Atlanta's Underground Zero Mile Explained | ABANDONED
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 3 ส.ค. 2024
- The history of Atlanta's abandoned underground is a tale of urban evolution and economic transformation. Originally constructed in the 1920s as a network of underground streets and storefronts, it served as the bustling commercial heart of the city's retail district. However, the rise of suburban shopping malls in the mid-20th century led to its decline, and by the 1970s, it had been largely abandoned. In the 1980s, visionary entrepreneurs repurposed this subterranean space into a vibrant entertainment district known as Underground Atlanta, attracting visitors with its unique shops, restaurants, and nightlife. Despite its initial success, challenges such as crime and changing consumer habits led to its gradual decline once again. Today, while efforts to revitalize the area continue, Atlanta's abandoned underground stands as a testament to the city's ever-changing urban landscape and the ongoing quest for renewal.
IT’S HISTORY - Weekly Tales of American Urban Decay as presented by your host Ryan Socash.
» CREDIT
Scriptwriter - Dillan Aultimate,
Editor - Ryan Padwick
Host - Ryan Socash
Music/Sound Design: Dave Daddario
» NOTICE
Some images may be used for illustrative purposes only - always reflecting the accurate time frame and content. Events of factual error / mispronounced word/spelling mistakes - retractions will be published in this section.
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As someone who has lived in metro Atlanta for 40+ years, NEVER put safety concerns aside when you are ANYWHERE in the city.
ALWAYS put safety concerns aside in all situations. Everyone knows this.
FNA right about that
@@marvinnashwheresmyearI’m assuming you meant to say either “can’t run” or “can ruin”.
@@patrickfutato6555no, he’s an educated conservative…can’t write. 🤷🏾♂️🤣😂
@@marvinnashwheresmyear Finally. Tell that to everyone you meet. For some reason people keep moving here. Can I donate to your campaign to curb this 50 year influx of people that want to live here.
I live in downtown ATL and I can tell you that The Underground is definitely NOT back. It is still deserted, dirty and full of homeless people. There about 2 events held there per year.
Me too that’s a fact
Been mugged there atleast twice while doing street photos.
That's just not even true I've been to abt 5 underground events just this year you must just not get out enough
@@thethirdestate7524 How you gonna get mugged "at least" two times? How do you lose count at two or three muggings?
The underground is all about the night life. You really just gotta know somebody
The Zero Mile Marker is not in it's original location. It was moved to Atlanta History Center a few years ago as the building containing it was being demolished. I was working there at the time and might have some pictures of the move.
It's always surprised me how dead the underground is when it's surrounded by Georgia State college. Five points should be a hub for nightlife and fun, but it's just full of homelessness and depression
Because of the long history of crime. Crime is why it’s never been the hot spot people wanted it to be.
They’ve actually moved a lot of new businesses into the underground and they hold events there all the time now, it’s quite lively at night
@@tiffani1063 I’m sure, it has been 3 years since I left Atlanta for coastal Ga. But for years it had cycles of big investment, plans not quite evolving to the extent expected and then a down period. For so long the area around was so depressed it was just difficult to get people to go down there. Dante’s was where I went but even then it was a shadow of its glory years. I’m not privy to the current shape of the neighborhood but Whitehall and close by was not a friendly visitor experience in my day. I’m 61 so I saw it all happen real time albeit from childhood at fruition and definitely in decline by the time I could go on my own.
I've lived in Atlanta my whole life. I used to go to underground in the 90s around the time of the Olympics when it was a nice relatively safe place to visit. Now and really for the last 20 or so years I would not advise going there alone, unarmed, or at night. The place really went down hill after the world of coke moved.
Its really a shame because it really is a cool place at least from a historical standpoint.
I'm 100% with you,
Is that the “world of coca-cola” or are you speaking of the booger sugar?
@@The_Red_Off_Road the world of coca-cola lol.
Hopefully things like the gulch project will help breathe some new life into the area and make it safer again
I can tell a lot of people havent been to underground lately . Lets just say it has a thriving lively night scene now. There has been plenty of changes but there are still some questionable characters in the area. A lot of people in the comments section left Atlanta to decay and then complain about how it isnt like the 60s-80s....
Exactly! I love it down there. Go early before a show and get some awesome pizza for dinner.
We use to skate Peachtree in the 90s (woodruff park) and it was pretty sketchy back then but we were teenagers and oblivious. Took my daughter to the same spot last year so she could see what downtown Atlanta looks like and she still saw the beauty of it from the architecture and my stories of us skating everywhere. But now i see it in a different light as an adult and it is definitely not a safe area. Period.
I went to art school in Atlanta in the '90s and skated all over it at all times of the day and night. I enjoyed it while I was there but you couldn't melt me and pour me back in Atlanta now. I couldn't handle the traffic. I hate having to drive thru there.
It's not that rough, you ONLY become a victim if you look like a victim and act like a victim. So don't be a victim. LOL
Do you remember that old skate pit that was at the corner of West Peachtree and 10th Street down in the what used to be a basement of a big building but the building was gone and the basement was seeing sky
@@InnercityHillbilly honestly we never headed up to midtown. We stayed south mainly marta ledges and up and down Decatur Street. This would have been 95-97
@@bjet80s45 I grew up right down 10th Street from there.
Born in Atlanta in the mid fifties, spent the mid seventies at underground, it was safer then than now.
I remember going to Atlanta Underground back in the 90s. It was such a lively place full of shops and tourism.
Ive been to underground Atlanta multiple times over the last 25 year's, ive never had a single issue
I have too, but that all changed when I found myself alone there at night. I think the only reason I got out unscathed was because I know how to keep my head up and not look scared from being real familiar with NYC and NO at night. Lots of shady characters.
Back in college in the 1970s i use to love going to Underground Atlanta. It got unsafe by the end of the decade
I visit my sister in Atlanta every year. The area is not safe honestly. I felt safer when I lived in NYC 😢
NYC is one of the safest large cities in the US so that makes sense
What killed Underground was the 1993 Rodney King Riots, 15 of the shops ended up closing and, after 10 years, the whole place closed down. I was finishing up at Georgia State University at that time and got caught in the middle of the riot; it pretty much ended White Atlantan's interest in coming Downtown to the Underground Atlanta Complex. Also the following years had the "Freaknic" traffic jams. Really Atlanta is a racially polarized city; this was not true in the Atlanta I grew up in during the 60's and 70's.
Let's call it like it is. It's a shit hole now. They've ruined it. Just like they ruin everything.
Rodent king riots were in 1992 , "April 29th 1992 there was a riot on the street, tell me, where were you?"
@@dextermorgan1 they sir?
No what killed Underground was the expansion of the east/west line Marta was building. The construction demolished a great percentage of the original buildings and sadly that was it ( along with some other factors mentioned in this video).
@@dextermorgan1
EVERYONE treats a city or town as a cash cow ......... until it ain't!!
Born in Atlanta in 1964 and I still live there. Been to underground many times over the years. Although you do need to be watchful of rough people, it’s not much different compared to NYC and other places. It’s a nice place to visit and get a historical view of the past. I love Atlanta and always will 🤩
Same here as a Grady Baby who grew up in Reynoldstown/Little Five points, no matter where else I've lived it will always be home❤❤
Underground Atlanta is currently filled with independent art galleries, music venues, restaurants, a cabaret room, a comedy club, and many other businesses. Don't count it out just yet.
Born and raised in Atlanta, I haven't been to Underground since I was a kid, and I hear it's not a great place to visit currently. Also, the peach drop doesn't happen anymore, they didn't do it 2020-2022, did it once more in 2023, and currently have no plans to reinstitute it. That said, there are plenty of other fun things to do in Atlanta, but I can't say I'd recommend Underground
It's fitting that the heart of Atlanta is buried under a parking garage. This city was built for the train and destroyed for the car.
Well…by Sherman…then the car.
You missed the law change in the 90s that made bars close at 2 instead of stay open late. Crushed nightlife downtown and made whole areas destitute that were thriving - by killing off all the jobs and revenues.
THIS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT THING HE LEFT OFF! I am only 29, but as an Atlanta native, even I know this.
Atlanta should have kept the name "Thrasherville" that's just badass.
Atlanta should have kept the NHL Thrashers! Now they are the Winnipeg Jets.
As an Atlanta native, in the 90s as a teenager Underground was the spot to be. It was fascinating to see the shops, game room, and food court all situated underground. When I got older, I would also hit the nightclubs....today though the way it’s set up I can tell they want to bring that vibe back but it’s just not the same.
There was a record store that was down there, (which at the moment the name escapes my burnout brain), across the street from Dante's down the hatch. I still have a tie-dyed shirt with a embroidered cannabis leaf in/on the sternum of the shirt that I bought there.
@@InnercityHillbilly The record store was called Sam Goody
Only thing i never did was go to the seafood spot downstairs lol
Yeah, I hear about things happening there, but it's like closed off to the public and you have to pay for the events. Definitely not like it use to be where you could just walk there through the Marta tunnel and shop, or eat at the food court etc. I miss the old Underground.
I used to go to underground by myself while still in middle school back in the early 2000’s never had a problem just got to be aware of your surroundings
Hate to say it, but your video paints a much rosier picture of Underground than reality. I was just down there 5 nights ago for a "My Life With the Thrill Kill Kult" concert at The Masquerade, a local music venue, which is pretty much the only business that brings people there. It's located right in the middle of an area loaded with homeless and drug addicts, so the possibility of an "urban encounter" with a panhandler or violent criminal is a very real thing that affects business in that area. The only way Underground or the connected 5 Points Area become economically viable is to clean the area out of this element.
It's a shame, really. I remember Underground in its heyday when I lived here in the late 70's and early 80's. It was a cool place to go and my parents would occasionally take us to Dante's Down the Hatch Restaurant. But over the years, the area declined, the restaurants and shops closed, and it's been in a malaise for decades since.
He missed the detail of why the last upfit failed. World off Coke had just been built. Underground got a massive facelift and it became nice. A simple lazy mistake by a reporter destroyed it with one story. Someone was murdered in Atlanta. The area it happened had no real name to describe its location. The reporter chose to described it as Underground to give the story some traction. It actually happened more than 2 miles away. Combine that with the fact Underground is kind of underground and without the crowds it’s not welcoming.
as a Georgia resident I remember in the 70s underground was the swanky spot but now Atlanta is dangerous place especially after dark I wouldn't go there now for love or money
Definitely true but a group of my high school friends were visiting it in the late 70s and there was a shooting. I'm from middle GA and we thought of Atlanta as the big scary city then. And now.
Oh I agree with you 100% I was in high school in the late 70s and a guy I went to school with went down there alone one night got mugged and was lucky to get out alive. The guy although young was no push over either he was biggest drug dealer in the school later went on to be dea agent so I heard but cannot confirm that lol@@sharonsmith583
Yeah this reeks of the same sentiment I get whenever I tell people back home how nice Decatur is now. They look at me like I am speaking a foreign language
I've lived in the metro Atlanta area my whole life living in and out of the city. And I can tell you right now no one wants to go to the underground. People keep trying to make the underground work and it's just not gonna happen its wayyyy to sketchy, like downtown sketchy. It's not fun.
It's literally fine
@@CaptainCarthex It's terrifying! Ahh!
Every time I move away from Atl something out of my control always brings me back... I think im destined to grow old here...
I've been to Underground Atlanta a few times in the 90's. The first time was right after the Olympics. I felt perfectly safe. But I did not stay past dark.
Atlanta STILL needs better infrastructure....in 2024
Absolutely
Visited Atlanta for the first time when I was 13 in 2005 and loved the Underground Mall.
Went back to visit family last year and after bragging to my kids about it I was shocked to find out it not longer existed.
there has been NO Peach Drop in at least 2 years.. When the tourist thinks he's a tour guide...
Terminus: “Join Us or Feed Us”
I guess that’s why The Walking Dead called that sanctuary terminus
when i was in college around 2011 underground Atlanta was still functioning thanks for sharing the history of this place.
Wow, I'm a native Atlantan and never knew any of this. Thanks for this edification.
lmao
Atlanta was once a great place to live, work & party. From the Raft Races, Stone Mtn, Six Flags, Omni, Fox Theatre, Grant park/ Zoo Atl., Underground and the Olympics, to name a few. Today, its just another crime riddled cesspool that most go Through very quickly, Not too. I was once proud of Atl. now only the memories.
The raft races!!!!! Shooting the hooch. I miss that era. The Omni. So many great.😊 memories.
Lived in College Park and you never let your guard down in Atl!
I live in College Park. Always be cautious.
I remember even when I lived there in the 60's Underground Atlanta was sketchy.
I remember visiting Underground Atlanta around 2002-2003 timeframe. I remember it was a pretty cool shopping center but nothing really blew me away about it. The history was fascinating, however. I wish they'd had more about that back then.
I just went there yesterday and it’s sad
I used to party with friends in the clubs located at the Underground Atlanta in the mid 2000’s. It was either down there or in Buckhead before all the nightclubs moved out. Good times! lol
Thank you for the historical information on the origin of Underground Atlanta. My wife and I stopped there in the early 2000s expecting more than an underground mall. Both were greatly disappointed.
I used to work in Underground Atlanta in the early 90's. It was a LOT of fun, but I'm not sure what's offered there now.
It really is funny hearing mispronounced names of counties and politicians.
it's basically just the masquerade
RIP to Underground Atlanta of the 90's and early 2000's! You are terribly missed! I miss Micks, Gap,Claire's,the game room,the candy shop, lotus express my favorite chinese restaurant, fat Tuesday's,the nightclubs used to be lit too! FILA❤
I loved Mick’s - moved here in 1993 and loved it! The natives were and are cool. Too much pretentious folks now. Still love it.
I furnished my dorm room (former Olympic village, 1999 and 2000 for grad school at Ga. State) with tiny pillows and candles and crap from the dollar store that was down there then. There was a Discovery Channel(?) store where I'd buy rocks and minerals, and def hit the candy shop! (Not a metaphor, literally a candy shop, lol.)
Back in the 90's I would park my car, hop the Marta train to Five Points and hang out at Underground on a lot of Friday and Saturday nights. Been to the Peach drops in 96 thru 99. Met some cute girls and did some really dumb stuff but had great memories there. Having been there in over 20 years. Thanks for the video. This was cool to watch.
My high school came here for our senior trip and the Underground was jumping. I moved here in 2006 and it was still thriving. Now I don't know what's going on with it.
Visited there a few times in the 2000's. Back when the Braves played at turner field you could park and catch a bus but had to walk through underground Atlanta. By the early 2000's it was pretty much just homeless, small shops, scammers and a few crappy chain restaurants.
Atlanta is one of the worst towns in Georgia, crime ridden and unsafe to say the least.
The. DA’s got bigger fish to try to dig up and go pin Taxpayer funded vacations, cruses. European and Caribbean. Let all these small fish ruin the city.
@@winnon992 Liar.
@@winnon992 magazombie
It's a shame not one picture is even close to what it is today.
The Walking Dead paid homage to Atlanta by naming a "sanctuary" city as Terminus. 😉
We saw how that turned out.
@@davidpawson7393womp womp
Atlanta pays more than homages to the film industry. And most of that industry are the most ridiculous, insufferable assholes of all time.
When I was a college student in the 1990s, I would walk back and forth in the food court to get a free sample of Burbon chicken on a toothpick. Years later, I see Peter Griffen doing that on Family Guy.
Penny beer night at the Mad Hatter......I attended quite a few of those......So much fun and chaos.
Hi Professor Socash, Great subject Atlanta, I was born in Atlanta, Ga, back in the very early 50's grew up in the projects from what I remember, My family moved from Atlanta in 1956 and headed for Calif, boy I could have wrote a book about that trip to Calif and I would have name the book, "The Grapes of Wrath II, going to Calif in a 1948 Hudson with Mom and Dad my 2 sisters and a Brother and a 500lbs Grandma, I think that old car lean to the left all the way to Calif. I was the youngest a sister about a 1 year and 3 weeks older, we had a very special seat "ON THE BACK FLOOR BOARD , she was on the left and I was on the right, anyway Atlanta NOT THE SAME CITY anymore, thanks for all the info stay safe and be at peace... until next time....
Atlanta isn't the same from the 1950s??! Crazy
Dante's Down The Hatch was an iconic Underground Atlanta jazz and fondue restaurant. I went there a few years before it closed. You entered it by opening a door like the kind on an old wooden sailing ship and descending a flight on stairs. The walls on either side of the stairs were covered with photos of movie and television stars and other celebrities as well as politicians who had eaten there. The restaurant was dimly lit with a low ceiling where the diners sat. However, in a large two or three story area in the center was a pirate ship moored in water filled with small alligators. How's that for ambience? Alas Dante's is no more. The owner sold it and I hear it has become a night club.
That is about to reopen as MJQ.
I love Atlanta history content!!
I remember underground Atlanta when I use yo visit my family here all the time. But it was still here when I first moved to Atlanta in 2002. Great video, I never knew any of this, and I didn't know they revamped it. I don't go downtown that much.
Love Underground Atlanta. Great informative video!
I first visited Underground Atlanta in 96 and it was like a mall. I went there again in 2009 and World Of Coca-Cola had moved and that place had become a dump. I'm glad they're fixing up.
They aren't.
In another comment I thought “world of coke” was cocaine. 😂
Moved to Atlanta in 96 and love the Undergound. Haven't been there in years but now that I know it's back I am going to check it out!
I stayed with my aunt and cousin in Roswell to go to the Olympics. We went to Ungerground and it was amazing. Now its just a place for the homeless and thr rats...
I went there around 2000 or so. If you went a block or two outside of the Underground it is extremely ratchet. The Underground back then was just some touristy junk.
I go to the masquerade all the time! Love that venue. I’ve never had any issues there but definitely am keeping my eyes on a swivel at night.
People who live in the suburbs love to pretend the city is a crazy dangerous place. They don’t want to admit that they are just terrified of meeting anyone they don’t already know
@@CaptainTrips560 Actually we just prefer peace and quiet. Atlanta is neither.
@@CaptainTrips560 I lived in the suburbs around the city for most of my life, and this sentiment is 100% accurate. I love the city, personally
I was there in 1983. It was getting a little dumpy then. Crime was an issue.
Terminus was an agreed upon junction point for the W&A and the Georgia RR before anything was built, and a bit later the Macon & Western and the Atlanta &West Point, all in the late 1830's. Amazingly, Union depot remained in its original place until 1930 when a new station was built to replace it just a little to the west. Eventually, Atlanta had 8 RR's serving the city.
A a teen in the 1970s, I visited Underground Atlanta. It was unique, but even then it was in a decline!
I'm a Atlanta veteran underground is and has always been wild lol
Nice to see it's coming back. Was there in '96 and it was really cool. Enjoyed the video!
We first visited The Underground in 1971. I think some changes have taken place since then and we need to return. Thanks for another great job.
Don & Honey
Shaq did a set down there one night as the train was rolling by, i have it on my old phone. Was amazing
The underground used to be SO DANGEROUS now it’s more or less abandoned
Remembering all the band and chorus performances we did in the springtime from elementary through high school. It was kind of cool in the 90s.
Great video! Underground Chattanooga is also an interesting subject to look into
I play shows all the time at the underground its not dangerous inside but its not an area for tourists if you do go keep moving because people will follow and stop you
masquerade and mjq concourse, two of our best music venues going back decades, have moved down there - i still haven't been to either since the move.
Haven't been there since the 90s. Great video.
Thanks for watching!
i was there twice this week 😂
I went there as part of a school field trip. I liked going into the shops and just wandering around.
Very cool!
Do not go here, trust me!
Thank you for doing this video! Im a native Georgian and have lived in the Atlanta burbs for a long time. Hope they can revitalize it. I think the peach drop got dropped last year tho.
Interesting to peruse the comment section… lived in the Atlanta area since 1978, took Marta from Avondale station to a job on “Mean Street” … railroad gulch was right there… fascinating to see how Atlanta grew, declined, renovated and renewed over all these many years, feel confident this cycle will continue, “The one constant in life is change…” I like that motto better than one I’ve Always heard ascribed to Atlanta, “Pardon our dust…”
I live in the mountains north of you. We don't go there. No point since they closed Pitty Pat's Porch.
@@sid2112 Yeah yeah, we know you Deliverance cosplayers are deathly afraid of any area that contains more than one traffic signal. Bet you love all that tourist money that comes up from the city, though.
Ah. Thrasherville. what could have been
I had never heard of this, thank you for the information. Atlanta is tied with New Orleans for my next city to see.
Great video
Great coverage. I used to work in Underground Atlanta on its reopening in the late 80's. I managed an art gallery, Antiquities Historical Galleries. It was quite an experience. Happy to see it coming to life yet again.
Oh wow!
Now that hockey nickname makes sense.
Well the state bird is the Thrasher so it could have come from that too.
@@causticchameleon7861 it's a good band name 😅
I remember going to see the Atlanta Flames back in the 70’s. I think they moved to Calgary Canada though. Now you can go see the Gwinnett Gladiators. Several of my friends frequent their games.
@@causticchameleon7861 Falcons, hawks, and thrashers are all birds you'll find in the city.
Triva question: Mile high stadium in Denver Colorado has the highest elevation of all NFL stadiums. What NFL stadium has the second highest elevation?
Answer: Mercedes Benz stadium in Atlanta, Georgia.
You are welcome.
In the '70's Underground Atlanta was a hoot, but like everything from that era, kinda rotted and turned into excrement...
This is cool bc near the State Farm Arena where those parking lots are they hold a lot of events. The exit normally takes you under these buildings or in the basement areas where you go over many railroad tracks. I always get mad bc of my tires I feel like they will pop with the amount of tracks you have to across sometimes leaving that particular area. Love this video by the way. I’ve lived in the area for over 15years now and this makes a lot of sense if you been around the city!!! ❤
This was great thank you I learned so much about my town
While you are there, be sure to take a twilight walking tour of The Bluff. It will surely be the most memorable and exciting part of your visit 😅
I had to read that twice !!!😂😂😂
Ya. And stay awhile in shooters alley
Outskirts of downtown Cincinnati Ohio, specifically the Findlay Market area has ton of underground rooms, tunnels. Their 3 stories below the basements of the buildings so about 4 stories below the streets! I did a lot of construction & renovation down their. Did a lot of exploring down there. Super cool!
The peach drop has been indefinitely postponed for funding reasons since ‘23.
It was canceled in '18, '20, and '21.
I got mugged in ATL underground years ago while there for the Peach Bowl hah
The underground was cool when i was a kid.
I remember visiting Underground Atlanta years ago on vacation with my family when I was a kid in the early seventies. Must have been not long after it opened.
Back in the 60's a friend of my mom's took us to underground Atlanta, it was just a nothing. There were camo uniforms boots, army stuff just heaped up in a big pile in a tunnel. I was rather horrified by it. This was before development. Just a dirty hole with blocked up tunnels with army gear. I've not been there in years. I won't drive thru it unless it's 4 am. Used to live 2 hours south of Atlanta and would take backroads to connect to the interstate in Rome GA or connect down near Macon. Just was not a safe town to drive thru.
Last time I was down there it was empty except for my family and I and the homeless population asking for money. There's a great little candy shop that was still in business when I was there.
I lived outside of Atlanta all my life. I can count on my hands the number of times I’ve been to Atlanta. You take your life in your own hands when ever you go there. The crime rate has been growing steadily for decades but no one talks about it. I will not go there period.
it get spooky 💀
If you do go , be sure to use your constitutional carry rights , just in case .
Downtown Atlanta is not a safe place and you know why .
Growing steadily for decades 😂😂😂😂
I love how inner-city Atlanta folks feel the exact same way about the suburbs. We live in fear of the unknown. I just went to ATL Underground and while it was a ghost town, it was safe.
I remember shopping at underground Atlanta in late 90’s basically a huge flea market.
I graduated from high school in 1972 and went to work for Georgia Power Atlanta. We installed power all over Atlanta. At that time, 18 was the legal age to party. The Mad Hatter was the place to go. Chicks, Beer, Rock and Roll, and plenty of $ex, most of all, Penny Beer Night. This was back in the days when downtown was safe. If you're from Georgia it's called Atlanugh.
After watching this, I saw the Underground in its heyday. I joined the Navy, and I have only been back once since the late 1990s.
I left Georgia for the Mountains of NC, I return often, but it's good for me, now it's just to see family.
Sex, you say. Well, one of the reasons for Atlanta's downfall is that the sex trafficking has gotten to be a huge business, if not illegal.
Actually Chicago has an undergrad city 😳. It is somewhat forgotten but we used to play in it as children. We learned how to get into it and it used to go for miles
I’ve lived here since 1984 been down underground a couple times not a really nice place would not recommend.