Great video!! I’m glad you got to visit. East Gate is definitely one of the most interesting dead malls i’ve visited, so I’m glad there’s now some good info about it out there!
Very relevant today. Here in So Cal some Malls were unfortunately never reused. Glad to see that this one is at least transitioning into other uses. The major difference is the lack of foot traffic which leaves an almost tomb like atmosphere. I really like the Senior Center placed someplace familiar. 👍👍👍
I have been very interested in this mall for months now after finding it on google Maps. It is very interesting to see a once vibrant mall disappear into a now office complex. Part of my interest as well in this mall is that there is little info on this mall on the internet so it kind is like a mystery some what which is why the second I saw this video pop up on my scree i click it in a heartbeat. The fountain in the center court is amazing as I did not know of that feature to the mall. It is kind of intriguing how the mall has since changed into something different, yet the fountain remains the sole source of this once mysterious dead mall. Awesome video, DMW, and I can’t wait to see what your future videos take us.
I remember seeing several movies in the movie theater in the early 80s. It had a separate entrance on the outside. It was the place to be in the early 80s for us local kids. When they built Hamilton Place Mall, it killed East Gate. At least, they found a use for it.
This places liminality in the sense of outliving a familiar past (or familiar present). This looks like a good place to decompress, better for being quiet. Your juxtapositions are on point. :)
I think it is kind of innovative how they found another use for Eastgate mall. Going through that mall looks like a hybrid of a feel in vibes between a dead mall, a community center, an office complex, and the hallways similar to hotel conference centers or older colleges.
Absolutely agree, Stephen. And, for many places like this, I think innovation is what it will take to keep them alive. This one really did feel strange to walk through and, like I said in the video, very difficult to describe exactly what it feels like!
Hey there was an ice skating thing in the center of the mall way back when. Then when I was 21, it had the Electric Cowboy. 10 years ago, I saw a local theater production from their space inside. Changes.
In that case, that's the second mall I went to on my last trip that has/had an ice rink in the middle! Electric Cowboy sounds like a fun night out, haha.
@@DeadMallWalking One of those near to me is mainly used when conventions come to town. It was a thing in the 1980s but after then it never did well cause it was expensive as hell and right across the street from a more popular mall.
My parents opened a restaurant in here in 1980 when it was the busiest mall in town. Faced the fountain. Some of my earliest memories are of playing around the foot court and getting my dad to buy me stuff from Kay Bee Toys. I grew up watching its slow decline.
Oh, that's really cool. What was the restaurant's name? Wonder if I spotted it in any of the old photos...It may have declined, but at least it's still going!
I've only ever made it as far as Wilmington when I've been in NC, but hopefully I'll back in the future. Although I'd love to know why you consider it infamous...!
I think one problem is that there are just so few windows along the hallways etc., so you're really relying entirely on the skylights for natural light!
Fun fact: the music at the beginning is also backwards! I was just having a little fun conveying that, in order to get the story of the former Eastgate Mall, we need to go back in time a bit :)
A mall going out of business is certainly not a sign of Capitalism dying, it's a sign of Capitalism in action. The free market evolves and changes over time, if business to not follow suit they go under and another business takes the market share.
Hmm, I agree...to an extent. I think spending habits are changing in a very real way right now though. Too big a topic to get into in a single comment, haha.
![Valdosta Mall : A (Not So) Dead Mall In Valdosta, GA [aka Titletown USA]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Omd9El7XhkU/mqdefault.jpg)
Great video!! I’m glad you got to visit. East Gate is definitely one of the most interesting dead malls i’ve visited, so I’m glad there’s now some good info about it out there!
Thanks again for the tip Jaiden, absolutely loved exploring this place!
Very relevant today. Here in So Cal some Malls were unfortunately never reused. Glad to see that this one is at least transitioning into other uses. The major difference is the lack of foot traffic which leaves an almost tomb like atmosphere. I really like the Senior Center placed someplace familiar. 👍👍👍
Yup, the senior center is a great idea IMO. How well it works I don't know - was only there for an hour or two - but it seems useful in theory.
You know any malls I can film at? I’m in the area and I’ve been trying to find dead malls to go to.
I'm not sure but the Hawthorne Mall (in Hawthorne California) may be vacant.
Great video! That water feature was really awesome. And I loved the quick shout out to the cemetery 😉 💙
I have been very interested in this mall for months now after finding it on google Maps. It is very interesting to see a once vibrant mall disappear into a now office complex. Part of my interest as well in this mall is that there is little info on this mall on the internet so it kind is like a mystery some what which is why the second I saw this video pop up on my scree i click it in a heartbeat. The fountain in the center court is amazing as I did not know of that feature to the mall. It is kind of intriguing how the mall has since changed into something different, yet the fountain remains the sole source of this once mysterious dead mall. Awesome video, DMW, and I can’t wait to see what your future videos take us.
Yes! It’s hard to even find pictures of this mall back in the day. Wholly recommend visiting if you’re ever in the area. Thank you for watching! 🙂
Hamilton Place killed it
I remember seeing several movies in the movie theater in the early 80s. It had a separate entrance on the outside. It was the place to be in the early 80s for us local kids. When they built Hamilton Place Mall, it killed East Gate. At least, they found a use for it.
Damn! I’d have loved to see it back in its golden years.
This places liminality in the sense of outliving a familiar past (or familiar present). This looks like a good place to decompress, better for being quiet. Your juxtapositions are on point. :)
I think it is kind of innovative how they found another use for Eastgate mall. Going through that mall looks like a hybrid of a feel in vibes between a dead mall, a community center, an office complex, and the hallways similar to hotel conference centers or older colleges.
Absolutely agree, Stephen. And, for many places like this, I think innovation is what it will take to keep them alive. This one really did feel strange to walk through and, like I said in the video, very difficult to describe exactly what it feels like!
Around 1980 I was in a rock band that played a short set in this mall. We played Lynyrd Skynyrd songs.
Love that, Paul! Wish you had a video of it.
Hey there was an ice skating thing in the center of the mall way back when. Then when I was 21, it had the Electric Cowboy. 10 years ago, I saw a local theater production from their space inside. Changes.
In that case, that's the second mall I went to on my last trip that has/had an ice rink in the middle! Electric Cowboy sounds like a fun night out, haha.
There are living shopping malls that the people in that area enjoy and are grateful to have.
Absolutely, these places all have their purpose. And I liked seeing this spot forging a new one for itself.
@@DeadMallWalking One of those near to me is mainly used when conventions come to town. It was a thing in the 1980s but after then it never did well cause it was expensive as hell and right across the street from a more popular mall.
@@michellelambert8729 Why developers insist on opening malls right across the street from other malls, I will never know...!
@@DeadMallWalking Muh capitalism! 😂
My parents opened a restaurant in here in 1980 when it was the busiest mall in town. Faced the fountain. Some of my earliest memories are of playing around the foot court and getting my dad to buy me stuff from Kay Bee Toys. I grew up watching its slow decline.
Oh, that's really cool. What was the restaurant's name? Wonder if I spotted it in any of the old photos...It may have declined, but at least it's still going!
@@DeadMallWalking The restaurant name was Chinese Combo King
@@HandsomeDynamite Cool! Not sure I spotted it in photos, but I looked at a bunch of pics of this place, haha.
And the Infamous Oak Hollow Mall in High Point,NC my hometown.
I've only ever made it as far as Wilmington when I've been in NC, but hopefully I'll back in the future. Although I'd love to know why you consider it infamous...!
Definitely need to add Regency Square Mall to your places to visit.
Damn, looks like a great spot! Maybe next time I'm in the US...
Great Video!!!! Love this Fountain too!!! F+L, Corey
Interesting... I thought it was going to be the one in Richmond. Same names.
Ah damn, I gotta start adding locations to titles! Lots of malls out there with the same names...
I love your vids
It'd be much better with more hallway lighting.
I think one problem is that there are just so few windows along the hallways etc., so you're really relying entirely on the skylights for natural light!
I lived in Chattanooga for 2 years and didn’t even know about the Eastgate Mall.
It's a way out of the centre of town, so that's understandable!
The building today looks more like a school, airport or even jail than a shopping mall
Yup, it's a strange looking spot for sure! It even looks a little weird in the old pictures.
Why are the cars driving backwards?
Fun fact: the music at the beginning is also backwards! I was just having a little fun conveying that, in order to get the story of the former Eastgate Mall, we need to go back in time a bit :)
A mall going out of business is certainly not a sign of Capitalism dying, it's a sign of Capitalism in action. The free market evolves and changes over time, if business to not follow suit they go under and another business takes the market share.
First
Capitalism isn't failing. It's just all online now.
Hmm, I agree...to an extent. I think spending habits are changing in a very real way right now though. Too big a topic to get into in a single comment, haha.