The World's 16 Most Abandoned Places

#15 Kolmanskop, the ghost city in Namibia

In 1908, a black laborer discovered a diamond in this region, and the Germans established a complete city here, relying only on diamond mining. The early miners, making exceptionally good money, constructed everything from hospitals to theaters, trams, and casinos. However, due to the exhaustion of the diamond resource after World War I, no further mining took place in the region. The city was finally abandoned entirely in 1954. Since then, only visitors, particularly photographers, have been flocking here in significant numbers. Photographers can create fantastic images of how the desert reclaimed the city after the inhabitants had fled.