Commercial Avenue at 10th Street and again at 20th Street. These buildings are gone now, including the old neon sign. In fact, the entire "historic downtown" along Commerical Avenue has been eradicated, leaving block after block of empty lots. There's no better symbolism for the fate of this city.


It would appear that Commercial Avenue is under construction to fix some broken pavement. It's hard to tell, because the only evidence is cracked pavement, piles of material, and a street closure. This could be quasi-permanent.


Heading south along the eastern floodwall on Ohio Street. There's not much left for the pumping station to protect.


More views of the Custom House from the back (Poplar Street) instead of the front (Washington Avenue). The post office is behind.


Looking south on Commercial Avenue from 14th Street. Probably not much has gone on since Glynn's Livery. Maybe they were in business with the Saddlery on Ohio Street.


It's hard to tell if any of these houses (and car) are abandoned. Sure, they look that way, but I could believe someone still tries to live here.


The opposite question: this does not at all look abandoned, but can you actually believe it's inhabited?


Until the ivy finishes reclaiming this building, someone is probably living inside.


This building would be condemned in most towns, but it's a legitimate business location in Cairo. It's sure cheaper than a building in good condition.


Heading south on Poplar Street. The bombed-out church at 16th Street is just gone now, but the abandoned store at 20th Street lingers on.


The school was closed in 2010 due to declining attendance and rising costs. There's only one elementary school left. To give you an idea, just 145 students had to switch. That's about half of a normal elementary school (with two classes per grade).


An entire block of buildings, useful storefronts in the riverboat heyday and with extra time and money invested for appearances, has been abandoned for decades. They're no longer Famous for the original reason.


Wonder what the last show at this theatre was. Or the last commerce handled by the Chamber.


I wonder what it takes to get a building torn down and removed. Maybe that was only done until a certain time, and then the city stopped caring and left the rest to rot in place. Sometime after my 2012 visit, but before the 2015 coverage by Google Maps, this question was answered by the removal of just about every old building. For the record, Fat Boys didn't make it.


Considering that Cairo is predominantly African-American, one would expect that if any building is maintained in good condition, it would be the A.M.E. church. And it does look quite a bit better than the others, but that's no indication as to whether it's still in use or just happened to be constructed better.


This one looks fine but appears to be closed.


The Junior High School is still very much in use, at the corner of Pine and 24th Streets. Neither the school nor the signs in front have been updated since the 1960s, but at least it has all been maintained in working order.


As I've noted elsewhere, there is one actually nice neighborhood of Cairo, toward the upper west. This gazebo off of M.L.K., Jr. Avenue on 27th Street is an indication that I'm getting there, but there's clearly a transition zone.

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