Tag: Abandoned

October 2, 2014 / Explorations

Ghost towns along the New River in West Virginia are aplenty but what makes these three unique is that they lay within the New River Gorge National River. Prior to the creation of the national park in the late 1970s, much of the land was used for the production of coal and coke. Small, company-owned towns were developed for the miners and their families, and when those mines closed out—so did the communities.

September 26, 2014 / News

Eric Frein, who stands accused of killing Cpl. Bryon Dickson and injuring Trooper Alex Douglass outside a state police barrack in Blooming Grove, Pennsylvania, might be hiding in an abandoned resort located in the Pocono Mountains in the northeastern part of Pennsylvania.

September 16, 2014 / Explorations

I’ve been sworn to secrecy about the location of these vintage electric streetcars. But I cannot resist my excitement about these old trolleys that were once transportation staples in the United States and elsewhere.

September 15, 2014 / Explorations

Susan Orlean, of the New Yorker, once said that living in a rural region exposes the body and mind to marvelous things: the natural world, the “particular texture” of small-town life, and the “exhilarating experience” of open space. It’s not difficult to argue that. Located in a remote town in the hills of eastern Kentucky, Hazel Green Academy, set among the hardwoods and abutting flowing pastures, opened to students in 1880. The private school offered a good education to the under-served and boasted low tuition rates and a stepping stone to college and “a higher sphere in life.” The school’s curriculum…

August 28, 2014 / Explorations

While the demise of rural life in many areas is overstated, there are many areas that are in long-term decline, brought about by sustained job losses and single-focus economies. In Cannel City, Kentucky’s case, it was coal and timber.

August 26, 2014 / Explorations
August 8, 2014 / Explorations
August 8, 2014 / News

A minor fire in at the Waldo Hotel in Clarksburg, West Virginia yesterday evening did no damage to the historic building.

July 20, 2014 / Explorations

Exploring a disused military ammunition depot brings back thoughts of the Walking Dead. Perhaps it is because I have been binge watching the post-apocalyptic horror series on television, or rather that I have a fascination with post-human interactions. And because of that, I went through my archives and found some great images that I have never shared that evokes that resemblance.

July 6, 2014 / Explorations

Much thanks to everyone who came out to Old Crow Distillery along Glenns Creek in Kentucky! The weather was perfect – partly cloudy skies and mild temperatures provided the perfect exploring experience.

July 1, 2014 / News
June 27, 2014 / News
June 23, 2014 / Explorations

Revisiting an old friend at a whiskey bar, I was reminded of a Mark Twain quote. Just like the old friend, I repaid another visit to Old Crow Distillery.

June 12, 2014 / Explorations

Champion Paper, which later became Champion International Paper, International Paper and then SMART Papers, was a paper mill in Hamilton, Ohio. Once employing 5,000 and boasting the largest facilities in the nation, the factory was the bread-and-butter of the working-class city.

June 2, 2014 / Explorations

In the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains in Kentucky, there is a small community called Peyton’s Store. At the center of this rural area stands a truly unique house.

May 30, 2014 / Explorations

The Holy Trinity Roman Catholic Church is located near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and was host to a Slovak Catholic congregation. Designed by F.W. Wilson of McKeesport in the Gothic Revival architectural style, the building’s stance on the side of a hill, with its 150-foot tower, was to evoke a commanding presence over the Monongahela River valley.

May 20, 2014 / News
May 15, 2014 / Explorations

Listed on the National Register of Historic Places due to its amazing architecture, the Woodward Avenue Presbyterian Church in Detroit needs to be saved.

May 11, 2014 / Explorations

Waveland was constructed between 1797 and 1800 in Danville, Kentucky. After being abandoned for several decades, it is slated for restoration.

May 6, 2014 / Explorations

Nestled amidst the storied distilleries that comprise the Kentucky Bourbon Trail lies Old Crow Distillery, a once-proud producer of such esteemed whiskey brands as Old Grand Dad, Bourbon DeLuxe, and Sunny Brook. Alas, the distillery’s operations fell silent in 1987 when it succumbed to a buy-out from the formidable Jim Beam corporation, its competitor.