See Inside the Historic Majestic Theater in Illinois, Now in Ruin

There is so much history in this East St. Louis, Illinois theater, but the building itself is all but gone now. What used to be one of the most special buildings in the St. Louis area is now almost completely in ruin.

If you're somehow not familiar with The Majestic Theater in East St. Louis, Illinois, it was built and opened in October of 1928. It's glory days would end when it closed in the 1960's and it was made a part of the National Register of Historic Places in 1985. Somehow, it was allowed to fall into disrepair and decay ever since. This walkthrough from last year by urban explorers shows this once-grand theater is now only a shadow of its former self.

I know it takes incredible amounts of money to restore a building like this and am not naive about how difficult it can be to come up with those funds, but how in the world did the East St. Louis community not find a way to rally to save this theater? It's beyond sad and I can't imagine the building will survive that much longer. Such a sad waste of what used to be some of the richest history in the St. Louis area.