7. Manhattan Detention Complex or “The Tombs”
Some windowless buildings are not intentionally designed to be scary and imposing, but the ominousness of the Manhattan Detention Complex is intentional. Many New Yorkers know this building as “The Tombs,” which has become a mainstay in cop dramas set in New York. The complex has appeared on shows like Law and Order and Blue Bloods.
The building is almost windowless apart from thin slits cut into its dark stone facade. The building is the fourth and most recent iteration of Manhattan’s “House of Detention,” a phrase commonly associated with detention centers in the city. In 2020, the facility announced it would close as part of a larger push to move the city’s prison population into safer and more modern facilities.