Exploring the Forgotten City that America Abandoned - Cairo, Illinois 

We got a history lesson, a geography lesson, a total solar eclipse and a ghost town explore. A pretty good way to spend part of my Sunday evening.

I was born in Cairo in 1957. Only lived there till 1966 then moved to Chicago. We always pronounced it Care-oh. It was still a nice town when we lived there. Thanks for the nice video. It's really sad and I haven't been there since 1978. I still want to go there and see it again. My house is still there and being lived in.

Years ago I had this fantasy of getting a horde of people to buy up property in Cairo and turn it into a sort of Mecca for Art & Music. No investment groups, venture capitalists or holding companies; just like minded individuals owning their own slice of the pie, a Mayberry for punks! Start a community owned trust and refurbish that Gem theater into a concert venue. The whole thing about the confluence of the rivers is awesome!

My wife and I just happened to drive through Cairo in December of last year, which was kind of jarring when you aren't expecting it. We immediately thought of your channel. When returned home a week later we drove though again and took some photos. Got a great shot of the dilapidated town sign. So glad you went there and thanks for the great history lesson.

Thank you for the great detail view of the GEM theater. I bought the player piano/pipe organ from it back in the 1970's The theater was nice looking at that time. So sad to see it in such a state as it is not. I have been in the theater pipe organ restoration field for fifty years and see so much of this now. Thanks again for you video.

I've seen many abandoned towns, but this one really breaks my heart. 😞

There's still a small population of ~1600 there. But Cairo had a host of issues; losing the water trade, flooding, levees that saved the town but cost it's view, and racial tensions that drove people and business away. A lot of small towns hoping to be big one day got hit by one or two of these challenges, but 3-4 will cause the near ghost town Cairo has become.

Cairo reminds me of Centralia, PA before all the brush took over where the buildings were. I don't know if anyone mentioned earlier that a Livery is a place where horses were stabled. Just to let you know, the coal furnace in the caboose was to provide heat to the conductor. Thanks for posting this interesting video and history of this town.

🇺🇸🇬🇧Hello from old London Town, uk Devin, Just a quick note to say how very impressed I am by this superb video. It’s cultural and historic value to America but also to humanity on the whole is so very significant and that significance will continue and grow more and more as time passes. The story of that once great town should be a warning to modern day America - and the world in general - if we can’t get along and share the places we live then NO one will and we ALL lose out. The Eclipse just adds to the melancholy and special atmosphere of the town and your sympathetic respectful narration is to be commended. Im particularly impressed by the respect you showed the unknown unfortunate person who called that ruin for sale a “home”. Well done Devin, a very special peace of work - I have instantly subscribed and will be rabbit hole-ing the rest of your content at another time. Bravo 👌👏

At <a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="1413">23:33</a> AF & AM is the abbreviation for 'Ancient Free and Accepted Masons'. The cornerstone indicates that Cairo Lodge is no 237 on the register of lodges under the Grand Lodge of Illinois, and they still meet at a small venue elsewhere in the city.

That is where Huck Finn was always trying to get to

What a nice tour of a tragic place. It's surreal seeing the contrast of decaying buildings in one part and actively preserved mansions - Cairo has not quite flatlined yet.

There's at least one "bright spot" in Cairo's history... It was the home of a man named Ray Butts. He invented and manufactured a guitar amplifier called The EchoSonic. It was a key part to the sound of early Rock n Roll. The 30 watt tube amplifier had a tape operated echo unit built into it's cabinet. Stars like Chet Atkins, Merle Travis, Carl Perkins, Luther Perkins and most notably Scotty Moore (Elvis Presley's lead guitar player in the Sun Records days) all had them... Along with numerous other great Rockabilly and Blues Artists of the early and mid 1950s. Mr. Butts also designed guitar pickups for the Gretsch Guitar Company. So I suppose that bright spot is that if it weren't for Cairo being where it is, and Ray Butts not living there, modern music as we know it might sound incredibly different.

Thanks for this. What’s left of the town is unsettling…it’s like looking at a dead body. Just sadness and devastation.

It is refreshing to see that a youngster can still be interested in real things...thanks for sharing!

Great presentation of the history here - thanks for putting this together

your style & editing is unmatched.

This video is worthy of the History Channel- it was so interesting, sad and amazing all at the same time!

How strange to see an entire town with no residents. Interesting. Thanks, Devin

I urge any idealists here to not get any ideas about turning this place around. This place is effed legally, bureaucratically, politically, culturally, socially, and traumatically. For every person that would love for Cairo to succeed, there are 750 people that would like to see you fail. And some of those 750 will happily take your money while pretending they want you to succeed.

Glenn Zimmerman - Egyptian. The Murphysboro Paving Brick Co. made ... Egyptian. The Murphysboro Paving Brick Co. made bricks for many cities including Orlando Fl., the. Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and the ...

Great video and even growing up not far from this town I never knew much more than the decline of people and jobs. I’ve been wanting to revisit it and see the beautiful old homes before they’re gone. Great videography!! Thank you!

I am a lifelong Illinois resident and of course have heard about Cairo's very violent and bloody past. It's just unbelievable how much violence there was over skin color! There are earthquakes in that area as well. It is right on the New Madrid fault line. I've never been there but have always wanted to go see it for myself so thank you for this video!

Also - during flood season in 2011, the city was allowed to flood extensively to spare farmers who's land was in the designated flood zone - the city was found expendable cuz, well, the tensions of the 60's still percolate.

Wow, I used to go through this town once a week working for my grandfather when I was 12-14, that was '75-'78 and it looked a whole lot better then. We used to post billboards in that area and there used to be a restaurant there where you could get 5 hamburgers for $1.

Great video again Devin! I love the concept of giving some more info about the history of the object. The fortunously location of Cairo, lying in the middel of nowhere, protects it against the spay-can idiots and vandals that too often just vandalise these objects. Only in the theatre I saw some tags. For the rest even the streetlights were, in majority, still all there.

That actually has the potential of being revived into an awesome vacation spot

That are some beautiful street lights.

You offer so much in one video. Very in depth and full of information I greatly appreciate a RU-vidr who puts this much effort into their content.

I think it is so sad. That once a populated city is now abandoned. Like the silence is deafening. It should be filled with smiling faces.

I remember in about the year 2000 maybe 2001, I was contracted to put a "radio station translator" on the air very near Cairo. It was for a religious station. A "radio station translator" is simply a reception of the original station being re-broadcast at much lower power on a different frequency. I am a broadcast engineer. Anyway, I was not met with any love from the remaining people in Cairo. To them, I was an outsider and was clearly not welcome. I was met several times with very angry folks wondering what I was doing. I told them what I was doing and why I was there and for the most part they were fine with it. I haven't been back in years. If you visit, in my opinion, be prepared. I was working on the outskirts of this town and I was not welcomed then. Just my 2 cents!

Really appreciate all the effort that goes into your explores & video edits. They don’t go unnoticed. Thanks Devin - hope your wrist is ok! 😀✌🏼

We were so close to going to Cairo for the eclipse! We ended up on the side of the road next to a beautiful field of yellow flowers near Goreville!! Did you see lots of eagles and hawks gliding around when you were there?? We all remarked that the birds were so amazing that day!!

AF & AM stands for "Ancient Free & Accepted Masons". This lodge is still chartered and active there in Cairo. They have a website. I'm a Freemason myself.

What an interesting location. It’s a shame it fell into such disrepair. Those mansions are still stunning though. Another fantastic video mate.

I had no idea about Cairo. I live in southern Indiana and I'm so saddened by this. Thank you for telling this story.

I like the crackle in the intro. It's quite nostalgic. I remember mama playing those 78s back in the day before radio.

A Livery is what planes are painted up in, a Livery (Live-ery) like the building here is a stable for horses, so it's an old place from the times of horses riding down the street. They also sold tac and equipment for horses and carriages, etc.

What's up Devin. As again, your video does not disappoint. Keep on outdoing your video with each new one. I really enjoy your video's and content overall. You are the best at this exploration stuff. All the best for your future endeavors! Much luck and good vibes!

This was amazing! Better than the documentaries i watched in High School and College! Awesome job as always! Perfect narration, use of old footage and mixed in with how the town looks today! Keep up the amazing work. Always look forward to a new vid of yours! 👍🏼

What a lovely idea of videoing your wonderful countrys history and presenting the many derelict properties abandoned so long ago. It is so very sad to see them in such a bad state of decay and falling down. Once that place would have been so busy with people visiting the stores and the cinema. R.I.P. the city of Cairo.

Thank you so much for sharing! I appreciate that you shared some history of the area in the beginning, it was like a documentary. Thanks for all the time spent making this video!

Attacking firemen shows how the activists didn’t really care who they hurt.

Ive drove through that town on several occasions.. it literally looks like something out a post apocalyptic movie!... this town is the prime example of what economic decline looks like ... once the river trade ended it ended the town as well and not to mention the town floods periodically

Nice explore that. Enjoyed the mix of history and walk arounds etc.

I rewatch this video over And i even liked it better the second time around Fireman 🔥🔥🔥👍

Love the format and the history. Great journey!

You have a knack for making complex topics accessible. Keep it up!

Thank you so much!! This was fascinating.

This was quite enjoyable to watch. HOWEVER, I heard several non-standard pronunciations of the town's name. (My mother was born in Cairo, and my parents met and married there; I visited several times as a youngster and have been correcting pronunciations of the town name. The song at the head of the piece pronounced the name a K-Eye-ro. That's the city in Egypt. You called it at least once as Kay-ro. That is a Southern pronunciation. The correct, non-Southern pronunciation is Care-oh. The county name is Alexandria (not Alexander as shown on one mural panel). There was once a delta at the confluence of of the Ohio and Mississippi, hence the connection to Alexandria and Cairo, Egypt. My great-aunt Eunice once owned and operated the Po' Boy's Market on the main drag, and my late aunt Elizabeth lived in the town her entire adult life - that's how I know that the former delta became, after landfill, Fort Defiance Park. She passed in the late 1980's.

Another brilliant vid. Thanks for making it.

This town had so much potential and in the end became another tragic case of urban decline. Great tour.

Excellent as usual love the history gives it life

Amazing the Red Velvet Curtain is at least partially still in tack and portions of it still in their original place to be pulled back for the beginning of the many movies once shown in the building.

Thoroughly enjoyed this! Professionally done with appropriate music to accent scenes. Thank you for all the work you put into this video for us!! I'd never get to see this on my own, so appreciate this tour. 😍👍👍

Just got foot note. I couldn't find the original artist via Google search to the opening song. However the artist for his time is a very popular artist of his time. The name of the song is: When you drop off At Cairo, Illinois in 1916 Vaudeville songs by an artist by the Name of Billy Murray of his time. Much love from the Detroit metropolitan area. History will make us a mature nation as time goes on. ❤❤❤ Love all out there!

There’s something very haunting about abandoned building. But an entire town, WOW, So sad. I’ve seen a lot of your videos, this one by fat is the best of them all. You did your homework and gave us a great history lesson. The eclipse was cool thanks for sharing. Keep up the good work.

What a great documentary again, Devin! I never knew about this place. Always nice how you bring the history in a respectful way. Mqybe go back at night once in the future 😅

This was a fascinating explore!

The Maxine Shoppe, 8th Street was a women's clothing store that was still operating during the thirties and forties.

One of my favourite explores so far :) I appreciate the historical voice lent to the video as well as a total eclipse, lol. It was sad to see the ruins of a once promising city, but I'm glad there are still folks who love it and call it home.

Please find more of those little towns, I love them, very interesting. Watching from the UK, always enjoy your explorations🙂

I'm new to the channel. Thank you for sharing this stuff that I would never see in my lifetime if it wasn't for people like you, that have huge balls to go out there and explore this stuff. I really hope your armed when you're out here alone? Just because you never know. I look forward to watching some of your older videos on the channel. This is very sad to see. Whole towns just decrepid and pretty much shut down because nobody gives any of the businesses any business anymore. That's happening throughout the US due to internet shopping too. You see a lot of old stores just disappearing and it's sad.

Thanks for posting this! New subscriber to your channel, can’t wait to binge watch. This stuff is right up up my alley!❤️❤️❤️👏👏

Your videos never disappoint.

I loved this, thank you

Great Video. YOU DO THESE ABANDONED CITIES VERY WELL. KEEP ON ! Thank You BE SAFE. ❤😊✌️

Sad and fascinating history! Those brick pavers stamped Egyptian, were made by the Egyptian Brick Paving Co or Murphysboro Paving Brick Company. Awesome Explore

LOVE ALL YOUR EXPLORES!

Cairo is a 'former great city' not only because of the troubles you mentioned above, but because of repeated flooding by the poisonous waters of the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers.

Amazing video, so very well done! Thank you

Oil stove in the caboose. Coal had been out for a while. Had one like this in my boyhood home.

Three things... love your videos. I am glad you included the history. We need to know about these things so we don't repeat it. Finally, as a fan of historic movie palaces I now want to find out more about the Gem. Typically anything built before the talkies did have records synched up to the picture or an organ. Also, you are correct in that the space in front of the stage was for an orchestra. Some old movie theatres have an organ below that comes up from the floor (Tampa Threatre in Tampa Fl is ab example.)

Absolutely interesting video. Thank you❤

Love places like this. Great documentation 👍

I can remember when it was full of people. There was a burger shack close to the train bridge going to 57.

Wow nice exploration. Ty

Awsome explore very good job loved it

Well done. I look forward to more of your videos!

Thank you for this video. Today to many don’t want to hear about history and are therefore doomed to repeat its mistakes. Please continue the good work.

Was literally just in Cairo a couple weeks before you were, walked around a little bit and man it's one of the saddest cities I've seen outside of the lower mississippi delta and middle appalachia. Great vid!

Thanks for this video. Good choice of music for this.

A livery was a place in the 19 th century to rent horses wagon's ect, to "store horses overnite, to rest , groom or feed , water ect..

This makes me wish I lived in a Victorian house, I love the architecture so much!

I really enjoy your videos! Just subscribed 😎✌️

A train is not controlled from the caboose

Enjoyed that DEF ! Thx

Great information sir, thanks

one of the best videos of cairo, sure wish it could come back to all its glory...very sad

Loved the video!! While You were filming the eclipse on top the levy there was a vertical metal bar that "crossed" one of the parking curbs on the ground and it made a perfect shape of a cross. 😊 Im not really religious, but that was pretty neat.

Great video. Lifelong IL resident (though at the other end) and i learned a lot. It must be heartbreaking for those left in Cairo (and all the other Midwest & rust belt towns that have fallen by the wayside).

That was very interesting. What great editing and I loved the music

Thanks for the History lesson. Being raised in Florida I was Not aware of the Unrest in this small town

Wow what an interesting place to catch the eclipse! You’d think the location itself would be advantageous for some kind of industry.. even historical tourism.. but it seems like it’s haunted by its past.

I like abandoned places more than thriving ones. Something about no people that’s refreshing. The peace and quiet alone, I think you get my drift. Ever go to Pitcher Ohio?

Thanks for the video good know about the past i enjoyed watching

Very interesting. Thank you!

The Gem Theater was built 1910 burnt and rebuilt twice and closed 1978. About 900 seats. Now gutted. Surprised to see it was equipped with early platter film feed and take up system <a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="1286">21:26</a> There was some major federal funding in the mid '90s to early 2000s which resulted in some partial renovation to the entry foyer, marquee etc, but to no avail as it never came to any use. It was donated to the council before the grants. When you see photos of the street-scape around the Gem in the 1940s and 1960s its hard to believe it is the same town.

Thank you. That was interesting!

I should explore this part of Illinois since I live here