Rochester was once one of America's great industrial cities — the birthplace of Eastman Kodak, the "Flour City" long before Minneapolis took the title, and home to the only subway ever built in New York State outside of New York City. The decline of Kodak left behind an extraordinary industrial landscape: abandoned factories, forgotten institutional buildings and a graffiti-covered subway tunnel hidden beneath downtown.
Why Rochester Is a Hidden Gem for Abandoned Buildings & Urban Exploration
Rochester's urbex landscape is shaped by two industrial eras — the 19th-century flour milling boom along the Genesee River and the 20th-century Kodak empire. Both left behind extraordinary built infrastructure: a canal bed turned into a subway, film and optics factories and a network of brick industrial buildings along the river that forms one of the most concentrated post-industrial urbex environments in Upstate New York.
1. Rochester Abandoned Subway – 1927-1956 Tunnel Built in the Old Erie Canal Bed, Covered in Decades of Graffiti Under Broad Street (Known Location)
When the Erie Canal was rerouted around Rochester in the early 20th century, the city turned its empty bed into a subway. Completed in 1927, the Rochester Subway became the only subway ever built in New York State outside of New York City — but it lasted less than three decades: passenger service ended in 1956 as car ownership exploded, and the last freight trains ran in the 1970s. Some sections have since been filled in or built over, but the longest surviving stretch still runs beneath the Broad Street Bridge, where the old canal aqueduct carries the tunnel over the Genesee River. Its arched concrete walls have become one of the most remarkable underground graffiti galleries in America, layered with murals and tags from generations of street artists. The tunnel belongs to the city — entering without permission is trespassing, and parts are dark, wet and uneven.
🔗 Learn more: Untapped Cities – Abandoned Rochester Subway
2. Abandoned Optics & Film Factory – Early 1900s Brick Plant from Rochester's Imaging Boom, Production Floors Left Behind (Exclusively on Our Map)
Rochester was the world capital of imaging for most of the 20th century — not only Kodak, but dozens of smaller companies making lenses, camera parts, photo paper and chemicals for the giant. This early 1900s brick factory was one of those suppliers, and it closed as the film era came to an end. Inside, the production floors still hold long workbenches, rusted machinery mounts, darkroom-style windowless rooms once used for light-sensitive work and stacks of old paperwork in the offices. Tall industrial windows filter soft light across the silent halls — a fascinating glimpse into the industry that made Rochester famous around the world.
🔗 Also read: Top 5 Best Abandoned Places in the USA →
Abandoned Places Map New York 🇺🇸
Explore All 590+ Locations →3. Abandoned Mid-Century Hospital Tower – Multi-Story Brick Institution with Empty Wards and Nurse Call Systems Frozen in Place, Rochester Area (Exclusively on Our Map)
A multi-story brick hospital tower from the mid-20th century, when Upstate New York built large institutions to house and treat thousands of patients. Closed as care moved to smaller, modern facilities, it still holds long ward corridors lined with metal-frame doors, nurse call systems frozen in place, peeling institutional green paint and day rooms with sweeping views over the city from the upper floors. Few abandoned buildings in Western New York offer this combination of scale, height and eerie atmosphere — one of the best spots in the Rochester area for institutional photography.
4. Abandoned Genesee River Warehouse District – Early 1900s Brick Warehouses with Original Loading Infrastructure, West Side Rochester (Exclusively on Our Map)
A cluster of early 1900s brick warehouses along the Genesee River corridor — cast iron loading dock hardware still in place, original wooden freight elevator mechanisms visible inside and river-facing facades with their industrial lettering faded to ghost signs on the brick. Rochester's west side industrial corridor grew rapidly in the early 20th century to support the milling trade and then the Kodak ecosystem; this complex was bypassed by redevelopment and left frozen in industrial amber.
5. Abandoned Rochester Bowling Alley – Mid-Century Recreational Complex with Original Lanes and Scoring Systems Still in Place (Exclusively on Our Map)
A mid-century bowling alley closed when it was no longer profitable — the original hardwood lanes still intact under decades of dust, pin-setting machine housings still in position above the lane ends and vintage scoring consoles still mounted at every lane. Rochester's mid-century leisure businesses served the city's enormous industrial workforce during Kodak's peak decades; when the jobs disappeared, many of them followed. This complex is one of the most complete mid-century bowling alleys left in Western New York.
Safety Tips for Urban Exploration in Rochester
- Subway tunnel: the tunnel is dark, wet and uneven, with standing water in places — bring several light sources and never go alone
- Old factories: former film and photo plants may contain chemical residues — never touch containers or powders and wear a proper mask
- Upstate New York winters: freeze-thaw cycles are extreme — avoid upper floors in brick buildings after winter or heavy rain
- Never explore alone — always bring at least one other person and let someone know your location
The urbex code applies everywhere: "Take nothing but photographs, leave nothing but footprints."
❓ FAQ – Abandoned Places in Rochester
What is the most famous abandoned place in Rochester?
The Rochester Abandoned Subway — a tunnel built in the old Erie Canal bed, completed in 1927 and closed to passengers in 1956. Its longest surviving stretch runs beneath the Broad Street Bridge, and its walls have become one of the most extraordinary underground graffiti canvases in America.
What happened to Kodak in Rochester?
Eastman Kodak once employed around 60,000 people in the Rochester area. As digital photography wiped out the film market, the company cut jobs and demolished or sold dozens of buildings before filing for bankruptcy in 2012. Its former Kodak Park campus is now Eastman Business Park, an active industrial park where Kodak still operates alongside other companies — but the decline left many smaller suppliers and factories abandoned across the city.
Why does Rochester have an abandoned subway?
The Rochester Subway was built in the 1920s in the former Erie Canal bed after the canal was rerouted around the city. By the 1950s, car ownership had exploded and ridership collapsed; passenger service ended in 1956. Part of the tunnel was never filled in, leaving it as one of the most famous abandoned places in New York State.
🎯 Summary
Rochester's abandoned buildings tell the story of one of America's greatest corporate declines — Kodak's fall from the world's dominant photography company to bankruptcy, after a century in which an entire city grew around imaging and flour. From a graffiti-covered subway in the old Erie Canal bed to forgotten film factories, hospitals and bowling alleys, each of these 5 abandoned places in Rochester captures what happens when a city's industries disappear. All of them are selected from our Abandoned Places Map USA — 5,000+ GPS locations across the United States.
