Once upon a time, there lived...

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While on my way back from Brazos Bend State Park, I saw this gem on the side of the road.

Now close the windows and hush all the fields...

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Reminds me of The Wizard of OZ for some reason. Just on the other side of the toll road from our apartment in north Austin, Texas, was a bunch of old, dilapidated farm buildings that were pleading with me to come photograph them.

Once again I am reminded of a quote from Michelangelo I used for another post title: "A beautiful thing never gives so much pain as does failing to hear and see it......".

If you liked this one, check out this older post: Leaving this old farm house to it's loneliness and decay. It's of another structure from the same area.

NOW close the windows and hush all the fields;
If the trees must, let them silently toss;
No bird is singing now, and if there is,
Be it my loss.
It will be long ere the marshes resume,
It will be long ere the earliest bird:
So close the windows and not hear the wind,
But see all wind-stirred.

		-Robert Frost-

Old Booth Texas School house and auditorium

I was in the area of Booth, Texas looking for something else entirely and I stumbled upon this little gem, the old Booth Texas school house and attached auditorium - 

Founded by freeman Irby Booth (1866 - 1931) about 1890, shortly after he bought
the surrounding property. In the early 1890s, Booth went to South Carolina and brought
back 30 families to settle his land. Early crops of cotton, corn, and rice were shipped
to market via the Brazos River. The post office opened March 21, 1894. By the early 1900s,
the town of Booth had a syrup mill, sawmill, and was serviced by the Gulf, Colorado &
Santa Fe Railroad, by which sugar cane, alfalfa, and truck vegetables were shipped.
Booth Public school opened in 1908 and operated until 1947.
(from the Historical Marker) 

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The information I found on this school house and the settlement of Booth in general was taken from :

http://www.pbase.com/lynnh/image/95695140

which I found via:

http://www.scenicusa.net/120509.html

leaving this old farm house to it's loneliness and decay

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Across the toll road from where we used to live in North Austin there was a bunch of old barns and storage sheds that had the look of abandonment. You almost don't notice them as your about to enter the tool road. I'm always focusing on the scary toll booths you have to drive through at speed or slow everybody down behind you. But one day I thought of them and I had some time to kill so I drove over there, hopped the fence and what a find. There was about six buildings falling into disuse over there, some big some small. And thanks to the local cattle that claim that land it was not over grown. It was like walking on a freshly cut lawn. Of all the photos from that day this is my favorite, the detail and the colors and the sky looked it's best in this picture. I don't think this paticular farmhouse is exactly abandoned, there was no doors and inside I noticed the frorund was littered with hoof prints. I supposed it now shelters the local farm animals...

Feed Store - Cobwebs that hang reminding me of its past

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I was on a photography kick the other day that extended from the Texas State Highway 99 expansion beyond I 10 in Katy down to Richmond Texas. I love these stops that are completely unexpected. It was an exceptionally beautiful day that day. And as I was on my way home from the road construction I thought to my self; I think I'll go check out Richmond. It had been some time since I drove down to that old small town south west of Houston. And as I entered town and turned down a side Road I saw one of those amazing rusty red train bridges, so I parked near by to snap  few. But as I was walking up to the bridge, three people came out of no where to snap a few of the bridge. This is not the first time this has happened to me, frustrates me every time. So I strolled into old downtown Richmond and immediately found this old closed down feed store...

Abandoned Railway Warehouse - Gnaws iron, bites steel, Grinds hard stones to meal

 Here's the side facing 5th street in downtown Austin, the opposite side of the building. This may be my favorite from the set, such color and the sun rays... And below we have a shot of the interior, at least a part of it. This shot didn't turn out as good as I would have liked, soo much haloing, I did my best to manage it.




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Abandoned Railway Warehouse - This thing all things devours...

 Still more of the warehouse, here's a couple of loading doors covered in some type of vine. Had to shoot these when I saw them, really gives an impression of time.

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Abandoned Railway Warehouse - scarred by exhaust fumes flame and vandals

 Here's some more abandoned warehouse for your viewing pleasure...                                                                            





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Abandoned Railway Warehouse - of steam engine and iron wheel rotation...

 Here's a couple of the front I believe. The sky looked great that day, lots of clouds as apposed to the last month or so when there hasn't been a cloud in the sky. I have a fascination with graffiti, I think of it as another art form, it has it's place with out a doubt but it adds so much character to old forgotten buildings.

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Abandoned railway warehouse in downtown Austin, TX

Here we have a warehouse of some sort that sits across the tracks from the current Amtrak station in downtown Austin, Texas. Don't know much about it despite quite a bit of research online. Read about it in an article on abandoned buildings in Austin and had to come check it out. It's in a decent area despite the look of the place, it's a huge complex...

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Abandoned Winery - Still rooted in disarray

 These where taken inside the loading bay of packaging and office building of the winery . The loading door looked to be forced open. Looked like it had been trashed over the years by who ever. Once again I took them just cause I was there and they turned out way better then I expected. So much detail and color.

 I saw all these bottle caps that I believe where used for one of their products, a wine spritzer I think.

Here was one of their advertisement posters, there were several on the floor.

Abandoned Winery - But time flows through the room, light flows through the room

 Here's a view of inside the broken window from yesterday's post. A mixing room perhaps? It was very eerie and I wasn't very excited about this photo when I took it but I try to take all the photos I can when I am where ever regardless of what I think of the scene right then. These photos turned out to be my favorite from all the ones taken that day, couldn't have turned out better.



















I took the photo and in Picasa I ran it through the Holga-ish filter. I think it gives it a sense of loneliness and neglect.

Abandoned Winery - Residing somewhere In structures Time forgotten

A window into the past, through cracked and broken glass.

That just happened, don't know where that came from.
Here is a set of this window in the large building behind the house/tasting room that has seen better days. I presume that it was in this building where the magic happened, where they bottled their fare. I think the detail in the plywood and the mold on the siding just look great.












                                                                                                                                                                                                       I ran it in black and white and loved that also, very ominous...                                                              

Abandoned Winery - In leaves no step had trodden black

 Around the side of the house/tasting room there was this great looking pergola with shadows of the trees and its' cross members cascading off the side in the back left of the pic. It has so much depth I think, love this one.

 And behind the house/tasting room it was like a jungle. I think when this place was kept up it probably look pretty good from a landscaping point of view. Even after years of neglect the grounds still looked pretty good.

I love the pin oak trees here in the hill country of Texas, they can grow quite large and they get so scraggly looking. This photo though was a minor disappointment to me, this is one situation where the photo just did not compare to the actual scene. Just couldn't get it to look right in the processing stage. But here it is anyway...

Abandoned Winery - Tasting Room, Open Daily

This is  a series of photos I took the other day of this abandoned winery just down the road from my job. Passed by it every day just about for a year now, finally made the time to explore it a week before we move to Houston. From what I've seen online about this place, it's been abandoned for about half a decade. I loved this sign, it really shows the neglect this place has received. From this vantage point it looks like it could still be in use but the mostly glass door of the house/tasting room is busted in, presumably by kids looking for something to get into. I know what that's like, I was one once and I guess I still am...