5. Hashima Island, Japan
Hashima Island has a complicated past. However, what is clear is that when people leave, the buildings will become ruins but nature will flourish. Japan’s town was popular for its undersea coal mines back in the day.
The island was bought by Mitsubishi in 1890 and it was modernized with buildings, apartment blocks and other amenities. Its population increased rapidly, attracted by the mining culture. The town became operational in 1881, and in 1959 hit its peak population, over 5,200 people were living there (mostly coal miners and their families), but when the mines began to run dry, most residents left.
However, as coal power became replaced by gasoline, coal prices fell drastically, leaving many mines, including Hashima, behind. Hashima Island became a ghost town by 1975.
