From Dave Brigham:
My daughter, Amelia, and I joined a fellow stay-at-home dad and his two girls for a trip to the USS Constitution in Charlestown, Mass., recently. I brought along my camera, of course, but wasn't expecting this advertising nugget:
I searched online and found photos of this great sign before it was restored, but I don't know when that was done. Some folks indicate that the sign dates to around World War II, but I don't know.
Fall is my favorite season. I love the cool temps; the apples, pumpkins and cider at local farm stands; the porters and dark ales on tap at neighborhood bars; the soups and hearty meals on menus at my favorite restaurants; watching football and hockey on TV (especially after this latest dismal Red Sox season); Halloween and Thanksgiving; and, of course, the full palette of colors you witness as the foliage changes from its monochromatic green.
With the falling of the leaves (in New England and elsewhere, although unfortunately not everywhere across America), more of the Backside reveals itself. Buildings that during the spring and summer are hidden behind vines and overgrown trees, reappear during fall and winter.
And landscapes that look beautiful in lush greens become transformed in reds, yellows and oranges.
Below are some shots from various members of the Backside Gang that reflect the wonders of autumn, whether because of their subject, their colors or their feel -- DB.
(Photo by Dave Brigham: Abigail Draper Mann Woodland Worship Center, Dover Massachusetts)
(Photo by Kristen Smith: Abandoned camp site, Litchfield State Forest, New Hampshire)
(Photo by lostlosangeles: Mendocino County, California)
(Photo by Pete Zarria: Milan, Illinois)
(Photo by Dave Brigham: Watertown, Massachusetts)
(Photo by Pete Zarria: Tucson, Arizona)
(Photo by Joe Viger: Conway, New Hampshire)
(Photo by Kristen Smith: New Hampshire)
(Photo by Heidi Waugaman-Page: Antrim, New Hampshire)
From Pete Zarria:
Blairstown, Benton County, Iowa - Pop. 685. Many people simply do not realize all the beauty that is spread across the world. Even across just a flat old farm state known for corn and hogs. This scene is just a simple grain elevator in small Iowa town backed by nature's best light.
From Dave Brigham:
I spent a lot of time over the summer watching the Food Network. I can't cook much, but I love to watch other people who do it well. I got really into "Chopped," "The Great Food Truck Race" and "Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives."
But I got a bit burned out on that stuff, so I was really happy when I saw a preview for National Geographic Channel's new reality series, "Abandoned."
To date I've watched three episodes, and have a few more waiting for me on my DVR. In the show, carpenter/antique collector/restoration expert Jay Chaikin, along with his buddies Dan and Mark, get permission to enter abandoned buildings looking to salvage antiques, collectibles and furniture.
They walk very carefully through old mills, churches, breweries, factories and banks, marveling at the architecture and the relics they find. Chaikin is an amiable host, and his friend Mark provides some comic relief.
I'm not an urbex guy -- I don't think getting arrested for trespassing would go over well with my wife, and it would be hard to pick up my kids at school if I were in jail. So I live vicariously through people who are bold enough to enter dilapidated buildings to see what's been left behind, and to behold the beauty of decay.
As I said, in "Abandoned," the hosts receive permission from property owners to enter the buildings. After they pick through the stuff, they haggle with the owners over items they want to restore and resell. Yes, the show is similar to History Channel's "American Pickers," but there's nothing wrong with that.
In some cases, the buildings are facing demolition; in other situations, they don't indicate what the fates are.
So if you find yourself looking to fill an hour to learn about endangered historic sites, urban exploration and antique collecting and restoration, check it out.
I also watch Travel Channel's "Off Limits," which used to focus more on old factories and abandoned mines. This season the host, Don Wildman, has changed the focus a bit to places like operational salt mines and Air Force base rocket launches, but it's still a cool show. I wrote a bit about the show in May 2011.
From Pete Zarria:
Actually, I was looking for a place to park to get a shot at the Veteran's Hall neon sign. I found this. Waterloo, Iowa.
From Dave Brigham:
Every Saturday (with a few exceptions) for the last ten months, I've taken my son to his drum lesson at the School of Rock in Watertown, MA. Usually I'm content to sit and read a magazine amid the tweens and teens who hang out there. I love listening to their nerdy conversations about video games, music and school. They talk as if I'm not there.
On a recent warm Saturday, however, I decided to walk around the neighborhood with my camera.
Outside F.D. Sterritt Lumber.
The remnants of Sawin's Pond, part of what once was a much bigger wetlands in the town. The pond and other nearby bodies of water were paved over, filled in and contaminated over the years by the likes of tire maker B.F. Goodrich, the developers of the Watertown Mall and power company Boston Edison (now NSTAR). At one time, there was a "grand hotel" called the Glen House nearby. For more on this sad little waterway, read this article.
Other than one other photo on Flickr, taken in Brighton, MA, which isn't too far away from Watertown, I haven't found any clues about this.
Ever since stumbling across a F.O.E. hall during college in Keene, NH, I've had an odd attraction to social clubs. Other than during punk rock shows in the early '80s, I've never set foot in such places. I just picture lots of guys with fezzes drinking Pabst, eating pickled eggs and watching "Mannix" reruns.
I love this building. It's home to a sand and gravel business. I'm sure it's got a great history.
Another social club. This building has seen better days, but evidently the club is alive and well.
From Dave Brigham:
When I saw this lean-to along the Charles River near my house, my first thought was, "This could be a homeless camp." I remembered that a few years back some neighbors told me there was somebody living on the river bank.
But after exploring this very basic shelter, I concluded that it was more likely a teen drinking spot.
In recent weeks, however, I've come back around to my original thinking. There are definitely some homeless guys around who collect cans and bottles out of the neighborhood trash, and who fish in the river.
Obviously they're hard up, but I didn't realize to what degree until I walked past a wooden platform next to the Charles River bike path and saw some couch cushions and trash bags -- what looked very much like an effort to bring the comforts of home into the woods.
From Pete Zarria:
We were out for a walk and I often head for this bowling alley that's nearby. This night the clouds were perfect, but I had no camera. A quick stride home and by the time we got back, the clouds and light were naff.
Pinhole 0, Pinhead 1.
This sign was neglected and mostly non-working for years. They finally rehabbed it to its former glory and it's much better now. Bowlmor Lanes, Davenport, Iowa.
From Dave Brigham:
Located on North Brother Island, in the East River near the Bronx, Riverside Hospital was for nearly 80 years the place where New York City quarantined its citizens, housed World War II veterans and treated drug addicts.
Long abandoned and off limits to the public, the island is now a bird sanctuary. Recently, Britain's Daily Telegraph ran a photo essay of the island and hospital. Check it out.
From Pete Zarria:
Route 66, Shamrock, Texas
North of Rio, Illinois on U.S. 150
The self-oiling Aermotor windmills, produced in four different models between 1915 and the present time, are the most common of all windmills seen in the field today. The key to the Aermotor is its wind wheel.
The windmills were developed in the early 1880's by engineer Thomas O. Perry and adopted by LaVerne Noyes, the founder of the Aermotor Company. This wheel consists of curved galvanized steel blades which are riveted to steel wheel clips which in turn are riveted to curved bar steel rims.
Self-oiling Aermotor windmills were made in a full range of sizes including six, eight, 10, 12, 14, and 16 foot sizes. From 1929 until 1966 a large 20' mill, weighing 4,900 pounds and having a five-gallon oil reservoir, was manufactured for deep well pumping or for use in localities where large volumes of water was needed from shallow depths. Most of these were seen in the desert Southwest.
All of the Aermotor mills were made by the Aermotor Company of Chicago until 1958, when the firm began the first of several changes in corporate ownership. Among the firms producing the mills since that time have been: Aermotor Division, Motor Products Corporation, Chicago, Aermotor Inc., Division of Nautec Corporation of Chicago, Aermotor Division, Braden Aermotor Corporation of Broken Arrow, Oklahoma: Braden Industries of Conway, Arkansas: and Aermotor Division, Valley Corporation of Conway, Arkansas. The manufacture of mills was shifted from Chicago to Broken Arrow in 1964, at which time the company began purchasing castings from foundries other than its own.
From Dave Brigham: Sometime in the late '90s/early aughts, I saw one of the greatest Boston bands of all time, the Upper Crust , in a ...
