Category: Modern Ruins

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South of Nowhere

The first permanent settlers were William Friend, George Yoachum, James Kimberling, George Wells, and Thomas Patterson in present-day Ozark. Yoachum was locally well known for briefly printing his own currency, which he called the “Yocum Dollar.” The name “Ozark,” which quickly became the population center, is said to refer to the bends in the Finley River—French traders called it “aux arcs.” Ozark eventually became the county seat.

The county was still very young when the Civil War began in 1861. The Union Home Guard formed in 1862, and on August 1 of that year defended Ozark against a minor Confederate ambush. On August 2, 1862, there was a minor skirmish near the town of Clever. During the war, many fled their homes and did not return until after the war was over. Both sides’ army forced many residents out of their homes, destroying their livestock, crops, and property. These malicious actions made many residents destitute and on the verge of starvation.

Bushwhackers also posed a constant threat of theft and violence. Although the population increased by more than 1,000 people from 1860-1870, historical records indicate that during the Civil War the county was almost totally depopulated.

After the end of the war, Bushwhackers still posed a threat. A group of local men formed a vigilante band called the “Bald Knobbers,” who tracked down Bushwhackers or others taking part in illegal activities. In most cases, the “Bald Knobbers” either killed the criminal or brought them in for arrest. The “Bald Knobbers” continued to fight what they saw as injustice long after the Bushwhackers were no longer a problem. In the 1880s, their activity began to get out of hand, and the sheriff arrested the men who refused to stop their vigilante activity.

The railroad aided recovery, coming to the area in the 1870s-1880s. Several towns were named after railroad officials. These include: Chadwick, named after John F. Chadwick and Billings, named after John Billings. Several other towns sprung up after the war, including Sparta in 1885. Sparta was supposedly named after settler J.J. Burton’s home town of Sparta, Tennessee. Nixa was officially formed in 1878, supposedly after settlers Nicholas Alexander Inman. For postal service to come to the area, the town needed an official name, and got it from “Nick” A. Inman’s mailbox, becoming “Nixa.” The railroad continued to flourish in the area well into the 20th century.

A local barber named Finis Gold started Nixa Sucker Day in 1957, and it has since been a longstanding tradition with the people of Nixa, Missouri. Locals would often close up shop and skip school for the day to go grabbin’ for Suckers. The fish were then frozen until there was enough for a big fish fry. Nixa Sucker Day was the result of this annual tradition.

 

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The Ozarks: Abandoned

Living in The Ozarks has been key to my development as an artist. The color, seasons, textures and characters of The Ozark Mountains makes it all come together.

It’s history and it’s people are what inspire me. Photo journalism is my focus, if you are looking for senior, wedding or baby pictures you might as well continue searching for another photographer.

Simple pleasures and the mysterious power that lures people to the land. Nothing is more satisfying than a newly turned field in early spring, fresh cut hay on a summer day or the smell of apple butter cooking in the fall.

In this post I’ll introduce you to “My Ozarks” they are small, out-of-the-way places, back road villages or one horse towns . The people who live here have opted to live differently. Small town residents worry about everything from school closings and their children’s futures to the slipping of the local economy.

The fragility of our communities in small towns is evident as you can see in these images. Some are blighted, while in other areas nearby the economy is booming. Making us question “what happened here”?

There are factory workers, barbers, small business owners, retirees, teachers, farmers, clergy, and mayors all who depend on the smallest things to hold these communities together all the while dealing with things such as the opioid epidemic.

Down at The Corner Cafe they are having their coffee about now, discussing the daily special or who fed the cats.

The End to the Means.

I first found myself staring at the ruins of an old home in an uninhabited town, I thought post-apocalyptic! It’s a vision of a horror story. However in certain cases they make me curious as to the backstory. But that’s not what keeps me searching for modern ruins, and it’s not the sole reason I devote so much time to finding and documenting these vanishing forgotten buildings.

Heck, they are so compelling! Of course, there’s an aesthetic to decaying buildings, an opportunity to enjoy these buildings when I stumble upon them. After all those who came before me enjoyed them in their day, why not me, why not now.

These ruins still contain promises of the unexpected. They have served their original purpose but now, for me, it’s the possibility of some weird encounter. The seemingly impossible find of a forgotten treasure or a captured moment.

It all allows for my imagination to go wild and the images allow for your own interpretation. In some strange way it’s all unencumbered repurposing.

Just a note to my fellow photographers who like to shoot cemeteries…Avoiding stepping on a grave. Ozarks Legend has it if a hillman happens to tread upon a grave, he is supposed to jump backward across it immediately, as otherwise a member of his family will die, according to the old-timers.

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Ghost of Bloody 13

Highway 13 or Bloody 13 as it’s known stretched from Clinton, MO south to Springfield, MO. It went through the center of small town America, through towns like Bolivar, Humansville, Brighton and Osceola. Weaving it’s way around sharp blind corners over rock covered hills and through densely wooded land. It was treacherous when wet, deadly when misjudged.

I Spent an afternoon on a lonely stretch of old Highway 13, this particular section was the original alignment of Highway 13, before 2005. Some of it still exists today as a reminder of those death defying days.

If I’ve heard it once I’ve heard it a thousand times, “If this house could talk it surely would have a tale.” This house has seen the deaths of many, I personally have seen the destruction, the aftermath of careless drivers. My father owned and operated a wrecker service out of Bolivar and I went on more than one trip out to this area to pick up an overturned car. It usually was after the ambulance had came to retrieve the victims but that didn’t hide the fact the wreck had taken it’s toll. All the while in the distance this house overlooked everything coming and going.


Highway 13 between Springfield and Bolivar was so dangerous for so long that area residents nicknamed it “Bloody 13”.

The northbound half of the divided highway consists of a section of road built in the 1920s. The accident rate along the northbound side is 3 1/2 times higher than on the southbound side, says Bob Edwards, a spokesman for the Missouri Department of Transportation. It was also higher than the statewide rate for similar highways, at the time. he says.

The most dangerous stretch begins just north of Ebenezer, where the north and southbound lanes divide, and ends just north of Slagle, where the lanes merge. That is just south of Bolivar.




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Galena, James River and Charlie Barnes

Galena was platted in 1852, and named for deposits of the ore galena near the original town site. A post office has been in operation at Galena since 1853 and the last public execution in Missouri took place in Galena in 1937.

The James River flows past the east side of the town and enters the northernmost arm of Table Rock Lake to the south.The historic Y-Bridge over the James River is located just east of the town. Float trips, for which the Ozarks are famous, reputedly originated at Galena on the James. John boats 18-24 feet long and 4 feet wide were used long before canoes and kayaks became popular and are amazingly maneuverable craft for their size.

Some anglers still prefer the stability they provide for casting while standing and the comfort of folding arm chairs which they can carry. Before the days of Table Rock Dam a five-day float of about 125 miles was available from Galena to Branson. However one of the fine fishing floats always has been the 22-mile section from “Hootentown” to Galena and this may still be floated even with john boats.

From Ralph Foster Museum at College of the Ozarks –   It is rumored that the skilled boatman, Charlie Barnes of Galena may have invented the jonboat; whether that is true or not, Barnes definitely defined the role of the jonboat in the White River. He built over five hundred boats in his lifetime, and he guided many people through the James River and the White River on float trips. Many of his clients, in fact, were industrialists and movie stars. Unfortunately, with the creation of Table Rock and Bull Shoals dams, his business died and the wooden jonboats simply lost their significance on the rivers.

Galena Chamber of Commerce

 

Roscoe “Red” Jackson was hanged at dawn on May 21, 1937, for murdering a traveling salesman for his car and $18. Several hundred witnesses were jammed inside the temporary stockade, built around the gallows, and many more people milled about the courthouse square. It was the last public hanging in Missouri.

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Potholes in the Mother Road Vol. 1

The Birthplace of Route 66

Cyrus Avery of Tulsa is known worldwide as the “Father of Route 66.” Springfield, Missouri, is known as the “Birthplace of Route 66.”

By 1923, there were 148 miles of street in the city, 60 of which were paved. So, when John T. Woodruff, of Springfield Missouri, along with Cyrus Avery of Tulsa, Oklahoma began to suggest a transcontinental highway, Springfield was a logical choice along the path of what would soon become Route 66. Woodruff remains mostly known as being among a group of highway advocates (including Avery) and engineers near the Colonial Hotel in Springfield when they sent a telegram on April 30, 1926, to Washington accepting the number 66 assigned to a federal highway from Chicago to Los Angeles — hence the reason Springfield boasts the “birthplace” tag.

Both Woodruff and Avery worked tirelessly for a highway that would carry America’s new “traveler” from Chicago, Illinois all the way to Los Angeles, California. Persistence prevailed and Route 66 finally became a reality in 1926.

Over the years I’ve taken and accumulated a pretty fair amount of images from the road. I’ve been doing my best to get the images of buildings that may be short lived due to decay. The loss of Reds simply blew my mind, the city has since built a replica sign to celebrate Red Chaney’s iconic diner.

Why the hell didn’t they step up when the original was still here and make it an historical site? Better yet, wouldn’t it have made a great Visitors Center? “No, it’s on the west side”. They would say “it would cost too much”, I have to think they have spent far more in the buildings they have now, with much less historical value. Springfield has always wanted to tear those building and landmarks down only to remove what city officials deem eyesores. Wake up.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Kindall’s General Store

Kindall’s old General Store is one of the oldest continuously operated businesses in the Ozarks. The Old Store has been serving generations for well over 60 years. The business, situated in front of the majestic and scenic Ozark Mountains, continues to be operated to this day.

The interior of the store is much the same as it was when constructed with many old features and antiques. The original board floor, the antiques, metal, stamped tin ceiling, the original shelving and counters, and numerous antiques give the visitor the feeling of stepping back in time. The architecture of the building along with the big front porch represents the vintage of middle and late 1800s.

The current operator plans to keep the store as is, even though it’s not as profitable as it needs to be. There’s more to this labor of love than money.

The original ceiling tin is intact, more than one person has tried to pry it out of the store, there’s not enough money to make that happen. The oak tongue and groove floor is soft in spots, heck I would be too if I were that old. It just adds to the ambiance of the place. The wood stove still sits in the back but due to insurance it’s disconnected.

The Store is an antique and be truly an educational experience.

Across the street is where the Kindall’s lived, underneath the giant oak sits the homestead.

The house appears to be the same time period as the store, the chairs out front were a perfect place to watch traffic on the highway.

Living on top of the hill meant a storm cellar was a must, tornado’s are common place in this part of the Ozarks. This place was old but I was directed to the original home site which was much older and still standing.

Like taking a step back in time, walking into the general store in the community of Olga, Missouri takes you to a place in Ozark history. In the 1980’s, Corda Kindall kept her store alive even though supermarkets in nearby towns got most of the business. At that time, her store was like a museum, full of items once commonly sold in country general stores. She stocked modern necessities as well, but mostly just enjoyed the people dropping by for a chat, a loaf of bread and way of thanking her for keeping the store open and welcoming to local people. Corda Kindall passed away in 1995. Video Produced by Ed Fillmer.

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Saying Goodbye To Old Friends in Halltown

At the height of Route 66 Halltown had roughly 20 businesses which included three grocery stores, a drugstore, a blacksmith shop, service station, garage, and a variety store.

Today, Halltown has a few surviving businesses. It’s boarded up store fronts are sitting empty. One long standing store closed recently The Whitehall Mercantile, known for it’s antiques which filled the store from floor to ceiling. Built in 1900 as a grocery/general store, the false front mercantile, with it’s stone foundation and wooden porch, provided a view of Route 66 from the past. Historic buildings like the 1930’s Las Vegas Hotel and Barber Shop, Brown Shoe Company, and a few older buildings are of interest.

With progress and the construction of Interstate 44 Halltown is losing a battle with time and being by-passed, parts of the town are decaying and abandoned.

Whitehall Mercantile – Thelma White – Halltown, MO – Route 66 – September 2, 1993

The Mercantile is now closed, it’s a shame but there was no interest by anyone in the family to keep it going. Lost to progress and time, like Thelma who has passed it’s now just a memory.

 

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2018 Abandoned Calendar On Sale

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.

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No Vacancy

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!

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Flying Below The Radar on 66

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.