Merry christmas 2012

Our annual return to our Christmas town hall this year was not as we expected. Parking the car we started to walk to where we remember the town hall to be.. of course it was dark and cold and we came in from another direction this year. We walked down the road and saw nothing.. panic ensued. We thought it may be gone.. after all these year this was the year it was demolished. We walked back to the car a bit sad but also still puzzled about how it could be gone so easily. Upon getting back in the car we realized we were turned around and after driving around we found the town hall, still standing! We got out and walked inside - not much had changed except there were less Christmas decorations and the foundation wall was more caved than the year before.

Here is our annual picture with the tree!

hollow hallways pt 2

There were to many pictures to share in just one blog so this is part two!

darkroom

storage in a classroom they never used - water damage on roof

gym

stage

arts & crafts

kindergarten!

indoor sandbox for the young kids

water damaged hallway

hollow hallways

As I said in the previous post, we did return to the school for a more thorough documentation during the day. We didn't leave as early as we would like but we did have enough daylight to photograph the entire school.

This school was so large and seemed to go on forever. Of course desks were still in the school, old equipment, posters and learning aids and books were all over. This school was equipped with a wood working shop, dark room, computer labs, science lab, large library and more. It was originally designed for 400 kids but at max capacity it held about an eighth of that.

This cornerstone of the community and close knit school was a huge lose to the community. It is sad to see something like this close when it was obvious it was in good condition but this is just a reality of this province and these schools.

classroom

gym

SaskUrbex photographing the changerooms

hallway

science lab

computer lab

main hallway

library

library from the other side

school sneak preview

Went out on the road the other day to photograph some churches. Of course when we go looking for churches we usually drive through towns along the way that we may have not visited previously. While photographing a small town we drove around and noticed a very large school with large weeds and overgrown sidewalks. Driving closer we discovered it was a very large modern abandoned town in what seemed to be a town of less than 50 people. It was amazing that this school was in such a small town and with no vandalism on the outside. Since the light was quickly fading, we did a quick walk through photographing quickly with a plan to return in the next couple weeks as an opportunity like this has not presented itself in a while.

cleanest hallway of an abandoned school I have seen

lonely mill & ghost town

This would be the second time we have visited this mine/mill and ghost town. What a beautiful location. This old mining town and mill are located on a Montana back road and we quite intact but are not protected. They are in good condition considering the elements have taken their toll on sites nearby. This location has a bunkhouse, mill, hotel and many houses across the road.

hotel

hotel stairs to the 2nd floor

hotel room

townsite

townsite

townsite

hotel view from the mill

mill interior

mill interior

top of the mill & view of the townsite

bannack - ghost town

Bannack is a tourist town, and usually we don't do tourist ghost towns but this one is quite unique. This old mining town was completely abandoned and has some beautiful old buildings. We visited all the open buildings and were fortunate to find a worker who let us into the Masonic Hall which had a schoolhouse on the bottom. A very unique building we are told they still have meetings here and a bit about its history. The hotel was my favorite building as it had a spiral staircase and can still be used for events. The whole town has a fascinating history and the houses have not been restored but instead are in their natural decaying state but protected by the state.

Many many houses and shops lined the street, an old mill can also be seen and a graveyard. This unique town was well worth our time and a small fee.

"Bannack was founded in 1862 when John White discovered gold on Grasshopper Creek. As news of the gold strike spread many prospectors and businessmen rushed to Bannack hoping to strike it rich. In 1864, Bannack was named as the first Territorial Capital of Montana. Remaining in Bannack for only a short time, the Capital moved on to Virginia City. In 1863 gold had been discovered near Virginia City and at that time many prospectors left Bannack in hopes of finding the mother lode in Virginia City. However, some people stayed in Bannack and explored the use of further mining techniques. From the late 1860's to the 1930's, Bannack continued as a mining town with a fluctuating population. By the 1950's gold workings had dwindled and most folks had moved on. At that point the State of Montana declared Bannack a State Park. Today, over sixty structures remain standing, most of which can be explored."

http://www.bannack.org/

School interior

School interior

Hotel Interior

Hotel Meade

Inside the church

Masonic Temple & School