abandoned: The All-American Ruins Podcast

As a professional podcaster of over a decade, I’m always looking for awesome shows to get lost in and enjoy. How lucky I am that one of my favorite shows, Atlas Obscura, took the time to feature “abandoned: An All-American Ruins Podcast” on their show and recommend it to their listeners. Blake Pfeil, the obviously über-creative host of this fabulous show, shares his experiences, feelings, reflections, and observations in a way that draws you in and won’t let you go. This is deeply insightful audio journalism, equally poetic, artistic, and technically brilliant. The production of “abandoned” is top-notch, the story-telling totally compelling, and the listening experience deeply evocative, inspiring, and emotion-laden. Much gratitude to Blake for a podcast that is truly a precious gem in a crowded audio field. This show is certainly one of the best.

I found this for the letchworth village episode. I grew up and still live in the area and know many people who worked there. His history is basically correct with one large error: As a good friend of mine who worked there put it “Letchworth was never a psychiatric facility… it was a facilityfor those with “mental retardation” though of course people were placed there for many reasons besides like being deaf or blind , CP, “incorrigible (having baby our it wedlock) and yes sometimes because of mental illness”. But it was not by any definition a psychiatric hospital” His claim that he had to climb a fence to access the property is simply not true. You can simply drive in and walk around. I take my dogs walking there all the time. (Perhaps he climbed the fence around the dog park?) There are still some buildings in use by the state and town but the property is truly massive and most of the buildings are abandoned. Definitely an interesting podcast but I found it a bit over dramatic trying to make it sound more scary than it is.

Blake is a consummate storyteller. Bravo.

I’ve never heard a podcast done like this before. The exceptional sound design makes it really immersive and a great mix with Blake’s beautiful voice. Fantastic!