Abandoned Places
Before you read this blog, you must note that I do not advocate any exploration of any of these places. Just because I was not caught/prosecuted/injured partaking in these adventures, does not mean you will be spared of such fate. Explore at your own risk.
My photo page on myspace is not entirely true. It was not in this cabin that I was born to a poor sharecropping family. Paw had rushed me down to the holler to the midwife who lived in a nicer shack. Seriously, this photo was snapped on one of my drives to nowhere. My "drives to nowhere" are long road trips down two lane highways with only a tentative destination in mind. These trips involve stops where nature has some pleasing view to offer, antique and junk stores full of oddities and abandoned places.
My love of abandoned places likely began when I was very young. A few times a year, my mom would load us kids up in the car and head south down I-75 to visit my grandmother in Georgia. As we made our way to Macon or Savannah, I recall staring out the car window at the dilapidated barns that existed at the mercy of nature. I wondered why they had been abandoned, what might still be inside of them and longed to explore their nooks and crannies.
These kinds of opportunities now present themselves. In the country or the city, abandoned places still intrigue me. Every empty place has a story. The huge empty hotel intrigues me just as much as the small forgotten cabin. When I happen upon one of these places, I sometimes respect the law and heed the "No Trespassing" warnings but sometimes I don't. I also have to consider the surroundings. Will my exploration efforts in fact be intruding on some mentally disturbed homeless person's living space? Is the structure sound enough to have human feet trod inside of it again? One who explores abandoned places must consider such things.
The Hospital- Perhaps my greatest find in my travels was an old hospital. It has ceased operation in the 1970s. I visited it at least three times (with friends) and found each trip interesting. The stainless steel fixtures still remained in the hospital cafeteria and much of the woodwork was still in place. On the top floor, the operating room's tile still had a gleam to it. One patient room still had the curtain that once wrapped around the bed still dangling there. Why in all the rooms, was this one curtain left behind? In the hallway there was an operating table that had been left behind. Something I noticed in this hospital was that there was no elevator. I imagined big hulking orderlies hoisting patients up and and down the staircases.
The Church- It was very obvious the owners of this place wanted nobody near it. I heeded the law and chose not to trespass. I could've easily been arrested or even got a round of buckshot in the rear.
Old Cabins- The old cabin pictured below was one in a row of two or three. They sat in the middle of the country and looked to have been long abandoned. Inside they were just one large open room with a fireplace. Was this once somebody's permanent home or only a place to give temporary refuge to migrant workers long, long ago? That is my friend Terry going inside to have a look. I soon followed.
Some well strung barbed wire kept me from entering this dilapidated homestead. I still see homes much like this one across Georgia where people continue to live, work and play. Why was this one left to the elements? I took the opportunity for a silly photo op. I am saying, "What happened to my house?"
Back to this particular cabin. I consider it one of my greatest finds. It sat on a small single lane road in middle Georgia. The place at one time had electricity but I could see no evidence of power lines ran to it. I walked behind it and saw the relics left by the person who once lived there. Beside the back door there still hung a mop and there was furniture still inside. The front doors were nailed shut but both back doors were open. I was about to venture inside when I heard movement. Was it some relic falling to the ground, some possum or raccoon threatened by my approach or some squatter rising to ensure my visit would be short? I didn't bother to find out and left quickly.
With the return of Spring I plan to resume my exploration efforts. There are still plenty of places I have in mind for my future exploration efforts. These places stand as sentinels to history we will never know, they are unappreciated by so many, yet they are loved by me.
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