indescribable These would be some of my last Southern California explorations before moving to the wilds of Northern Alabama. We explored 3 sites on this trip before the winds came up so strongly that they created a dust storm. The houses were all within sight of each other but not part of the same farm. In each case, they appear to have been departed in haste (foreclosed).
Different house
As seen above, the first house was surrounded by various out buildings for livestock and storage. Some withstood the test of time while others were being rapidly pulled apart by the winds and sand.
Coming around the back of the first house, I noticed this near the back porch (dog tie-down stake)
As I approached the fornt of the house where my kids were waiting, I discovered the dogs had never left the property and sadly never would again. Three adults dogs lay recently dead, poisoned, in a loose semi-circle. I discovered dog food cans, a large bag of food and rat-poison close by. I won’t speculate on the why, just that they were gone.
Doggie downers
If the dead dogs weren’t enough, this practically broke my heart. A resident of the household left this stuffed fuzzy by the front door.
The front room of the first house looked like it had been hit by a hurricane. Boxes and personal things were scattered. This Sunday paper caught my eye. Remember this trip was in Apr 2008.
Remains of an organ
Raising cattle
At the second house we found many similar sights. The former residents here were also pushed out quickly but in their case, they left books
Personalized name plate on one (name obscured)
More to come – part 2 next week
On a side note, for the third consecutive year, I will be presenting a forum on abandoned site photography at Frolicon (www.frolicon.com) in Atlanta, GA. The presentation is Saturday April 7th. I strongly encourage (adults) to come out to the con.