Joan and I were taking the scenic route home after a trip in Vermont in late January when we were compelled to stop the car and get the camera out.
Traveling through Great Barrington, Massachusetts, on U.S. Route 7, what caught our eye was the abandoned and overgrown Great Barrington Fairgrounds.
The fairgrounds took a direct hit from an F4 tornado in 1995 -- winds were estimated to be between 158 and 260 miles per hour. There were attempts to rebuild and reopen, but the fairgrounds closed for good around 2000 and are now surrounded by "No Trespassing" signs (which I obeyed).
Here are some of the photos I took on that cold and flurry-filled day.
If you're interested in more on the fairgrounds, check out this message board, which has a gallery of photos that were taken in 2008. It's interesting to see what's changed and stayed the same between and 2008 and 2012. The board has some interesting comments, including a bittersweet story from someone whose family used to own the fairgrounds.
Here's one last photo, which is definitely better if viewed in a larger version. (Just click on it.)
Some of my other photo galleries
- Old City Cemetery in Lynchburg, Virginia
- Signs at the York Fair
- Dilapidated structures of Southern New Jersey
- University of Delaware, circa 1937-41 (by my grandmother)
- Taftville/Ponemah Mill in eastern Connecticut
Greetings ~ I am working with the new owners of the Great Barrington Fairgrounds and would love to connect with you re: your photos... please check out https://www.facebook.com/GreatBarringtonFairgrounds and connect with me there. You are welcome to share a link to your blog and photos there! Exciting things are happening!
ReplyDeleteTHANKS ~ L