In the 1960s, a dream to infuse the town of Pontiac with economic prosperity inspired the vision of a larger-than-life stadium. The visionary was C. Don Davidson, a Pontiac local and athlete-turned-architect. Sitting on nearly 200 acres of land, the stadium was eventually built in 1975 and would be the primary home of the Detroit Lions for the next several decades. Due to weather and unforeseen economic challenges, however, the stadium was eventually left in ruins. Come with us as we explore the once-vacant football stadium, which now lives on in memory and photographs alone.

If you love creepy content, Only In Your State’s Vacant series – which partners with talented photographer Johnny Joo – explores a dozen other fascinating abandoned places just waiting to be discovered.

Editor’s Note: Due to the nature of abandoned destinations, many of the places featured in this series are off-limits to visitors or have actually been demolished. We do not condone trespassing and other illegal activity but rather encourage readers to enjoy learning about these fascinating destinations.

If you were an avid football fan between 1975 and the early 2000s, you likely watched a game that was placed at the storied Pontiac Siverdome. In fact, up until the year 2000, this was the largest stadium in the NFL until it was succeeded by FedExField outside of Washington D.C.

The Silverdome was the home of the Detroit Lions for several decades. It was known for its unique fiberglass fabric roof which was held up by air pressure and built to withstand drastic weather events. Ironically, it was Michigan's notoriously harsh weather that would cause the eventual downfall of the stadium.

During the Silverdome's heyday, it hosted an impressive variety of events, ranging from Super Bowl XVI, the 1979 NBA All-Star Game, and even the 1994 FIFA World Cup. It also served as the stage for iconic performers, including Led Zeppelin, The Who, and Elvis Presley.

When Ford Field opened in 2002, the stadium no longer had a permanent team. Pontiac struggled to find use for the space, and after being left empty for 8 years, it was eventually sold in a 2009 auction for less than 1% of its original cost to build. But, in 2013, a particularly harrowing storm caused the roof to tear, and this wasn't the first time the structure had been compromised.

By 2017, the owner of the Silverdome decided to tear down this facility, which had been abandoned for years at this point. Prior to permanently shutting its doors, various contents from the stadium were auctioned off and the parking lot was even home to thousands of recalled Volkswagen vehicles. In 2019, Amazon announced that it would be developing the site into a warehouse.

Did you know about this fascinating piece of Michigan history?

Special thanks to Cleveland-based photographer Johnny Joo of Odd World Studio for the photos used in this article. To discover more creepy and abandoned places, check out his website, Architectural Afterlife.