Thursday, July 1, 2021

Fading Into History


This is the abandoned farmhouse in Ovid, NY that I have been photographing for years.  This photograph was taken in April of 2009.  So when we were coming home from our week in Rochester, I stopped to photograph it in it's current state.  I last photographed it in October 2019.  I usually photograph it in early spring and fall, and there are usually no leaves on the trees.  That was not the case on this occasion.  The house was pretty obscured.


Here is a view from the same side as the first photo from 2009.  It may not be obvious but the front and back roofs have collapsed, and both chimneys have collapsed.


A view from the front, with the front door boarded up.  You can see daylight through the window at the upper right because both the front and back roofs have collapsed.


I was really rushing around, trying to get photographs because I didn't have much time - we needed to get going.  And the bright sun and dark shade made photography difficult.  I think this is a collapsed porch leading to one of the back doors.


And here is a view through one of the windows of the tangle of debris from both a collapsing roof and a collapsed floor, and a stairway. 


I would love to have seen photographs of this farmhouse when it was new.  It must have been a beautiful home. Look at the beautiful detail of panels in this rear door.  And in the photograph below, look at the detail over each of the side windows.


Through this window on the right, you can see a timber with notches where floor joists once were, and you can see the whole interior wall lit by sunlight because there is no longer a roof over the room.


And look at the beautiful woodwork and spindles on this screen door, at the rear side of the house.  This really must have been a beautiful home place. You might want to click on each of the photographs to see each of them in greater detail.

4 comments:

Linda said...

This kind of decay just hurts my heart. I can definitely imagine what a glorious home it once was. Good job recording the decay in spite of your time constraint.

Anonymous said...

So sad to watch it be abandoned and falling apart. I imagine it being a lovely home on so much land years ago. I wonder what the history is.
Joan

Anonymous said...

It is so sad to see how time and weather have completely ruined this house.You have photographed it in many stages. Too bad that it was abandoned. It would be nice to know some history or see original photos of the house...betsey

Ken Spencer said...

I did a search for Historical Societies in Ovid, where I *thought* the house was, and Romulus, where apparently the house is, and didn't come up with much. So eventually I will call the town of Romulus and see if any old timers know anything about the house.