Imagine stumbling upon a forgotten building, not even realizing what it was, only to uncover a scene straight out of a horror film. That's exactly what happened to urban explorer Ben James, 29, when he was searching for an abandoned cemetery in Illinois, US. Instead, he found a crumbling funeral home that had seemingly been deserted for decades. Locals told him a chilling tale: the owner had simply vanished one day and never returned, leaving the business to decay.
What Ben found inside was truly disturbing. Amongst the dust and rubble, he discovered untouched embalming fluids, death certificates, and "do not resuscitate" labels. But the most horrifying find, he claims, were what appeared to be human remains dating back to 2005—undisturbed for twenty years. Adding to the macabre scene were Polaroids of corpses in the process of being embalmed.
Ben, who shares his explorations with 215,000 followers on Instagram (@places_forgotten) and 1.2 million on TikTok, described the funeral home as "very creepy." He mentioned that locals believe the place is haunted and wish it would be demolished, but they worry about where the spirits would go.
His followers were captivated by the eerie discovery. Comments poured in, expressing fascination, sadness, and shock at the thought of people's ashes being left behind and the disturbing Polaroids. It's a stark reminder of how different things can be in other parts of the world.
Ben's passion for forgotten spaces has led him to explore disused airports, schools, hospitals, and even an entire abandoned city across the globe. He's known for pushing boundaries, even climbing razor-wire fences to access off-limits locations. His latest find, however, seems to be one of his most unsettling yet.
