The abandoned skeleton of Joseph & Feiss looms over the motorists along Interstate 90 in Cleveland, Ohio, a derelict that has only been a little more than a decade in the making.
Category: Explorations
On a melancholy February afternoon, I embarked on a sojourn through the knobs of Kentucky, meandering along the back roads that whisper of bygone eras.
The Penn-Lincoln Hotel is an abandoned hotel in Wilkinsburg, Pennsylvania that is scheduled for demolition.
In the face of nature’s relentless fury, humankind has long sought to erect bulwarks against the ravages of floodwaters, a testament to our indomitable spirit and ingenuity. One such endeavor, the Turtle Creek Flood Control Project, stands as a shining example of this ceaseless struggle.
Years ago, I often went to the mammoth Huntington Mall in Barboursville, West Virginia. It was the largest shopping center in the largest in the state – and also its busiest. The mall was dated, coated with speckled brown tiles inside, ribbed paneling outside and other trendy lights and accessories that made this center a poster-child for the late 1970’s and early 1980’s.
The Cavanaugh Company was a hardware wholesale supply company that supplied cast iron pipe, corrugated pipe, road machinery, metallic paints, terra cotta, windows and fireproof doors, among many other items in Youngstown, Ohio.
The Frank Sherman Company was a former scrap metal dealer in Youngstown, Ohio that incorporated in 1947 and closed in 2001 after it was discovered that fraudulent transactions were occurring between the company and Valley Forge Inc. of Salem. Valley Forge had entered into an agreement to sell scrap metal produced from Valley Forge, which he was part owner, to the Frank Sherman Company for cash payments Swindell did not report as income. The Frank Sherman Company prepared false invoices, which did not bear the name of Swindell from Valley Forge.
Situated on the outskirts of Middletown, Ohio, the Harding-Jones Paper Company stood as a rare surviving vestige of early Ohio industry. This paper mill, predominantly under the ownership of the Harding and Jones families for generations, held a significant place in the annals of the state’s history. Its strategic location along the Miami-Erie Canal further underscored its importance.
A well known landmark for ruin, the Republic Rubber Company was located in Youngstown, Ohio and manufactured tires and hoses for the automotive and aerospace industries. At its peak, Republic employed 2,300 with a payroll of $4 million. The company merged with several companies over the years and nearly came to an end in 1978. Several employees bought out the remains of the business and formed Republic Hose Manufacturing, which lasted until 1989.
Cass, West Virginia is a company town that was constructed by the West Virginia Pulp and Paper Company (WVP&P) in 1901.
Wean United was located in Youngstown, Ohio. It was a manufacturer of equipment that was used to process and finish flat rolled steel, steel and iron rolls, iron castings, coupling boxes, annealing bottoms and boxes and steam hydraulic forging presses. It was equipped to produce castings and rolls weighing up to 100 tons.
The Wick Building is located at 34 West Federal Street at North Phelps Street in Youngstown, Ohio. Completed in 1910, the 13-story building was designed by the renowned architect Daniel Burnham into the Chicago School and Romanesque-revival architectural style. It was the city’s tallest building at the time of its erection and was home to the Wick Brothers Trust Company among other Wick family enterprises.
Chicago, St. Louis & New Orleans Railroad’s 34-mile Paducah-East Cairo line was constructed in 1902-03 between East Cairo and Paducah, Kentucky and abandoned in 1943 after a wooden trestle burned.
When I attended the University of Kentucky, I traveled the back roads of my state – a lot. On one of my excursions, I came across the abandoned Buckeye School. Back then, its lot was filled with relics of the past, namely automobiles. Jaguar, Jeep, Land Rover and Volkswagen carcasses lay scattered around the several acre lot. But I never went inside the actual school, and despite my vows to find the owner of the property – I graduated from school and moved away.
St. Andrew Catholic Church was located in the Avondale neighborhood of Cincinnati, Ohio, and was in operation from 1875 until its merger in 2010.
Over the summer, I was able to venture into the closed St. Mark Catholic Church in Cincinnati, Ohio to photograph more of its intricate elements, and to follow up on two prior visits. Located in the Evanston neighborhood, the parish was dedicated to the Missionaries of the Precious Blood, and during its first fifty years, there were 24 priestly vocations, which included one bishop, two religious brothers and 36 religious sisters.
A while back, I ventured to Krypton, Kentucky to visit a small closed surface coal mining operation. It is located along the CSX Eastern Kentucky Subdivision, which was formerly part of the Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad.
The Frenchburg Presbyterian College in Frenchburg, Kentucky was the first high school in Menifee County and offered a broad education for 50 years. The facility closed in May 1957 after serving 500 students and 30 staff. After closure, the buildings became home to a nursing home and retirement facility that operated for a few years, and later, a Boy’s Rehabilitation Center by the Commonwealth’s Child Welfare Agency. Most of the buildings are used as residences or as offices.