Over the years, having traveled literally tens of thousands of miles over the highways and byways
of America for both business and pleasure, I continued to be struck by the multitude of structures
on the side of the road going to ruin. With many routes traversed many times, the continued sight
of these objects started to invoke the question, "what happened here and what is the story behind
these structures?"
When one thinks of ruins, one conjures the stone foundations of ancient past, unearthed and
researched by archeologists who attempt to reconstruct the stories of a now long lost civilization:
How did they live and where did they go?
Certainly less ancient and most with little or no historical value, the images contained within are
of ruins and civilizations of a far more recent past. While providing no "missing link" or profound
revelations, the pictures and stories intend to simply entertain and at best, attempt to produce
beauty out of what previously may have been considered an eyesore on the side of the road.
Presented in the categories of Homes, Businesses, Farms and Machinery, each section's photos
present structures abandoned and gone to ruin. Many "speak" with the ghostly sounds of the
lives of their past.
Guided first by simply presenting interesting photographs, it is hoped they invoke in you the same
questions of, "I wonder what happened here and who were the people that occupied these
relics?"
Ultimately, it is the goal, next time you pass that eyesore on the side of the road to say, "Look, it is
a Great American Ruin".