first…then they told me the mall in which the famous chase scene in the mall which started with a Kermit the Frog was in that town. It became cooler. Then my father asked if I wanted to go urban exploring into this dead mall, Harvey got way cooler!!!

Dixie Square Shopping Center was an enclosed shopping mall located in Harvey, Illinois, United States, at the junction of 151st Street and the Dixie Highway. It stood vacant for over 30 years, more than twice as long as it was in business. It was famous for having been used, both inside and out, for the mall chase scene in the movie The Blues Brothers. More recently, it achieved notoriety because of a growing Internet cult following (including local urban exploration groups) dedicated to covering the mall’s deteriorating condition. Like other “dead malls“, it had been characterized by high vacancy rates and low patronage, which led to its closure. However, while other dead malls were redeveloped or demolished, Dixie Square stood out due to its extensive neglect, vandalism damage, and sordid history.

~Tyler

Tunnels turned into sewers on Bridge Street Salem, MA.

Sewers, Utilities, and Tunnels

December 4, 2014 adminLeave a comment

Well I came across these old photos I took a few years ago when they were working on Bridge Street. No thanks to an angry little Napoleon yelling at me from the hole. Here is part of the tunnel on Bridge Street now running electrical cables by Coffee Time.

After the 50’s the tunnels started getting turned into conduits. Many were used for the sewers. Why dig a new hole? A friend of mine had pictures of the sewers on Bridge Street, but I can’t find my copies. In the pictures below is a tunnel entrance in the old Naumkeag Savings building on Essex Street. Below the rug is where the sewer lines enter the building. Why did a new hole?

My friend Steve Dibble was the City Engineer. He told me on an old sewer map it showed a tunnel in front of the armory that was marked off for transporting black powder from the South River. When I went to see the map, that was the page missing from the map book. Plus I am still waiting for the Assistant Building Inspector to let me see the photos and the video of the tunnel coming out of town hall. I guess that is why some one created the Freedom of Information Act…

For more about the tunnels read Salem Secret Underground: The History of the Tunnels in the City .

Then book a tour on the Salem Smugglers’ Tour to learn more about the tunnels in town.