When you search for this particular street address on Google Maps, you’ll encounter a sight unlike any other on the platform.
While the internet is full of eerie content, it’s unexpected to find something chilling on a site that typically helps us navigate our travels.
There is one location that is shrouded in mystery, and the reason it’s blurred out is quite unsettling.
Google Maps hasn’t fallen victim to hacking. Instead, there’s a dark rationale for why this location is hidden from the public view.
Typically, street viewing this area would reveal charming houses with inviting porches and well-kept lawns.
However, amidst these homes, there’s a conspicuous blurred area that stands out.
While it is possible to request that your property be obscured on Google Maps through the app, this isn’t the case for 2208 Seymour Avenue.
After entering your address, you can click ‘report a problem,’ choose ‘request blurring,’ and select ‘my home’ to initiate the process.
From there, you can specify the area to be blurred and confirm your request with your email address.
While this is a helpful feature, it does not explain the situation at 2208 Seymour Avenue.
This house, located in a Cleveland, Ohio suburb, conceals a harrowing history beneath its ordinary exterior.
Once owned by Ariel Castro, this property was the site of a series of abductions.
Between 2002 and 2004, Castro kidnapped three women—Amanda Berry, Gina DeJesus, and Michelle Knight—and held them captive in his home for ten years.
The women suffered severe abuse until 2013, when Berry managed to escape and reach a neighbor after Castro neglected to secure the door.
“Help me. I’m Amanda Berry,” she exclaimed to the neighbor.
“I’ve been kidnapped and I’ve been missing for 10 years and I’m — I’m here. I’m free now.”
After the women were rescued, authorities uncovered the grim conditions inside the four-bedroom house.
The captives were given buckets for basic sanitation, and restraints were discovered throughout the property.
On August 7, 2013, the house was demolished, allowing the community to begin healing from the trauma.
Castro received a 1,000-year prison sentence after admitting to 937 counts of kidnapping and rape.
He took his own life a month following his sentencing.