Abandoned Military Buildings
Abandoned military buildings are one of the most difficult kinds of derelict sites to gain access to. Security is usually watertight and for some reason, climbing walls is always a necessity at these places.
I’m not talking about your average wall climb where you just hop over. I’m talking about layers of walled security, barbed wire, and very spiky fences. The Phoenix Park Magazine Fort in Ireland was so traumatic gaining access that my bravery had completely subsided at the point of leaving the site and I couldn’t face the dangerous climb out. For the first and only time in the 11 years of urbexing, I called the park rangers to come get me out even though I could have gotten arrested. That’s how traumatic it was getting in!!
Military sites have often been abandoned for centuries, so structural damage is always a concern. But the risks are outweighed by the beautiful photography you can create inside the walls of these time capsules and reading about the site history is super fun.
Abandoned Moore River Camp for Aboriginals in Western Australia
In the heart of the Mogumber sand plain, nestled north of Perth, the Moore River Native Settlement stands as a chilling testament to a dark chapter in Australia’s history. For 30 years, this place served as a multifaceted institution, shifting between sanctuary, work camp, orphanage, prison, and rural haven. Initiated by the Chief Protector of Aborigines, A.O. Neville, this settlement was part of a controversial social experiment aimed at eradicating an entire race and culture. “Neville the Devil”, the former chief protector of Aborigines in WA. Supplied: Aboriginal History WA From its establishment in 1918 until 1951, the Moore River Native Settlement, located about 135km north of Perth, became infamous as one of the largest Aboriginal missions in Western Australia. A place where hundreds of Indigenous children from across the vast regions of the state were forcibly sent, often against their will and as young children, for so-called “integration” into Western society. Children gathered outside the Moore River chapel circa 1920. Photograph: State Library of Western Australia The horrors of Moore River were laid bare through a recent research project by the state’s Aboriginal History WA unit, which delved into the camp’s cemetery. The findings exposed the appalling conditions that
Abandoned Riverbank Prison in Perth, WA
The roots of Riverbank Prison, also known as Riverbank Maximum Security Centre, can be traced back to 1960 when the Western Australian Child Welfare Department envisioned a secure detention facility catering to male offenders between the ages of thirteen to eighteen. The History of Riverbank Prison, Caversham Riverbank’s establishment was initially based on looking after the welfare needs of young offenders and the reformation of their offending behaviour. But by 1979, its aims had been defined to include the care of child offenders, children on remand for alleged offenses or uncontrolled children. The CWD reported in 1968 (Signposts, p.439) that programs at Riverbank also sought to ‘teach more socially acceptable behaviour’ and commented on the ‘paradoxical situation’ of trying to do this while the boys were living in an isolated institution. A series of events that brought community members in for dances, sports, and social evenings was arranged. Socially-acceptable recreation options (such as weightlifting, photography, stamp collecting and badminton) were also introduced. Riverbank Prison Youth Camp in 1986 By 1970, the facility accommodated 43 boys and by 1979 over 1,000 boys had been placed at Riverbank with an average stay of nine months. Between 1975 and 1976, the number of
S-21 Torture Prison, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
During a trip to Cambodia, I visited an abandoned torture prison formerly known as S-21. The site used to be a school but 50 years ago was overtaken by a Cambodian Communist party, the Khmer Rouge. From 1975 – 1979, they waged a bloody war on the civilians of Cambodia and murdered almost 3 million men, women and children. S-21 was the prison they brought 14, 000 prisoners to, where they interrogated, tortured and eventually slaughtered them. When Vietnamese forces finally defeated the bloody regime in 1979, only 7 survivors were found inside. The prison has been left almost the way it was when the Khmer Rouge used it as a killing base during their reign of terror. There is still blood on the floor in some rooms and fingernail scrapings along the staircase walls. The rooms that were used to torture the prisoners have wooden desks behind which the interrogators would have sat. In front of the desks, are bed frames on which the prisoners were made to lie down on and the shackles which bound them to the frame are still present. It was here that many were accused of working for the CIA-KGB and were coerced into
Abandoned Military Clancy Barracks, Dublin (Ireland)
The Clancy Barracks date from about 1857 and have had a long connection with artillery, cavalry, and ordnance. They have been associated with various military events including the Crimean War, the Boer War, World War 1, and the 1916 rising. The site is now being used for various film and TV show sets, most notably “Ripper Street”. The only point of entry I could find for this site was over a wall that surrounded a large, modern apartment complex (not ideal!). I always walk around the whole perimeter of a site to check where the safest and most legal way in is before I actually go in. Due to the fact this is an important historical military site and now being used for films, it’s pretty well protected. Enjoy the photography slideshow below and don’t forget to follow Abandoned World Photography for regular urbex updates on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.
Abandoned Military Phoenix Park Magazine Fort, Dublin (Ireland)
The Phoenix Park Magazine Fort was built in 1735 and was occupied by the Brits. By 1939 its purpose was to house the Irish Army’s stock of ammunition and guns. During the 1916 Easter Rising, members of the Irish Volunteers and Fianna Eireann attacked the fort, stole some ammunition and set fires intended to blow up the rest. However, the fires burned out before reaching the ammunition and not much damage was done. The fort is situated in the south-eastern part of Phoenix Park and is heavily guarded by three gates. I named these gates the ‘gates of hell’, purely because they were so difficult and nerve-wracking to get over. The first gate is topped with multiple rolls of barbed wire, the second was so high and unsteady it took me about an hour to figure out how to get over it and the third was just plain awkward and carried with it the danger of getting a spike up the area where the sun don’t shine! After completing this terrifying obstacle course, I explored every nook and cranny of the fort. There were a large number of rooms with fireplaces and stoves still intact, a warehouse, basement, two towers
