Just finished up the Abandoned in the Ozarks Calendar for 2018 just follow this link to get yours! Photos from across the Ozarks places like Galena, Protem, Cane Hill, Brighton, Greenfield and Bona to name a few. It’s a collection of photos I’ve taken featuring abandoned and endangered buildings that due to Mother Nature, lack of funds or care and soon will be lost to time forever.
It’s choked full of 12 months of abandoned goodness.
On this trip I was lucky enough to have a running mate, my son Jake. I am hoping to instill my love of Ozarks history into him, even if I have to beat it into him. He seems to enjoy the abandoned side of the adventure so it isn’t going to be too hard. We traveled south of Cassville on Hwy 86 to our destination the Eagle Rock Motel. From what I see in the architecture it was a 1950’s-60’s design, low slung with a canopy as most of those motels were. I can’t find much information on the subject of the Eagle Rock Motel aside from this excerpt from The Barry County Museum.
“In 1909 some of the men here got jobs cutting railroad ties for the railroad coming in. The ties were cut and slid down the bluff on White River (the bluff we now call the Tie Slide across the road from the Eagle Rock Motel). They were floated down the river to Branson where the ties were sold.
The late 1800’s and early 1900’s were not all hard work and no play. On Saturday nights the local people would take turns having dances and parties at each other’s homes. One Saturday night they would go to John Munsey’s home and do the two-step and then the next Saturday night to Bartolomew Stringer’s house (Vernon and Johnny Stringer’s great-grandfather), which was reported to have 83 people there. Can you imagine that many people in those tiny homes back then?” For the complete article click here. I was lucky to run across Fields Photo in Cassville. Fields sure documented Barry County, lucky for everyone they kept those records.
Lets get to the trip, When we got to Eagle Rock Motel it was the entrance to some homes that sat behind the motel. I know they would like to see the motel demolished and cleaned up. I was told that the owner hasn’t made a decision on what to do with the property but likely will expand an adjacent business onto the property. Who knows?
I’m sure the brochure would have read: “Your family can enjoy our clean modern pool”. Amazingly it really wasn’t in that bad of shape structurally. I bet the pumps are shot though.
The office walls were completely gone, but they are still serving a continental breakfast after 7:00A.M. in the dining room.
The lobby closes at 9:00 P.M. but if you need anything you can ring the bell at the entrance.
There are rooms on the back of the property if you need privacy and quiet.
We chose to stay on street side so we could overlook the pool and bypassing traffic.
We got a double but had to call for room service. Out of towels!
We always pack light. It’s just an overnight, I can wear the same pants but I need a change of shirts. Which I forgot but lucky me the previous occupants left one just my size.
Jesus saves, but he didn’t lift the lid.
A bit of a twist in this story, neighbors told me that the owners/operators of the motel divorced and the two continued to occupy the motel. The man moved from the adjacent house to a room in the motel. Don’t think I could do that, the tires were 225 I need 265.
Overall it was a fun trip…Thanks Jake, let’s do it again!
This structure left in Spencer, MO was first built in the 1920’s. Johnson Creek trickles under the old steel bridge, at one time many years ago Johnson Mill was on the banks of Johnson Creek. In later years a store was built on the site of the old mill by Mr. Spencer. In 1868 a post office was in place and the settlement of Spencer began.
When Route 66 came through it brought new life to the town in the 1920s. Travelers came through headed off to California or might have been soldiers on Greyhound buses headed off to boot camps during the war time. However nothing major ever really materialized for Spencer with the addition of the then new Route 66 and eventually it’s nothing more than a ghost town.
Within the first few decades, tractor use was slow to catch on. Yet once farmers realized the benefits that could be had in tractor-driven farming, popularity soared. There was no need for cumbersome manual labor when a simple machine like a tractor could do the job for you. From 1910-1970, tractor production drastically increased from 1000 tractors to nearly 5 million.
Falling prices contributed to tractor to tractor growth. Early tractors cost as much as $785 in 1920. Just two years later in 1922, a tractor could be purchased for only $395. The price dropped by nearly half in just two years, making tractors an affordable piece of agricultural machinery for almost every farmer.
According to the World Famous Wikipedia “A barn find is a classic car or motorcycle that has been discovered, often in derelict condition. The term comes from their tendency to be found in places such as barns, sheds, carports and outbuildings where they have been stored for many years. The term usually applies to vehicles that are rare and valuable, and which are consequently of great interest to car collectors and enthusiasts despite their poor condition.
In the past, barn find cars were typically subjected to exhaustive restoration, to return them to a condition close to that when they were built. However, the current trend is to treat the cars more sympathetically, to avoid restoration that removes evidence of the car’s history and to place greater value on any original features the car retains even if they’re in poor condition. In some cases, intense restoration can actually lower a car’s value.”
I admit some are better, some are worse. Some may not have any value whatsoever but they have been spotted and I’m sure someone might need a part or a widget, maybe you’ll just want to drool.
This photo section of barn finds is my attempt to document what I’ve found through my travels in The Ozarks. I’ll add to this post as I run across new finds.
Bennett Spring and its valley have attracted visitors since the mid-19th century. Settlers found the spring-fed streams to be ideal locations for their grist and flour mills and the wilderness around the stream was perfect for hunting. James Brice was one of the first settlers in the area and he built his first mill in 1846. Although several other mills were built at different times, the most successful mill was operated by Peter Bennett, Brice’s son-in-law. Bennett became the namesake for the spring and the spring valley became a popular hunting and camping ground for farmers waiting for their grain to be ground at the mill.
Already a favorite among fishermen, the area became even more popular in 1900 when the Missouri Fish Commissioner introduced 40,000 mountain trout into the spring-fed stream. In 1924-1925, the state purchased the spring and part of the surrounding area to create one of the first state parks. In the 1930s, the Civilian Conservation Corps contributed much of the present-day character of the park, building cabins, a shelter house, roads, trails, the arched bridge across the spring branch and the rustic dining lodge.
Avilla has quiet a history, from it’s early inception through World War II. It will be much easier to give you the Wiki link if your interested in Avilla History.
My time in Avilla has always been fun, the people are open and friendly. For example, a certain older gentleman invited my friend Rick and myself into his Avilla Gentlemen’s Clubhouse for coffee and a quick chat. He is one of Avilla’s true gems. Enamel pots and pans collected and hung on the clubhouse walls, a giant concrete frog in the front yard, just about anything you can think of was somewhere around.
I was told that the clubhouse was no more, he had a son move into the building ending the informal chats, that’s too bad I looked forward to visiting again.
My second time back I was by myself and went into Bernie’s Bar & Grill to grab something to eat. Again those friendly “Avillian’s” were in top form and suggested a simple cheeseburger telling me “that’s what we’re famous for”. He was right. Stop in Bernie’s if you’re hungry! I suggest the cheeseburger.
There are lots of interesting buildings in and around Avilla, The Bank building (Post office now), I.O.O.F. just to name a couple.
Next time your out on west Route 66 take the time to see Avilla, you can’t be in that big of a hurry. Oh and grab a cheeseburger while you’re there.
A vintage photo of the gas station on Glenstone Avenue where Bonnie & Clyde got gas when they captured Tom Percell. It became the Quik Spud store, and now has been totally renovated with the addition of a large metal building to the north. Queen City Oil, starting out as a flour and feed store, was built by Emral Brock and Oscar Hawkins in 1929. They soon started selling Standard gas, then Mobil, along with tires and dry goods. In 1939 a viaduct was built over them, effectively bypassing the station.
They moved six blocks north on Route 66 and built an additional station. Queen City Oil currently housing Irene’s Quik Spuds, stayed in business into the 1980s. (1801 E. Trafficway)
~Robert H. Gibbons~
Now the home of “Irene’s Quik Spuds,” this red brick building, located under the Glenstone Avenue
viaduct had once housed the gas station where Bonnie and Clyde had stopped for gas and a Coke after
taking Tom captive. Some of the original Route 66 pavement can still be seen under the viaduct.
The complete story is here from Contributor: Robert H. Gibbons
Today the building looks like this as of December 2017 when I took the shots.
The original stretch of 66 as it appears today, it’s just a stones throw from that station and it’s pretty narrow. Still in good shape.
Ozark’s barns are fantastic testaments to the hardscrabble way of life, a life centered on the land, work, family, ingenuity, and perseverance. Many think of barns as integral landmarks along the byways. Others have their favorite barns like the well-kept, Meramec Caverns advertising barns dotting the interstate highways or the faded milking barn near their hometown. Others know these barns more intimately, barns are part of their family and home.
They are barns built by hand in wood, stone, brick, or metal and dating as far back as 1860. I’ll try to capture the beauty of these barns. You might see the making and breaking of a barn as it plays into the life and sustenance of several generations of a family who settled the land and now the farm is left abandoned, barns and buildings left to endure the mercy of time and mother nature. Now, who is up for a barn dance?
The Old Country Store was and is the life blood of small Ozark’s communities. This applies more to this particular store than most. Most neighbors are not just a stones throw from here. Many miles of hills separate this store from most. Taney County doesn’t have a huge population now let alone when this store was active. In the 1930 census the nearest town of Bradleyville only had a population of 41.
When I entered the store it was walking back in time. I could see the shelves lined with canned goods, supplies, I imagine it had a wood stove near the right side. I’ll bet the old boys showed on Saturday with their chewing tobacco in pocket ready to chew the fat with the regular “spit & whittle” club. One thing I did not show was the old glass counter cabinet. It was in really sad shape, glass had been knocked out and it was falling apart. I feel it’s important to leave it alone. Let it go with this building when it decides to give way to time.
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