Latest Structures Page 128

Thames River Railroad Bridge - Groton Bridge, New London Connecticut

Thames River Railroad Bridge - Groton Bridge, New London Connecticut

The national railway network that was to be one of the critical catalysts in the industrialization of the United States was largely completed between 1840 and 1880. Most early railroads were short lines that attempted to tap economic resources of the hinterlands of cities. By the second quarter of the 19^th century, cities east of the Mississippi, particularly those in the northeast, began to build longer lines and consolidate shorter ones to tie them more closely together. The New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad provides an excellent example of how railroad systems were created and how they advanced transportation technology, including movable bridges, with their economic power. The New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad was first formed by a

Joint High School, Rochester Indiana

Joint High School, Rochester Indiana

The original name of Joint High School is from the joint agreement between the City of Rochester School System and Rochester Township to form one high school. Rochester High School was started in 1874 in Central School, which was across Pontiac Street and was commissioned by the State Board of Education on December 16, 1884. By 1912, there was a need for more classrooms and laboratories which made the construction of a new high school necessary. The school board spent several years working on developing a plan for the new structure. These efforts included visiting other schools in other cities, examining plans, and hiring an Indianapolis architect, Charles E. Bacon, to perfect the plans. City school board members were Mr. True,

Indiana National Bank Building, Indianapolis Indiana

Indiana National Bank Building, Indianapolis Indiana

After a fire on 18 Sept. 1895 that destroyed the bank's quarters, the directors commissioned D. A. Bohlen and Son, Architects, to design a new building. Oscar D. Bohlen of the architectural firm and bank president Volney T. Mallott went to New York City to look at banks. Construction began 1 Feb. 1896. The building was occupied on 12 Jan. 1897. The building was designed in the Classic style and was fireproof. The exterior was of Indiana oolitic limestone, carved by H. R. Saunders, the sculptor. The interior was finished in white Italian marble. The dimensions were given as 128 feet long, 63 feet wide, and 36 feet high. It is interesting to note that The American Architect and Building News

Charles Major School, Shelbyville Indiana

Charles Major School, Shelbyville Indiana

The school was constructed on the former site of the Shelbyville Seminary. Although the seminary could have remained on the site when the new building was constructed, it was not practical. The seminary was constructed in 1822 with another building added in 1855. The new school building, constructed in 1922, was named after Charles Major, a local author of childrens' books. A statue depicting a young boy from one of Major's books, The Bears of Blue River, was placed outside of the main entrance of the school. It has since been moved to the Town Square. The original building was constructed in 1922; an addition was built in 1949. The addition was constructed to replicate the original portion of the building.

Union Pacific Railroad Depot, Kelso California

Union Pacific Railroad Depot, Kelso California

Construction of the railway line between Salt Lake City and Los Angeles, via Las Vegas, began in 1901 with the formation of the San Pedro, Los Angeles, and Salt Lake Railroad Company by prominent Senator Williams Andrews Clark. In 1902, half of the railroad's stock was acquired by the Union Pacific Railroad, which was looking for an outlet to the California coast from its terminus in Ogden, Utah. The line opened for business on 1 May 1905. In 1916, the company shortened its name to the Los Angeles and Salt Lake Railroad. In 1921, the Union Pacific Railroad bought the remainder of the railroad's stock from Senator Clark, although it continued to use the LA & SL RR name until 1988.

Montgomery County Jail, Crawfordsville Indiana

Montgomery County Jail, Crawfordsville Indiana

Designed by architect E.J. Hodgson and built by Hinkley and Norris in 1882, the Montgomery County Jail was an unusual experiment in penal engineering: a cylindrical cage which rotated around a central axis. The Montgomery County Jail is the oldest of six human squirrel cages, lazy susan jails, or rotary jails built in the midwest, and used a rotary system patented by W.H. Brown, S.F. Haugh, and John L. Ketcham. The rotary system proved dangerous in operation, but it represented in theory an attempt to use 19^th century engineering methods to solve current social problems. In 1882 the idea of employing a circular design in prison architecture was not new. In his treatise on prison reform, The Penopticon, Jeremy Bentham suggested

Bells Ford Covered Bridge, Seymour Indiana

Bells Ford Covered Bridge, Seymour Indiana

In 1834, Indiana's first covered bridge was built on the National Road near Straughn. Historians estimate that at least 600 covered wooden bridges were built in Indiana. Over time, most of these bridges were lost to floods, replacement, neglect, or arson. In 1930, when the Indiana Historical Society and the Indiana Highway Department formed the Covered Timber Bridge Committee to document the state's surviving covered bridges, there were less than 200 remaining. Today, there are ninety covered bridges in Indiana. The Bells Ford Bridge is the only surviving combination Post truss bridge in the United States. It symbolizes the significant role railroads played in the development of bridge truss technology in the mid-nineteenth century. It is an excellent example of the

Lembeck and Betz Eagle Brewery, Jersey City New Jersey

Lembeck and Betz Eagle Brewery, Jersey City New Jersey

The Lembeck & Betz Eagle Steam Ale Brewery was founded by Henry F. Lembeck, a businessman from Jersey City, and John Betz, a beer brewer from New York City. Betz was the son of John F. Betz, the first German ale brewer in America, who operated the John Betz brewery in Philadelphia. It was in his father's brewery that John Betz learned his trade. Lembeck operated a grocery store in New York City which he moved to Jersey City. At some point in time, Lembeck was a sales agent of John Betz Ale and made the acquaintance of the younger John Betz. In 1868, Lembeck and Betz formed a partnership to build a brewery, which they named the Lembeck & Betz

Beechwood - Isaac Kinsey House, Milton Indiana

Beechwood - Isaac Kinsey House, Milton Indiana

The Kinsey house and farm complex were constructed during 1871-73, and designed by Richmond architect Joel Stover, his only known extant work in Indiana. The two-story High Victorian Italianate residence is distinguished by polygonal side hays, and an ornamental entry porch, delicately detailed in wrought-iron, with a main doorway completely framed by an arch of square stone blocks with beveled edges and embossed panels. Articulating the hip roof is a deep denticulated cornice braced with elaborate decorative brackets. A rectangular cupola trimmed at the eaves with sheet-metal brackets and cresting crowns the main roof. The house is adjoined by a dairy house and smoke house, and eleven additional outbuildings stand on the property. Isaac Kinsey (1821-1896) was a prominent farmer and

Central of Georgia Railway Station, Savannah Georgia

Central of Georgia Railway Station, Savannah Georgia

The Central of Georgia Railroad was organized in 1833 and by 1850 had outgrown its original facilities in Savannah. Trackage increased from 190 miles in 1843 to 527 miles by 1855. To meet these demands, William M. Wadley, then Superintendent, conceived a plan for a comprehensive, integrated complex, including passenger and freight depots and shops for the construction and repair of locomotives and rolling stock. When completed in 1855, the Central's facility was described in Zerah Colburn's New York Railroad Advocate as the most complete and elegant railroad station in the country. The construction of the passenger depot building is an illustration of the impact of the events of April 1861 on the industry of the South. Begun in 1860, the

Joseph Wheeler Plantation, Wheeler Alabama

Joseph Wheeler Plantation, Wheeler Alabama

The General Joseph Wheeler Plantation, which is primarily significant for its associations with General Joseph Wheeler, retains much of its 19^th Century plantation ambiance and appearance and contains three structures representative of three generations of plantation life in 19^th Century Alabama. The three main structures include: a one-story log house constructed around 1818 by the Hickman family which homesteaded the plantation; a two-story log and clapboard home constructed as the family's permanent residence during the 1820's; and a two-and-a-half-story frame home that was built by Wheeler during the latter portion of the 19^th Century and served both as the center of his large and prosperous plantation and as his home until his death in 1906. Joseph Wheeler symbolizes the restoration of

East Point Lighthouse, Maurice River New Jersey

East Point Lighthouse, Maurice River New Jersey

Due to the importance of the maritime industry to the Delaware River and Bay area, between 1764 when the area's first lighthouse was built at Cape Henlopen, Delaware, and 1926 when the last manned-type lighthouse was built at the Harbor of Refuge near Lewes, Delaware, over 50 separate lighthouse or lightship stations were once in operation. Today, all of the lightship stations have been discontinued, none of the lighthouse sites has a year-round keeper or custodian, and only 20 of the historic lighthouses or keeper's dwellings still exist in this area. Of those remaining structures, the former Maurice River Lighthouse is the oldest in the Delaware River and Bay area, and the second oldest in the states of New Jersey and

Miah Maull Shoal Lighthouse, Delaware Bay New Jersey

Miah Maull Shoal Lighthouse, Delaware Bay New Jersey

The Miah Maull Shoal Lighthouse is a well-preserved embodiment of the cast-iron and concrete caisson foundation technology which was used from 1876 to 1913 in lighthouses that occupied waterbound sites in the northeastern United States. At least 50 such lighthouses were built. Miah Maull Shoal, designed in 1907 and completed in 1913, was the last example of this type built before reinforced concrete technology was introduced; it was also one of the last major navigational aids built in the Delaware Bay. As part of a string of lighthouses in the bay and the lower Delaware River that were in place before World War One, Miah Maull Shoal helped foster the improved navigation of the Delaware that was crucial to the success

Cherokee Plantation, Fort Payne Alabama

Cherokee Plantation, Fort Payne Alabama

Cherokee Plantation is reputed to be the oldest home in Alabama, dating to 1790. Oral history indicates that the house was built by Daniel and Molly Ross in 1790 when they moved from Turkey Town, near Gadsden, to Will's Town, now Fort Payne, with infant son, John Ross. The two-story log cabin they built fronted the Great War and Trading Path which traversed Alabama from north to south. In 1838 the Path became the Trail of Tears and was used when the Cherokee Nation in this portion of Alabama was removed from the stockade at Fort Payne. John Ross, who grew up in the house, later moved to the area around Chattanooga, founded Ross' Landing and Rossville, Georgia. Ross became one

Macombs Dam Bridge, New York City New York

Macombs Dam Bridge, New York City New York

The Macombs Dam Bridge (originally the Central Bridge) and the 155th Street Viaduct, constructed in 1890-95 to the designs of eminent Structural Engineer Alfred Pancoast Boiler, for the New York City Departments of Public Parks and Public Works, was a considerable municipal undertaking, as well as a significant feat of engineering. The Macombs Dam Bridge is the third oldest major bridge in New York City (after the Brooklyn and George Washington Bridges) and is also the City's oldest, intact metal truss, swing-type bridge, a bridge type most often employed in New York City along the Harlem River between the 1880's and 1910. The bridge's steel central Swing Span was considered at the time to be the world's heaviest movable mass. Boiler

Hereford Lighthouse, North Wildwood New Jersey

Hereford Lighthouse, North Wildwood New Jersey

When the Life Saving Serivce was started in 1849, installing men and boats on the county beaches, Hereford Inlet, Station #36, was one of the most active. The dangerous waters and shoals between Seven Mile Beach and Five Mile Beach were the scene of many tragic and costly wrecks. This service developed a hardy breed of men, some of whom made their homes in Anglesea. In 1874 the Hereford Lighthouse was built. The history of Anglesea (North Wildwood) has always been tied closely with to that of Hereford Inlet. In its early days, traffic through this Inlet was its principal source of economic existence. Lighthouses of the area were serviced from this point, a job that required weekly trips transporting personnel

Alfred Ringling Manor, Oak Ridge New Jersey

Alfred Ringling Manor, Oak Ridge New Jersey

Ringling Brothers Circus Founder Built and Lived in this Estate

Alfred T. Ringling was one of seven brothers out of the small town of Baraboo, Wisconsin who in their lifetime organized and performed in the greatest tented amusement enterprise in the world. Ringling's palatial estate at Oak Ridge, New Jersey was built around 1913 and completed in 1916 and, in addition to being Alfred T.'s residence, became the winter headquarters for the R. T. Richards Circus. The Ringling Brothers Circus, organized in 1884 grew to the largest circus in the world four years later; surpassing in magnitude even the Barnum and Bailey Circus. In 1907 the Ringlings bought out the Barnum and Bailey Circus and operated under the name Ringling Brothers, Barnum and Bailey Circus until its final show on May

Hahne and Company Department Store, Newark New Jersey

Hahne and Company Department Store, Newark New Jersey

The establishment of the first department store has been credited to Aristide Bougicaut, with the founding of his Bon Marche' store in Paris in 1838. Beginning with a drapery store, by 1860, the Bon Marche' store had separate departments selling dresses, coats, millinery, underwear and shoes. The storeowner encouraged customers to visit his store by creating displays and offers, with clearly marked prices on the goods. He pioneered the idea of the store as purposely designed for fashionable public assembly rather than just a means of supply. Boucicaut allowed customers to exchange merchandise they bought or get their money back. His money-back guarantee was a new concept that built up his trade substantially, and he reversed the prevalent practice of taking

Woodlane Plantation, Eufaula Alabama

Woodlane Plantation, Eufaula Alabama

This was Once a 2,400 Acre Plantation Growing Cotton and Tobacco

Available records show that Tennant Lomax, a wealthy Montgomery Courtian, owned Woodlane Plantation in the early 1850s. While it is possible that Lomax may have built a house at Woodlane Plantation, the construction of the main dwelling has historically been attributed to John Raines, a wealthy cotton planter from Muscogee County, Georgia. Raines owned land in Barbour County as early as 1833. Woodlane plantation was part of a 2400-acre tract that comprised all of the land between Barbour and Chaneyhatchee Creek to the Chattahoochee River. Raines' Landing was located on the banks of the Chatthoochee River at the end of the tree-lined canopied drive. In addition to cotton, Raines also raised tobacco and subsequently, constructed the tobacco-curing barn that is still

Pennsylvania Train Station, Newark New Jersey

Pennsylvania Train Station, Newark New Jersey

Built in the 1930's as a large prestige, palatial station, Pennsylvania Station retains much of its original stature after forty years. The Station is most notable for its well developed and sophisticated functional organization and its Art Deco detailing which is found in numerous motifs throughout the exterior and interior of the building. The Art Deco style is found in repetitive curve linear forms, periodic decorations, and the clean white metal materials used. Despite grime and some deterioration and alteration, the Station is the first and perhaps the most successful of the grand railway stations which also served as an intermodal terminal. The most significant design feature of the building is its Art Deco detailing which is found in numerous motifs

Book Title The Atlas of Abandoned Places: A Journey Through The World's Forgotten Wonders

The Atlas of Abandoned Places: A Journey Through The World's Forgotten Wonders

Book Title Abandoned Train Stations (Abandoned Places)

Abandoned Train Stations (Abandoned Places)

Book Title Lost Places: Images of Bygone America

Lost Places: Images of Bygone America

Book Title Abandoned America: Then & Now: A Fun & Fascinating Look Revisiting America's Abandoned Places of the Past

Abandoned America: Then & Now: A Fun & Fascinating Look Revisiting America's Abandoned Places of the Past

Note: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.