There's just something so fascinating about places that once were. There's something about wandering the halls of an abandoned place in Indiana and imagining the days in which the place was once alive that has strange but beautiful magic to it. The Hoosier State is no stranger to interesting abandoned places, and there's one town that gets a lot of flak it doesn't necessarily deserve. Gary, Indiana, is a mostly abandoned little place that tops almost anywhere else when it comes to urban exploration. Although Gary is still inhabited, it's home to so many abandoned structures that it still has an eerie ghost town feel about it. With more than 13,000 abandoned buildings and structures, Gary is among the most abandoned places in Indiana — if not the world. Let's take a closer look at abandoned Gary, Indiana.

Once upon a time, Gary, Indiana, was a bustling town with a booming economy — but the good times didn't last.

Today, it's not quite "abandoned" — folks still call it home, and efforts have been underway to try and revamp the area — but one-third of the town is effectively deserted.

Most people speak of Gary as if it's something of a dirty secret. Hoosiers aren't proud of it, but perhaps they should be - albeit for totally different reasons than, say, an excellent tourist economy. But there's beauty and value to be had in an abandoned space and the way it develops into a new use.

For the artists, the photographers, and the wanderers, Gary is a kind of mecca; it's a sacred holy grail in the Midwest for urban explorers and those with roaming hearts.

Urban exploration is the art of combing through long-forgotten buildings and taking photos, taking videos, or simply taking it all in. It's an entire subculture of people who find beauty in urban decay — and trust us, there's most certainly an enchanting beauty to the decay of Gary, Indiana. Walking through these structures and seeing the vibrant graffiti and public art in them is like exploring a brand-new kind of urban museum.

You'd be amazed at the buildings you can find, and what some of them contain.

For example, there's the old abandoned Gary Elementary School with furniture and books and desks still scattered about. There's a stunning apartment complex (or two...or ten) whose walls once held families and lively residents but are now quietly decomposing, taken over once more by nature and the occasional graffiti artists. Much like the old Ambassador Apartment complex, which was built in the 1920s and abandoned entirely by the mid-1980s. It's easy to imagine what this living space was like in its heyday, packed with people and flourishing with the hustle and bustle of everyday life.

In many places, old furniture still sits - not untouched by any means, but certainly forgotten by those who once cared for it. And in some cases, it feels like time has stopped completely in these spaces, like the whole population just up and left one day and this is what remains.

We don't recommend entering any of the buildings; urban exploration can be risky, even dangerous, if you're new to it (or if you make a simple miscalculation in terms of, say, if a rotting floor can hold your weight).

Luckily for those who prefer to admire from afar, there's plenty of that to be done in Gary, too. Every old building seems to ask you to come closer so it can whisper in your ear, and they're intriguing from the outside in. Luckily, we have all these stunning images from brave and well-trained urban explorers to give us a sense of what lies inside these buildings.

It's strange to think that every one of these places was once a living, breathing part of a town - a town that, slowly but steadily, is becoming more and more extinct year by year.

One thing is for sure, though: despite the poor reputation Gary has earned over the years for varied (and valid) reasons, those who appreciate the beautiful sense of longing that comes with exploring abandoned places in IN will find plenty to appreciate about it.

And hopefully, as the town begins to be revitalized, some of the beautiful elements of these buildings (like graffiti and public artwork) will be maintained.

What are your favorite abandoned places in Indiana? Do you know of any places that are haunted in Gary, Indiana? Tell us about them and you might see them featured someday! If you love taking photos and videos, make sure you bring a camera like the latest GoPro with you.

And remember: at Only In Your State, we encourage exploration, but we don't recommend entering old, dilapidated buildings where an injury is very possible should something go wrong (and it easily could — remember that many of these buildings haven't been kept up in decades), nor do we endorse trespassing of any kind.

It's best to admire these places — and the other 13,000 places throughout Gary, Indiana — from afar... like in this video c/o Art We There Yet on YouTube:

Interested in a ghost town road trip to see more of abandoned Gary, Indiana? Take a look at our itinerary for just such a thing.