Little Schoolhouse on the Prairie
On this day, I devoted myself to the sole task of looking for abandoned schoolhouses. At the headquarters of Buffalo Gap National Grasslands (in
Wall, South Dakota), I obtained a map that indicated the sites where schools once, and sometimes still, stood. During my search, mostly what I found were either rows of crops with no sign of the school that once graced that location, or concrete slabs with a few rotting timbers to mark the spot. I did find a couple of nice abandoned farmhouses and two one-room schoolhouses of which this was the second. It was tiny--about the size of a detached one-car garage--probably the smallest school I've yet encountered. The road it sat upon had essentially ceased to be a road, long completely overgrown with weeds. If it weren't for my map, I wouldn't have noticed it. I debated whether to park my car where the road still existed--maybe 1/2 mile from the building--and walk the rest of the way, or drive a risk hitting something hidden by the vegetation. A combination of laziness and a disgust for ticks made me opt for driving . . . slowly. I made it there without mishap, and spent about an hour there, exploring and taking photos.
Incidentally, on the horizon at the center-right, you can just make out an old abandoned farmhouse where I had just spent the proceeding hour--the photos from which will no doubt one day make my photostream.
Little Schoolhouse on the Prairie
On this day, I devoted myself to the sole task of looking for abandoned schoolhouses. At the headquarters of Buffalo Gap National Grasslands (in
Wall, South Dakota), I obtained a map that indicated the sites where schools once, and sometimes still, stood. During my search, mostly what I found were either rows of crops with no sign of the school that once graced that location, or concrete slabs with a few rotting timbers to mark the spot. I did find a couple of nice abandoned farmhouses and two one-room schoolhouses of which this was the second. It was tiny--about the size of a detached one-car garage--probably the smallest school I've yet encountered. The road it sat upon had essentially ceased to be a road, long completely overgrown with weeds. If it weren't for my map, I wouldn't have noticed it. I debated whether to park my car where the road still existed--maybe 1/2 mile from the building--and walk the rest of the way, or drive a risk hitting something hidden by the vegetation. A combination of laziness and a disgust for ticks made me opt for driving . . . slowly. I made it there without mishap, and spent about an hour there, exploring and taking photos.
Incidentally, on the horizon at the center-right, you can just make out an old abandoned farmhouse where I had just spent the proceeding hour--the photos from which will no doubt one day make my photostream.