Brookhill Ferry Shipwreck Site in Baton Rouge, LouisianaThe lack of rain in the South and Midwest over the past several months have resulted in the depths of Mississippi River reaching record low levels. Due to these unusually low water levels so really interesting things are being discovered in areas that are generally under water. In Baton Rouge, Louisiana the shipwreck of an over one hundred year old ferry has recently been discovered.
The now exposed wreckage is believed to be of the Brookhill Ferry that used to transport people and horse-drawn carriages across the Mississippi River in the late 1800s and early 1900s before any bridge in the area ever existed. According to newspaper records the ship went down in a severe storm way back in June of 1906.
An Antique Paradise in Oro Grande on Old Route 66, California
Located along the Mojave River, the vicinity of Oro Grande was the location for Native American settlements hundreds of years. The river was also the part of a trade route from the Colorado River for tribes in the southwest with those on the coast of Southern California, what was called the Mohave Trail. Followed by Spanish padres and soldiers, and later American fur trappers and New Mexican traders the Mohave Trail became part of the Old Spanish Trail between New Mexico and California from 1830. After the Americans acquired California in the Mexican American War, Mormon pioneers developed a wagon road from Salt Lake City to Los Angeles on the western part of the Old Spanish Trail crossing the Mojave River here just below the Lower Narrows of the Mojave River. In 1859, Aaron G. Lane established the a ranch and store for travelers on the road at this crossing, that came to be called Lane's Crossing. This was the first settlement on the Mojave River. He sold out in 1865 and moved down river to establish a ranch at Bryman, and others took over his old ranch.
An Adventure In The Lair of the Fouke Monster, Arkansas
The first stop for any monster hunter or movie enthusiast upon arrival in Fouke is the Monster Mart which is part convenience store, gift shop and Bigfoot museum. The place is of course a tourist trap and I certainly can't fault anyone for wanting to make a dollar or two off a local legend. It would be easy to simply dismiss a place like this but there is more than meets the eye to experience here.
The museum portion of the Monster Mart is campy as all get out. The are giant Fouke Monster statues and funny Bigfoot illustrations on the wall. There is even a giant head of a werewolf for some reason. It had all the trimmings of some sort of sideshow exhibit.
Besides all of the camp there were some actual Fouke Monster related materials that were really very interesting. On the wall were tons of old newspaper clippings about sightings in the area along with actual physical evidence of the monster's existence like casts of footprints, photographs and the like. There were also several items related to The Legend of Boggy Creek movie like posters and other promotional material.
An Afternoon At Dead Man's Point in Apple Valley, California
I can't deny that the place can be a bit spooky at times and I would be reluctant to wander around the area at night. As many of you know the location was the sight of two famous massacres. The first was the massacre of Catholic missionaries by Cahuilla Indians and the second, a massacre of Cahuilla Indians by white settlers. Later on it has been said that a group of stagecoach robbers attempted to use the rocks as cover in a shootout with lawmen. As you can guess the robbers met their doom amongst the boulders hence the name Dead Man's Point.
Movie buffs know the location as the backdrop for several of the 1950s most famous science fiction/horror movies It Came From Outer Space and Tarantula. Scenes from the 1954 giant ants on the loose movie Them! were filmed just down the road.
The Decaying Fate Of Illinois Central 0-6-0 Locomotive 333, Louisiana
Two years ago my wife and I went on a sort of pilgrimage to find the old Illinois Central steam locomotive that used to sit across from the Louisiana State Capitol in Baton Rouge. Our research lead to the remote property of the abandoned Tioga Heritage Park and Museum in Tioga, Louisiana. Sure enough tucked behind the museum's main building was locomotive 333 along with a former Illinois Central caboose. At the time the locomotive and it's companion were in pretty bad shape.
Today I decided to venture back up the highway to Tioga to take another look at good old number 333. As you can imagine the state of the locomotive that was once fine example of Louisiana railroad history has become much worse. At least that is what I could deduce from what I could see through the vegetation. As it sits right now the locomotive is slowly being enveloped by weeds and vines. Given enough time this piece of our state's history will look more like a Chia Pet than a steam locomotive.
Travel Back In Time - Pioneertown, California
If you have ever traveled on California State Route 62 from Palm Springs to Yucca Valley you may have noticed a small sign off the highway pointing towards a road leading to something called Pioneertown. I used to drive past that sign once a week and wondered just what the heck Pioneertown actually was? One day the curiosity finally got the best of me and I veered off the main road and began a journey down a lonely desert road towards my unknown destination.
If you are a fan of classic television you have probably seen an episode of The Twilight Zone or Outer Limits where a motorist gets lost out in the desert and somehow travels back in time to the old west. The bewildered traveler is normally attacked by Native Americans and the ends up in a saloon fight. My journey was something like that because Pioneertown actually turned out to be a real wild west pioneer town that is perfectly preserved right down to the hitching posts.
An Afternoon At Calico Ghost Town - Yermo, California
If you have ever traveled from Los Angeles to Las Vegas vi the I-15 freeway you nave probably noticed the name Calico formed out of white rocks atop a mountain just outside of Barstow. If you ever found yourself curious enough to forgo your Vegas activities for a hour or so and detoured off the highway to discover just what is up with those rocks you would discover an unearthly looking site that was once a silver mining town. The structures range from what anyone would recognize as traditional western dwellings to others built directly into the rocky hills that would look just as much at home on Mars as they do here in the California desert.
Viewing these numerous structures makes one ponder what life was like in Calico back in it's heyday. The temperatures in this part of the country can rise to 120 degrees in the summer and the conditions must have been unbearable. Just peak inside one of the windows. The conditions were cramped, dusty and hot. These minors lived a life devoid of any luxury in pursuit of a fortune that very few ever came close to. The lure of precious metals was strong in the 1800s and the silver that was being pulled out of the nearby mountains brought fortune seekers to this inhospitable wasteland and a life of hard work personal sacrifice.
Where Indians Meet Dinosaurs - Painted Desert Indian Center - Holbrook, Arizona
Where once you couldn't throw a rock in the state of Arizona without hitting either a bizarre dinosaur statue or a metal wigwam today the site really stands out. Admittedly it takes a lot of guts to build something like this in an age when things like it were folding up all around it. I'm certain that back in 79 people were laughing their heads off and calling the owners of the Painted Desert Indian Center dimwits, but it was those intrepid tourist trap enthusiasts that had the last laugh.
The darn thing is still alive and kicking over forty years later.
People from all over the world make a pilgrimage to the location to get their pictures taken with those wacky dinosaurs and they also venture inside the store to purchase something to remember their experience by. It sounds really old fashioned in this day and age, but it's working. Thankfully this throwback to an age when people took car trips across our great country is still around to remind us of it.
Fun For The Whole Family: Prehistoric Park in Henderson, Louisiana
Ready to roar & explore at the Prehistoric Park? Stop by to learn something new about our favorite kind of animals - dinosaurs! This is Louisiana’s only attraction dedicated to these amazing creatures of years past.
With approximately 12 acres to explore, you will find yourself wandering amongst some of the most feared predators ever to walk the planet. Prehistoric Park offers a unique, natural setting featuring paved walkways where you will encounter a wide variety of realistic- looking steel and fiberglass dinosaur replicas, including some animated dinosaur exhibits.
Abandoned Louisiana: The Village of Lettsworth
At a location where the Kansas City Southern Railroad crosses Louisiana Highway 1 on the polar opposite side of the Mississippi River from the infamous Angola maximum security prison farm lies many dilapidated structures that once comprised the Village of Lettsworth. As it sits Lettsworth isn't much to look at, just a group of rotting structures along the railroad tracks, and it's not a rare site here in Louisiana. There a numerous ghost towns all over the state. The only thing that makes this town different from the others is that one of the greatest Blues guitarists of all-time was born here. That's right, legendary musician Buddy Guy was sat on the steps of the structure above and strummed on a guitar he made himself honing the skills that would one day make him famous around the world.
Dinny and Mr. Rex - Cabazon, California
It's hard not to notice 100ft tall dinosaurs on the side of the highway!
At least that is what restaurant owner and artist Claude Bell was hoping when built a gigantic replica of a Brontosaurus (with a gift shop inside) called Dinny from left over materials from construction of the nearby I-10 freeway to attract diners to his Wheel Inn Restaurant in 1964.
He would add a second dinosaur, a Tyrannosaurus Rex named Mr. Rex, in 1981. Originally Mr. Rex had a slide inside but because of safety concerns it was eventually removed and plastered over.
In the 1980s these two titans became pop culture icons when they starred in the music video for the British duo Tears for Fears song Everybody Wants To Rule The World and the movie Pee Wee's Big Adventure in 1985.
Red River & Gulf Railroad Depot / Ice House Lecompte, Louisiana
Hidden in the brush in a field just south of the town of Lecompte, LA sits the former depot of the Red River & Gulf Railroad. The depot, built in 1906, served the railroad until it was abandoned in 1954.
The Red River & Gulf Railroad depot in Lecompte served as junction point with the Rock Island Railroad. Lumber was offloaded from the RR&G and loaded onto Rock Island trains. The lumber supplied by the RR&G would eventually find it's way to New Orleans (via the Rock and Southern Pacific) where it was used to build boats used in the Second World War.
Discover New Mexico: Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument
Gila Cliff Dwellings National Monument is surrounded by the Gila National Forest and lies at the edge of the Gila Wilderness, the nation's first designated wilderness area. Wilderness means the intrusion of roads or other evidence of human presence will not alter the character of the area. This unique area in southwestern New Mexico offers a glimpse of the homes and lives of Indians who lived here over 700 years ago and across a span of time.
European American settlers penetrated the mountain wilderness in the early 1870's in search of water and fertile land on which to homestead. They were surprised to find traces of an earlier human occupation. Long before the arrival of Europeans, these early Americans had lived, loved, and made the narrow canyons their home. Walls of stone, strewn with pottery fragments, were reminders of a well-developed culture that had lived in this landscape for over a thousand years.
Kramer Antiques & Darr Military Rentals: A Real Gem Hidden In The California Desert
Kramer Hills a mining camp 25 miles west of Barstow and 5 miles southeast of Kramer Junction. In early 1926 brothers Ed and John Herkelrath found pockets of gold about 4 miles south of Jimgrey and a camp and townsite were laid out, including a branch of the county library and a school. The ore turned out to be low-grade and water was scarce here, so by 1931 the boom was over and the site abandoned.
Kramer Junction: a railroad siding 30 miles west of Barstow where the Randsburg railroad intersected with the Santa Fe railroad in 1898. However the name now applies to the intersection of the US 395 and CA 58, a site 2 miles west of the original Kramer Junction. The post office was established on December 20 1896 discontinued August 31 1911, reestablished on May 2 1912 and discontinued again on November 30 1918. The 1960 US Board on geographic names rejected the names Four Corners and Beechers Corners. Also known as Four Corners.
Kicks on Route 66: Fort Courage Trading Post - Houck, Arizona
During the 1970s Fort Courage enjoyed a lot of success as families traveled to California from the east. The replica of an 1860 army fort was home to a gas station, an Ortega's Tacos restaurant, a Pancake House restaurant, and several gift shops that sold cowboy and Native American trinkets. The fort itself served as a pseudo museum of what life may have been like back in a pop culture version of the wild west.
As you can imagine a tourist location based solely on a 60s sitcom would be destined to an eventual demise and Fort Courage suffered that eventual fate, As time passed, F Troop went from prime time, to syndication, then eventually obscurity. The once prosperous tourist destination went from a must see to must drive on past during the 80s in 90s.
Families driving down Interstate 40 in the 1990s probably asked, "What the heck is F Troop?" as they raced on down the highway.
Abandoned Louisiana: Crowell & Spencer Lumber Company Locomotive #400, Longleaf
Looking into the heart of #400 is a double edged sword. One one hand it is somewhat thrilling to come across a vintage steam locomotive parked at the edge of a Louisiana forest, yet on the other it is very sad to think of what this machine used to be and observe it's present state.
In February of 1953 #400 hauled it's last load of logs to the nearby Crowell Long Leaf Lumber Company and was parked at this location. Here the locomotive has sat under the trees exposed to the harsh Louisiana weather for almost 70 years.
Roswell UFO Festival, New Mexico
What is the UFO Festival?
Was it an alien encounter, a weather balloon, or a flying saucer? The event known as the Roswell Incident quickly swept through the nation in 1947. The “UFO Capital of the World” is known internationally by UFO enthusiasts and deniers alike!
The City of Roswell is excited to open its doors to a worldwide audience for the 2022 Annual UFO Festival. This destination Festival will include plenty of immersive experiences, live music, local food, out of this world photo ops, as well as other family-friendly events happening all over the city.
Discover New Mexico: Madrid - A Small Town That Is More Than It Seems
Hidden up New Mexico State Road 14 (also know as the Turquoise Trail) between Albuquerque and Santa Fe is the small eclectic town of Madrid. The town presently is home to several shops, restaurants and a museum, but almost eighty years ago this small wasn't all that small at all. During Madid' heyday the town was home to the largest coal mining companies west of the Mississippi, a professional baseball team and Christmas celebration that drew thousands of people from around the world.
Indeed Madrid, New Mexico is a town with an amazing history. There aren't many towns anywhere that can claim that it was once a boomtown, a literal ghost town, and experienced new found fame all in the matter of a handful of decades.
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