Contemplating.

Contemplating.
Wayzata, Minnesota

Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Alphabe-Thursday A Rough Ruins

TODAY IS ALPHABE-THURSDAY



            OUR LETTER FOR TODAY IS "R" and it comes with many questions (Q) was last weeks letter that I missed.




     This post is for Jenny's "Alphabe-Thursday" and her "Off on my tangent" blog that arrives every Thursday as we follow the alphabet.   My story begins today with a little mystery.



In the wee hours of early morning,



          I set out for an albatross of a day.  A time when all is right with the world, and most of the city still sleeps. 



It was a normally pleasant day, nothing out of the unusual, at first.

Then on my return trip I stumbled upon a magnificent discovery, resting in an unexpected ruins, not far from home.




A RATHER ROUGH RUINS RESTS ALONG A RIVER
in Minnesota, perhaps you know where this is?


Ruins especially like these are not common in Minnesota or any where else in the United States.


So when you happen upon one, you take notice very quickly.



My first thought was, where are the ropes, or the fencing or wooden barricades to keep people and mostly children from falling inside?  Very unusual to see this type of ruins so wide open.  Of course the photographer is delighted for easy access.




Other writers and bloggers through the years have fed us stories about this ruins resting along the river not far from my house.


Looking out on the river.  This remaining ruins, of a nineteenth century flouring mill is on the National Register of Historic Places.  I fear the person supplying the information for this lost mill may require two cents from me.  Wikipedia, reports: "this as a derelict flour mill" derelict? Really?



Do they have no taste for style or desires of preservation for historic places?




The river at this location is mostly calm and heavily wooded on both sides, with a foot bridge south of the mill.  I shot this photo from a two lane bridge. 




You don't really need to be an architect to see this mill was built as a basic two-story building.  The roof hasn't been seen in ages.  I'm guessing it was covered with a low pitched gable roof, and not of long lasting materials.



This structure that once was a thriving flouring mill was built in 1857 and even with all the crumbling stone and how sadly it has fallen in useless shape, I wander about the ruins simply amazed at the thought of its glory days.


You see they just don't build them that way any more.  Today most mills if they run are basic in design.  As the next photo clearly shows.


A few miles away from the old mill ruins is "Ames Mill in Northfield" which is currently running, and has a bit of stone work as well.





Okay yes, I want to stretch this lovely tale out just a bit, so I won't really disclose the whereabouts in this post.  Although for the adventurous souls, I have dropped quite a few hints that a simple google search could get you there.


This will be continued, next week in the letter "S" where I will reveal the name of the mill and share more about the quaint little town it's in.  I hope to see you next week.  If you want to view more or perhaps want to post your own go here,


http://jennymatlock.blogspot.com/2012/03/alphabe-thursday-letter-r.html


33 comments:

Unknown said...

Hope that at least they will preserve this one (if they don't have the $$ to restore it!)

Leovi said...

Yes, certainly very interesting photos of the ruins, I like it very poetically reflect the passage of time. Greetings.

CameraCruise said...

Great shots of the old ruins.

jfb57 said...

A super set of shots that has certainly got me interested to know where it is!

4kids, 2 guinea pigs, 1 happy family said...

An amazing find!
Great photos.
x

darlin said...

Wow, a photographers ideal backdrop for portraits, I've love to shoot photos here! It's been an interesting tale you've told, the hints... if time permits I'll play along, if not I'll have to stay in suspense til next week. I love the photos!

Cheers.

noexcuses said...

You have my interest... I'm used to seeing old wooden barns and such. This place really intrigues me. Nice job with the letter "R".

Donna Heber said...

Hi Karen,

I very much enjoyed my tour of your local ruins a/k/a old flour mill. Wonderful pictures looking through to the river. The area looks like such a nice place to take a stroll. Enjoy the rest of your week.

Short and Sweet said...

I'm intrigued. Thank you for the lovely photos of a marvelous piece of history.

21 Wits said...

jfp57, and all, THIS place is actually for sale,(fairly cheap, because there is another (live) building here, river frontage and land) and has been for years. Imagine that! See you next week with the answer!

Another clue, it sits on a block of a two-block main street town!

Gattina said...

How interesting to see such a ruin in a rather "new" country !

Lola said...

Visiting from Mrs Matlock’s, did enjoy your *R* post – I love mysteries! Already looking forward to next week's instalment!

Have a great Alphabe-Thursday and weekend too.

VBR said...

aren't old ruins interesting to explore. especially those of stone and brick. time and weather fades the masonry to such beautiful colors. loved visiting the rough ruins in your R post!

Alan Burnett said...

Great photos. And they do remind people like me who are not Americans that your country is not just new buildings and skyscrapers.

21 Wits said...

Alan, absolutely, we don't have any where near what you have in England but we've got some magical ruins and even places still among the living and stately in appearance!

FilipBlog said...

Ruins can be intriging. There is always history to be discovered.

Greetings,
Filip

anitamombanita said...

what a cool old building!

Ei8ht Beach Street said...

more than a bit jealous. as much as I love living by the beach, it would be very cool to be able to walk thru the woods discovering those beautiful ruins. Gorgeous photos.
(and thanks for the comment, I do appreciate it)

Steve Gravano said...

Some beautiful colors in those old brick and stone. Just today, I heard that three young boys wandered into an old abandoned hospital and couldn't find their way out. The police actually arrested then after the rescue because they were trespassing.

storybeader said...

it's beautiful! I love the little archway under the building, to let boats (perhaps) load? Neat find! {:-D

Pondside said...

There aren't many stone ruins like that in North America. That one is lovely - a great subject for your camera.

People Who Know Me Would Say: said...

Wow! If some idiot ever succeeds in tearing this down, I hope the brick is recycled into some fabulous spot local to the mill.

I'm such a proponent of original site preservation!

Judy Biggerstaff said...

Very intriguing, I love your shots of the mill. Can't wait to find out more. Thanks for sharing and for stopping by my blog.

ifthethunderdontgetya™³²®© said...

This looks terrific next to the river.

Thanks for the pics, Karen!
~

Cheryl Kohan said...

Wow! You've got MY curiosity piqued! If I figure out where it is (near Northfield?) I'm definitely going to take a day and hunt it up!

Your photos are gorgeous!

sage said...

We'll wait for next week. These were some of my favorite shots from you (I like old things and when old things are by a river, it just don't get any better than that!)

Cheryl D. said...

It's a shame it's fallen into such disrepair. It looks like it was a beautiful building!

~✽Mumsy✽~ said...

It must has been grant in its time! The city should have reserved this as local historical sight!

Fantastic photos!

21 Wits said...

CherylK I'll let the Secret out in my Shocking Surprise (S) post next week. You'll love it.

laurak/ForestWalkArt :) said...

thanks for the wonderful tour karen!!
i love to wander through 'ruins'...love the old stone...and character of these buildings. here in florida we have lots ruins scattered around...mostly of of grist mills,sugar cane mills...plantations.

thanks for the info on this one you visited!! maybe...one day...i'll make it up there... :)

NanE said...

Karen, this is an outstanding post for R and an amazing find! I love old buildings especially barns and mills, I even have two Pinterest boards devoted just to this topic. It breaks my heart to see such grand old structures slipping away! I would love to add your pics to my "slipping away" board, but I'll wait for your ok. Thanks for sharing this wonderful old building and I'm be looking forward to seeing the rest of the story. Blessings, Nan

Ames said...

How unique! We have the remains of an old historical sugar mill close by and they haven't roped it off either. ~Ames

Jenny said...

What a Remarkable find...

I would be Roaming around this place forever...

Thanks for sharing this Really, Really cool place with us for the letter "R"!

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