Abandonment Issues
While I was away on location in Tennessee I came across this old abandoned house. I'm sure during it's hey day it was filled with charm and old fashioned goodness. It's a shame to see it in such shambles now. But on the other hand it's a salvage pickers dream. The front door alone would be worth a truck drive back.
Behind the house was an outbuilding still hanging on to it's red tin roof. I can just see it filled with the owners garden tools and implements including a fancy push lawn mower. I'm guessing this since it was much too small for a tractor.
And did you notice the porch was once painted a beautiful gray color? It's so on trend now that we've probably forgotten we didn't come up with the idea. What's old is new again.
What about you? Do you like to peek into run down houses? I bet I'm not the only one with abandonment issues. Why, some of you may even remember one of my previous posts on derelict houses. Yep, I'm still attracted to neglect!
44 Responses to “Abandonment Issues”
I love to peek into old abandoned homes…and dream about how it was back then…Kind of sad too…I loved this post…That door is delicious!
I do that too!!! It always make me sad to see an old house abandoned. It sure does have some great architectural pieces though!
Puppies, broken furniture, old houses and unfortunately for a very long time and until I married my lonely husband, men…I always want to take them home, clean them up and make them feel loved…
I have always had the idea of a fine art series or book on neglected houses of the south! Some of the barely peek out of the kudzu…
I’ve had a fascination with abandoned homes and hotels, and churches since I was little. I think part of the appeal is letting your imagination run wild!! We have a friend that picks historic buildings that are unfortunately, left unprotected and will be demolished in the near future. It seems like such a beautiful, yet somewhat sad and eerie job to have…..
this is so lovely! I too have abandonment issues…I love anything in ruin or wreck, especially when nature has intertwined itself with it…like the porch deck picture above! I LOVE that front door too…how much to ship to ireland LOL 😉
Oh yeah I do it all the time and my husband thinks there is something wrong
I would love to see that house. I enjoy looking at old homes like that and wonder about who used to live there.
Hi Heather!
When my mom/business partner and I decided that it was time to think about expanding my itty bitty shop, I knew that rather than build something new, I wanted to rescue an old house. My mom was all for it. I had a couple of houses in mind, one was abandoned, the oldest home a few communities away…but it was too fragile too move. The second house was really sweet and didn’t need much work, was just a few blocks away, but the seller wanted $115,000.00 for just the house. On a drive around my block, I spied something peeking through the trees that had slipped my mind. It was an abandoned bungalow. The owners, who live just next door, had left the house “as is” in 1993, when they moved their mother in with them. One day, while the man was out mowing his lawn, I approached him and said, “Do you have plans for that house?” When he realized that I wasn’t there to complain about it, he said, “You can have it…if you can move it.” He gave us a tour of the house, apologizing about the piles and piles of “junk” that littered every room. I smiled and replied, “Please don’t worry about it, if you take what you want, we’d be happy to deal with the rest.” So we did. : ) There is now a 1919 bungalow sitting in the former plant nursery across the lane from my itty bitty shop. It still needs TONS of work, but it is going to be beautiful!
I LOVE abandoned houses. LOVE them. SO much mystery. And I always think about the last people who lived there…why they left and what happened. Very beautiful house!
I read this a couple of times until I realized you probably meant lovely husband!
I love old houses, old cars, old furniture… They have such character and hidden stories within them! And yes, that door is Amazing! Your post has inspired a new Pinterest board! Hmm, what to call it…
My Grandparents home was abandoned {and almost to fall into itself} until my uncle took it over and now it’s the sweetest little white cottage. It was also very sweet during it’s abandonment years.
Heather,
I hope you had a wonderful time in Tennessee. I moved here from Washington State and now I am in love with this beautiful part of the South. Can’t wait to see the stories you have to write…
Heather, I not only drive by real slow, stop, back-up, peek inside them… I live in one! The renovation process has been slow, but I fell in love with this lot/cottage a long time ago, and am proud to have brought it back to life- somewhat. I remember about 10 years ago driving down the road passed this little white cottage with the huge overgrown yard and thinking of all the things I would do if…
Geez, feels good knowing I am not the only one with issues.
Heather,
I am so glad you had the chance to see the beautiful state I call home! I am a native Nashvillian-have traveled the USA and still love my southern home. There are people that are crazy about movie stars- music entertainers-politicians…for me it is you and your incredible photography and your way with story telling.While in Tennessee you visited my two stores that I co-own with my life long best friend-Three French Hens and The Roost.How did I miss that !!! Waaaaaa
I certainly hope you enjoyed your visit. We LOVEEEEEEEEEEEEE the magazine and we love you ! Once again you have captivated my imagination with this story. I too am intriqued with old homes and barns showing their age. Lovin this home a bunch !!!
Yep, I know what you mean.
I love abandoned buildings…my eyes seek them out on road trips; I love the hidden stories they tell!
Hollie
i love old homes. when you look at them can’t you just hear all her old stories coming out of the walls. always makes me wonder. that front door is pretty amazing.
Yes indeed! One of my favorite activies!
Oh Heather be carefull! Camo Man and I were checking out an old house and right there in the livingroom hanging from the ceiling was a huge hornets nest. LOL
We were outta there so fast!
Oh, what a sad house! I hope someone buys it and brings it back to it’s former glory! Not me though, been there and done that to a Queen Anne Victorian. (The movie Money Pit was just a small taste of what we went through). Don’t live there anymore.
Anyway, I got my chicken coop plans today and they are great. I’m planning it for next year – have to find a carpenter that works really cheap and does excellent quality work. Love, Linda
I’m going to Tennessee in August, I can’t wait to see all the old houses! 🙂
I will dream to have a house like this in France! Beautiful pictures!
I drool over these old beauties!
http://www.minnesotajunker.blogspot.com
Oh, how I love looking at your blog. So very sad, those houses waiting quietly for a family to love. Have you ever looked at abandoned America.org? So many people and animals in need, so much potential for a new life for all of them, including all the once-loved structures. Thank you for sharing so much with so many of us, especially those lovely chickens.
you are not alone! there is a falling down barn here that i am just in love with! i’ve not worked up the nerve to call and see if they’d let me buy some of the parts…..i love the run down houses too, sad in a way but i can see their beauty even in their state of disrepair….that’s when i wish to win the lottery so i could buy them all up and restore them! have a great weekend!! susan
How happy! I am from Tennessee and love the hills and mountains and the little nooks that hold the hidden treasures of old. My husband and I lived in a old 26 room house that had been turned into 4 apartments. In it’s era, it was called a mansion by locals. Beautiful archicture, huge rooms,claw foot tubs, high ceilings, creaking floors, and maybe a ghost or two. Wish I still lived there..
Hello Heather,
I also love looking around and sometime inside (if my dad is with me) old derelict houses. It is amazing the old stuff that you find. Thanks for sharing this post! I love that vintage door; it is way cool.
Smiles, Paula
Sadly the very old run-down houses around here get paved down for apartments and strip malls (the other run-down houses are just run-down gross and ruin the neighborhoods).
I remember when John Kennedy Jr. got married and the photo of them coming out of the quaint run-down country church steps, looking so simple & elegant against that backdrop…I tore that photo out to save’cuz I was so impressed with how charming it looked…this was before the blogs. I just discovered the blog & photography by Mandylynne which reminds me of this look, too.
i am a sucker for anything abandoned… a house, a piece or furniture… but that is why God made us… to go and fix all of the broken down things in the world… i do love this house… and this thoughtful post… xo
yes, and dream of what was and what could be and it just goes on from there..beautiful blog btw
yes, and dream of what was and what could be and it just goes on from there..beautiful blog btw
yes, and dream of what was and what could be and it just goes on from there..beautiful blog btw
yes, and dream of what was and what could be and it just goes on from there..beautiful blog btw
I love to fix these kinds of abandoned houses…my family has just fixed a huge house in the south of Sweden, just by the waterfront…so nice! It is a fine line between spoiling the old charm and fixing what needs to be done, but I love it! It is like art! I have some (a few) photos on my blog if you want to see a really run down house given a new life (sorry for my swenglish)
TIN ROOF….. Rusted!!! :-)… well, at least painted red! Love this post, because YES! I too feel the same intrigue of abandoned buildings. In fact I did a post on my blog about this obsession! If you have a chance go see it –
http://www.abundantfinds.blogspot.com. Yeah, like you have so much free time! Ha!
When I was a teenager, a girlfriend and I used to go “old house exploring”, probably not too smart for two teenage girls on their own, but it was the 70’s…..smiles.
When I moved into my grandma’s house over 30 years ago, I found pieces of furniture that she had painted white. At the time everyone was stripping wooden furniture back to it’s “natural” state, I know I couldn’t imagine why she would paint over oak!!
As far as the gray, every floor that was painted was pale gray.
My first husband and I bought (for $12000) an abandoned cottage, filled with everything the little old ladies that lived in it had. Clothes, mail, dishes–everything. It was a little spooky but fun to get to “know” them as I sifted through everything. Then we fixed up the place and it’s still being lived in today. I now have my eye on another funny little place, which would be perfect if only it has an enamel farm sink and a claw footed tub. Anything else I can deal with!!
Love this post!
We used to pile the kids into the van on sundays and drive around the back country roads looking for abandoned homes so we could search thru them.
Fun times!
Smiles, Dollys’ cherry heart
I love, love, love old houses in any shape. It would be a dream job to either buy and bring back to glory or to salvage what could be to create an “old” new house.
I visit my parent’s vacation home in the San Juan Islands a few times a year. There is a very old house that has been abandoned as long as I can remember. The earth is slowly, but surely, reclaiming it. There are wild bushes growing from the windows, the exterior walls are nearly transparent, and the roof is all but collapsed. I recently had the thought that I should have been documenting it over time. It would have made an incredible time-lapse piece.
I fell in love with a house a couple of years ago and told my husband I wanted to buy it, move it, and restore it — drove out to see it one day and – poof – gone, bulldozed for a church parking lot! So sad, it had beautiful lines.
I live in Tennessee, and my grandparents painted their front porch that shade of gray every summer. It was a marine paint, very heavy, glossy and slick to the touch. Rainwater beaded up on it; that’s why they used it, to protect the wood and make the porch less slippery when it was wet. I always loved the smell of that paint — it didn’t smell like regular paint.
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