Road-trip to Stanton

This past December, we decided to find the ghost town called Stanton.

It ended up being somewhat of a disappointment, but I'll get into that later.

On the way there, we passed through the town of Yarnell, where we spotted this...

and this...

---- insert screeching car noise here ----

We pulled in and discovered they had lots of goodies for sale.

Car stuff, old appliances, and much more.

via Days of Vintage

via Days of Vintage

Mike, the owner, couldn't have been any nicer and he's willing to deal, even on the cheap stuff.

Here's the website, if you're ever in that part of Arizona.

After drooling all over that, we headed on down the road aways and spotted this...

An old burned down, abandoned house.

Or at least we think it was a house.

We couldn't find any information on it.

I did find some old writing in the cement though.

HAE S-69'

The writing below is confusing.

9.5.3. 1895 - 5.3.82

Dates?

I can't make out the rest, this way or...

this way.

Whatever the building was, it certainly had a beautiful view.

Back on down the road for quite some time, we finally found Stanton.

You can read more about the history of it 'here', but basically it was a stagecoach stop until gold was found nearby on what was to become Rich Hill.

Sounds innocent enough right?

Well, to begin with, it's named after Chuck Stanton, who ended up being a murderer.

Later it was reported that the residents liked to drink blood.

After it was abandoned, the Saturday Evening Post bought it and gave it away in a "jingle contest", but the winners didn't know what to do with it, so it went up for sale.

In the 1960s, hippies lived there and started using the old buildings for firewood.

In the 1970s, a mining association bought it and turned it into a recreational vehicle destination for members only.

And that is where my part of the sad story starts.

You see, we didn't know any of this when we headed out, because we just like to pick a town on the map and go, hoping that there will be some evidence of the people that lived there... buildings, foundations, etc.... So, when we arrived in town, we were surprised to find it surrounded by RVs, and ATVs zooming around in all directions.

You won't see them in my pictures, because I cut them out, but trust me, they were there.

As we got out of the car, my first reaction was to go up to the building you see below.

And I did, only to be accosted by the woman that works there.

Apparently, you have to sign in and listen to her tie-dye wearing husband tell you a lot of false facts about the place first.

It was free, but Good Lord, I would have rather paid a fee.

Finally, we were released to go have a look around.

Another sad fact, is that the buildings, that weren't destroyed, are not being kept up like they should be.

The outsides are in tact, but the insides are just awful.

The only thing that might be original is the wood burning stove, but we couldn't be sure.

There was an old piano though.

One of the other workers there said that the building is haunted by a little girl and once in a while the doll moves.

You can bet every penny that I kept my eye on that creepy doll.

When we took a gander at the back of the building, Mr. tie-dye told us that the holes were from gunshots.

Sorry, but I've seen woodpecker holes before, sir.

Good try though.

Across the way, was the old hotel.

As you can see below, the inside is just disappointing.

Yes, that's plywood covering the ceiling.

sad, sad, sad.

I guess I should just be happy that there's more than foundations left in the little town or that it didn't end up having the same fate as that burned down house we found. It has certainly faired better than a lot of these places we've traveled to. That's for sure.

It's just that this piece of history has survived so much, only to be taken over by a group of people that couldn't really care less about it and use it for a gimmick to get people out there.

It breaks my heart.

I hope one day, someone with a true love of history will rescue it.

Of course I hope that about every old thing, now don't I?

;)

Speaking of history...

On our way home, we came across an old graveyard.

I don't know about you, but I always stop and take a look around when we see one.

I find them sad and fascinating at the same time.

At least someone cares about this piece of history.

So, that was our trip to Stanton.

Even with the disappointment of what it's become, we had a good time, as always.

I hope you did too.

;)

xo

rue

Catch up

Since my computer went down right before the holidays, I though I'd catch you up on the goings on here.

Christmas was lovely.

But it was Annie's last Christmas living at home, so it was also bittersweet.

I acquired a vintage roaster from the 50s, just in time to make a beautiful turkey for Christmas dinner.

It worked!

Browned that puppy right up and happened to be the best turkey I've ever made :)

Who gets excited about a roaster?

This girl!

We went on a couple of ghost town trips (which I'll post about later).

And there's been a few projects around here, like putting the kitchen door back where it belongs...

and a few other things ;)

All of which i'll get into detail about later.

I'd get into it now but, you'd be here awhile, so you have to wait ;)

Be back soon!

xo

rue

A trip to the fair

I love going to the fair.

Big, small, it doesn't matter.

I've been to the local one in each place I've lived, but I think my favorite one so far is The Pima County Fair, here in Arizona.

Via google images

I went there a few weeks ago and had a great time.

It was HOT, but so worth it.

We had fun looking at antique farm equipment:

checking out all the animals and feeding some goats...

and of course, there was lots of eating!

No pictures of that though.

I don't think you needed a picture of us stuffing our faces ;)

Of course, we went there for all those things, but mostly we went to see country music star Josh Turner.

The concert was free to all those that paid to get in, so we just settled ourselves on the lawn, in front of the stage and enjoyed the show.

If he happens to come to your town, and you like country music, I highly recommend going to see him.

xo

rue

PS

Thank you so much for all your sweet words on my last post. 

You all are the best :)

Lowell life

When I went on a trip to Bisbee, I had another surprise waiting for me around the corner.

Literally.

You see, if you keep driving through Bisbee...

you'll see a mining operation....

then you'll go through a tunnel...

and an old town appears out of nowhere.

The town of Lowell.

"Lowell was at one time a sizable mining town located just to the southeast of Old Bisbee. The majority of the original townsite was consumed by the excavation of the Lavender Pit mine during the 1950s. All that is left today is a small portion of Erie Street, along with Evergreen Cemetery, Saginaw subdivision and Lowell Middle School. These days Lowell is considered by most of the local residents to be more of a place name than an actual community." via Western Mining History

It's a sad story, but fascinating at the same time.

You really feel as though you've stepped back in time, but all the residents vanished.

Well, except for some random tourists and bikers.

All the cars on the street are sitting there like someone just abandoned them.

I half expected Rod Serling to walk out.

Or perhaps Barney Fife.

Of course, you know I'd be happy as a little clam living there.

It just needs a little clean-up ;)

Going farther out, there's a neighborhood, where there's some rather large old homes overlooking some much smaller ones.

I'm guessing they're the ones that made all the dough (aka money) at the mines.

After that it was time to head home, back through Bisbee.

What a wonderful, quirky place :)

Oh and lastly, here's a picture of me and my son, Alex, while he was here visiting this past weekend.

Thank you for all the sweet words about his visit.

We had a great time :)

xo

rue

PS

Edited to add: The cars are owned by a man that owns a few of the buildings. The town is a project for him and some of his friends and they're fixing it up to be a sort of museum. There's only one business (that I know of) and it's a breakfast place. But yes, it's basically abandoned.