When Gadara was declared an archaeological site, residents were asked to relocate. According to former resident Ahmad Alomari, they took the soul of the town with them.

Gadara is awaiting consideration for Unesco World Heritage status
Gadara is awaiting consideration for Unesco World Heritage status © Hemis/Alamy

....

In the 1960s, Jordan’s Department of Antiquities declared Gadara an archaeological site; it’s now awaiting consideration for Unesco World Heritage status. Stoves and other elements not considered to be of cultural and historic value were removed, and the homes built by Alomari’s community fell into disrepair. “The Department of Antiquities forbade us from doing maintenance on our homes,” he said.

“The first excavation I saw was in the late 1970s,” Alomari recalled. Shortly thereafter, Gadara’s 1,500 residents were told to relocate. 

Some families moved out almost immediately, purchasing modern homes in nearby Jordanian cities like Um Qais. “Life wasn’t easy in the village,” [Alomari] explained. “We had to bring water from the well, wash clothes by hand. It was dusty. There were snakes and scorpions. And we only had electricity for a few hours each evening, provided by a generator.”

...