# Interesting things out and about in town.



## scout24 (Nov 16, 2015)

While out and about walking through town with my Wife, we keep a running commentary about the local architecture and decorating. Today's finds are below. Show us what's cool in your neck of the woods!!!


A turn-of-the-20th century shoe factory that has finally gotten decrepit enough to warrant a teardown. Wonderful old brickwork, I'd love to sneak in and look around. Too many people keeping an eye on it though. If you look close, starting about a third of the way down the building, you'll see big metal stars between the first and second, and second and third floors. They hold metal rods that span the building side-to-side. I want a star when they finally demo the building. 







Gargoyles!  There is a second one on the smaller chimney to the right rear of the obvious one. :thumbsup:


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## bykfixer (Nov 20, 2015)

Very cool thread.

I'm working a street scape project this year and was enjoying the old architecture as well. And the old painted on billboards, the old churches with fake owls (which btw seems to work) and the stars.

It's in a now 1 horse town that was a half way point between Henderson NC and Petersburg Va (which are also becoming 1 horse towns).

You know you're in a small town when 2 police cars show up at a fender bender in the Piggly Wiggly parking lot.


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## 127.0.0.1 (Nov 20, 2015)

it will be hard to take those wall washers (stars) they go for 64 to 257 'old house parts'
dollars depending on size and condition

they are definitely already spoken for


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## MrJino (Nov 20, 2015)

While I have spotted a mountain lion no too far from where I live, taking a picture was the last thing on my mind.
Here's my backyard... it connects to a hiking trail. Dangerous at night with the lion and coyotes.


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## scout24 (Nov 20, 2015)

Beautiful area, Mr.Jino. No mountain lions here, just packs of coyotes. 

127.0.0.1- Thanks for the info about the stars, I had no idea they fetched so much. Figured they'd have some interest, but Dang!

Edit- Nice alloys on the Chargers. Those would never survive at my job, guys bounce off curbs regularly...


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## StarHalo (Nov 21, 2015)

Lights on _all_ the trees..


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## scout24 (Nov 21, 2015)

Nothing like palm trees decorated for the holidays! Decorations are going up around my town too.


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## bykfixer (Nov 21, 2015)

I've been observing from afar this water tank being restored in the 1 horse town. 
A million gallon tank that they wanted to reverse logos on. There was a US flag on this side, and town logo on the other. 
As time went by they recoated it. Then they applied appliques. Two fellas. 




^^ the 2 have nearly finished.
As you can see one was a great big so n so. 
Those letters in the word VIRGINIA are over 2 feet tall.

You can see the darndest things all around you by just slowing down and taking the time to look.
My grandma refered to it as 'taking time to smell the roses.'


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## P_A_S_1 (Nov 21, 2015)

In upper Manhattan the building between 168th & 169th St. along Broadway (west side of b'way) had some interesting architectural trim around the building above the first floor, it was pointed out to me one night by a co-worker. The trim consisted of interlocking swastikas with single swastikas on the corners of the building. Apparently these symbols, Hindu in origin (not German), were not uncommon on old building prior to the 1930s, they were decorative and symbolized good luck. Regardless seeing the trim was a peculiar sight.


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## scout24 (Nov 24, 2015)

Starhalo- Your picture has disappeared for me... Not sure why. Here's a quick snap from last night here in the Northeast... No palm trees!


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## StarHalo (Nov 24, 2015)

scout24 said:


> Starhalo- Your picture has disappeared for me... Not sure why. Here's a quick snap from last night here in the Northeast... No palm trees!



Ty for the heads up, Amazon Cloud isn't really meant for posting images, still working it out. Great pic, that kind of "driving around town" setting really captures the place. I'll have to put my clamp mount to use..


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## scout24 (Nov 24, 2015)

...and now it's back! Good deal. I need to carry my point and shoot around with me more, my phone hates taking night pics... :sigh:


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## bykfixer (Nov 26, 2015)

Boy the modern p&s can sure get it done once you and it learn to play together.

What I mean is when Panasonic, Canon or whoever builds an auto camera that thinks for you, it's like google...wrong 60% of the time at predicting what you're looking for.

Coming from an SLR background I found that frustating at best...give the camera flying lessons at worst.
Yet with patience and a little imagination you can get it to take good night pix without a lot of hassle.

For work pics I use a little Canon that shoots wide angles. It's either program or auto. That's it. Well at night on road projects there are flood lights galore. Just beyond that is total darkness. A cameras worst nightmare. And an auto camera just plain ole gets it wrong. So I learned to shade my p&s with my hard hat and suddenly it would meter pretty close to what I wanted.
A baseball cap will do nicely. 

By the time you get the shade right with a phone cam your photo includes a ball cap at the top. lol.


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## scout24 (Dec 3, 2015)

Update from my first post - The building is finally gutted and coming down. Should be an empty lot tomorrow.











And another tidbit- Across town, older building still in use. Barely legible, but it says "Furniture and Undertaking" on the brick. Must have been good business back in the day!


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## Chauncey Gardiner (Dec 3, 2015)

Scout24, Nothing ventured, nothing gained. Not seeing a fence, I might make a run by the rubble with flashlight in hand. Bring myself a couple of those stars home. 

~ Chance


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## StarHalo (Dec 4, 2015)

My neighborhood, standing partway up the San Bernardino mountains looking SW over the Inland Empire; workplace is the massive white building near center, house is somewhere up against the mountains on the left.





Where I get my morning joe; Augie's Coffee, deep in one of the social hubs of the area. A tiny building with a few tables and chairs within, but there's a $10,000 roaster in the back..





Olive Street Market, a cozy little mountain-style shop with snacks and refreshments, a few couches. They sell cans of Oskar Blues beer singly from the cooler, bottles of sarsaparilla too.


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## Tixx (Dec 4, 2015)

scout24 said:


> Update from my first post - The building is finally gutted and coming down. Should be an empty lot tomorrow.
> 
> 
> 
> ...




Cool old section of town there! Love that stuff! Did you get a star?


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## scout24 (Dec 4, 2015)

Nope, no star... Too many folks around. Didn't want to have my first arrest at 47!  StarHalo- beautiful valley views! I like the small coffee shop. :thumbsup:


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## Poppy (Dec 4, 2015)

scout24 said:


> Nope, no star... Too many folks around. Didn't want to have my first arrest at 47!  StarHalo- beautiful valley views! I like the small coffee shop. :thumbsup:


If the stars are still there, and you buy coffee and donuts for the men doing the demo someone may scamper over and pull one out of the rubble when they pull it down. Just maybe.
IMO, it is worth a $10 try.

Oops! maybe I am a day late?


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## bykfixer (Dec 5, 2015)

scout24 said:


> Update from my first post - The building is finally gutted and coming down. Should be an empty lot tomorrow.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Dat giant chimney!!!

Like Poppy said...
Or maybe an old horse shoe or hitching post that got covered during some sort of urban renewal when the horse-less carriage took over.

At my current project we've found those, an old bottle here n there and the occasional old brass button, old silverware or who knows when demo-ing old sidewalks.

We're re-vamping an old city block that was built between the 1830's and 1930's. When cars took over they widened things, added sidewalks and paved over the dirt road with concrete in the 30's..then asphalt later.
And from what we've found if it was laying there, it got covered with concrete. lol


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## StarHalo (Dec 5, 2015)

Hipsters will pay good money for any of that stuff almost regardless of condition; I smell a new eBay store..


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## Borad (Dec 5, 2015)

scout24 said:


> A turn-of-the-20th century shoe factory that has finally gotten decrepit enough to warrant a teardown. Wonderful old brickwork, I'd love to sneak in and look around.



I found a video of the inside. http://wnep.com/2015/07/29/condemned-building-to-be-torn-down-in-honesdale/

There's a cemetery from 1658 not far from me. I hope to take a tour some day and get some photos. I saw some good photos and posted them to my Facebook page but Facebook banned me and deleted all my posts.


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## scout24 (Dec 6, 2015)

Cool video! Thanks for the link. Fills in a few holes in the storyline...


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## scout24 (Dec 6, 2015)

Aaaand it's gone... Nobody working today, but neighbors around and others out enjoying the sunny mild December morning.


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## bykfixer (Dec 7, 2015)

^^ Now it's pure Barney...as in Rubble.


Here's something you don't see everyday...




^^ a rail road crossing a rail road at a rail road crossing.

Used to be the rails shown were a sorta highway system within a factory district of the 1 horse town I'm working in. 
The ones in the distance are still a highway for commerce and Amtrak travelling up n down the east Coast of America.


And an old luxury hotel...




^^ who knows who stayed there
About the time the horseless carriage was a regular sighting this luxury hotel was established in between Henderson NC and Petersburg Va. 
Back then the carriage or horseless carriage weren't all that comfy. So hotels like this dotted roadsides in many places along the main highway of the east coast of the United States...long before I-95.


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## Launch Mini (Dec 7, 2015)

Cool thread. Posting so I don't lose it.


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## bykfixer (Dec 7, 2015)

Back when Officers had loot.




General Chambliss' family was apparently no exception




^^ he's buried at the giant church next door.


In the one horse town the assistant City Manager was strolling by eating his 2 o'clock apple and saw me taking these pix. 
He committed to showing me some of the other historic sites there.


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## scout24 (Dec 7, 2015)

Very cool if you can get the tour from someone in the know! Look forward to more pics...


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## StarHalo (Dec 8, 2015)

Told you all the trees would have lights..


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## nbp (Dec 8, 2015)

Whoa! That's a lot of lights! Looks like a circus come to town. Haha


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## scout24 (Dec 8, 2015)

Jeez, StarHalo! That looks like I imagine Vegas would... Almost visible from space!  Clark Griswald would approve. (I loved the Christmas Vacation movie- that was meant as a compliment!)


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## scout24 (Dec 8, 2015)

Mr. Toad likes your lights!  He was sitting on a bench in front of my library this morning...


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## bykfixer (Dec 11, 2015)

That looks like a very smart frog.




^^ across from that big ole house.
In the right side of the pic is one of the oldest churches in America according to local lore.




^^ minty old building.



When he's not fighting crime as Batman...




Logic tells me it's **** Grayson (Robin) doing the dirty work....


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## scout24 (Dec 11, 2015)

Even millionaire crime fighters need a backup plan...


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## bykfixer (Dec 11, 2015)

Stock market crash in 08 came to mind when I saw the sign.

I love the mach windows.


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## bykfixer (Dec 15, 2015)

At some point when they paved the main drag in the 1 horse town, there was a safety award plaque applied to the asphalt...




^^ this was revealed
They scraped off the asphalt down to the initial layer above the old concrete in order to repave it back like it used to be long ago.




^^ 7 up safety award.


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## scout24 (Jan 9, 2016)

Wife and I have walked past this spot dozens of times. Just a low stone wall around a garden, we thought. Actually a sunken patio, maybe 25 feet from the main street. Ingenious way to have some privacy in the middle of town.


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## StarHalo (Feb 19, 2016)

Down at the park, overlooking the neighborhood


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## bykfixer (Mar 11, 2016)

I saw the darndest thing in a grocery store parking lot in the one horse town today.





Are you a power shopper? This will take you to the next level.


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## scout24 (Mar 13, 2016)

The V-8 and keg fuel tank put it over the top. Wow... oo:


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## Poppy (Mar 29, 2016)

Yesterday we went to NYC's American Museum of Natural History and later to dinner at 
"Bubba Gump's"
It is based/themed on the Movie Forest Gump.








That's my little Convoy S2+
My EDC for the day.

An interesting concept:
They had license plates, stationed like a flip chart.
One... RUN Forest Run,
The other .... STOP Forest Stop.

If you needed a waitress, just flip the sign, and any server running by would stop and attend to your needs.







Ah yes... my little Red Convoy S2+ shorty, hanging out with the condiments.


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## bestellen (Apr 12, 2016)

We have a professional hockey team here. But I don't know anything about hockey.


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## RedLED (May 7, 2016)

bykfixer said:


> ^^ Now it's pure Barney...as in Rubble.
> 
> 
> Here's something you don't see everyday...
> ...


With a semiphore, at thr RR Xing.


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## bykfixer (May 7, 2016)

RedLED said:


> With a semiphore, at thr RR Xing.



Quite possibly operational too. Just not needed as the tracks going right to left in the photo are not used anymore.


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## andrrrew (May 27, 2016)

scout24 said:


> While out and about walking through town with my Wife, we keep a running commentary about the local architecture and decorating. Today's finds are below. Show us what's cool in your neck of the woods!!!
> 
> 
> A turn-of-the-20th century shoe factory that has finally gotten decrepit enough to warrant a teardown. Wonderful old brickwork, I'd love to sneak in and look around. Too many people keeping an eye on it though. If you look close, starting about a third of the way down the building, you'll see big metal stars between the first and second, and second and third floors. They hold metal rods that span the building side-to-side. I want a star when they finally demo the building.
> ...



that is an amazing piece of architecture ! the gargoyles is fantastic !
Does anybody recognize what town is it?


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## scout24 (Aug 21, 2016)

3 months late, but it's Honesdale, Pa. in the Gargoyle pics. Went to Centralia, Pa. today, drove up the "Grafitti Highway", Highway 61 outside of town. Big underground coal fire still burns there, town's mostly abandoned and razed under Eminent Domain. Spooky, yet very cool. Yes, we were trespassing, no I don't condone it, on my own hook, etc...


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## Ladd (Aug 21, 2016)

Inspired by the above pictures, I had to google for further information. This Google account is fascinating......

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Centralia,_Pennsylvania


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## scout24 (Aug 23, 2016)

I'll be going back in October, so lots more pics then. It definitely deserves more time spent than I had alotted this trip.


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## scout24 (Oct 21, 2016)

So, there is a couple a few miles from my house on a small country road who do this every year for the Halloween season. I decided to finally take pictures and post them.


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## bykfixer (Nov 8, 2016)

That....
Is pretty cool!!!


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## bewerbung (Nov 6, 2017)

Decorations are going up around my town too.


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## bykfixer (Apr 4, 2018)

A town I'm working in was founded by coal miners in the middle 1800's. Today I ate lunch at a local landmark there.





It's a spot surrounded with sprawl so it was nice to see about an acre of largely untouched land.





The crater from the cave in.





What remains of the place.


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## StarHalo (Apr 17, 2018)

The local dispensary; like an Apple store but for local agriculture. Lots of different states on the license plates out front, quite the hot tourist stop..


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## bykfixer (Apr 20, 2018)

The other day life took me to a spot where a nearby train station was once a spot that a village was built around. Farm land these days and the train station is a local hair salon. These days the village is long since moved on but a local church remained. 









The post is concrete. 





Some old head stones





A local civil war soldier grave





My role was to watch these guys remove the yellow stripe and put back a new one.





Saw some rare birds with these dudes.





Doctored up this for a retro pic.

The church is now owned by a local farmer who quit farming and now has a repair shop for trucks and tractors across the street from the church. Basically the guy still has grain silos but they are for storing what others bring. And the repair shop fixes other farmers and local truckers equipment. There is also a half million acre tree nursery not far away owned by a congressman who supplies decorative trees all over the east coast. 

At one point while watching a yellow throated flycatcher (bird) I sneezed. A fellow at the repair shop about 2 football fields away said "bless you". That's how quiet and peaceful the place was.


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