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Sunday, March 9, 2008

Intriguing Neglect

This house on St. Louis Ave just east of St. Louis Place Park is an example of a house that will probably meet a fate similar to its neighbors.The house was occupied until recently by a person who had collected a fair amount of rubbish over the years. The house suffered severe wind damage and now is sitting in a very precarious state.What is most interesting is the series of single garages in the back of the property, which most likely provided residents of the house a place to park when it was a boarding house. Or perhaps the owners just collected income from the garages from nearby house owners who wanted garages. You can see a bird's eye view of the house and its garages here. What is truly amazing about the garages is that they are a snapshot from the past. At some point, the garage roof seems to have caught fire and collapsed on top of the automobiles kept inside.I have no idea if it was someone's antique car collection or the fire occurred decades ago when these cars were in style. What is fascinating is the condition of the back windshield in the car below, as well as the pristine clean chrome bumper sitting on its roof. What is the story behind these strange relics, entombed in the burned out shell?It clearly happened a while ago, as the burnt timbers show the effects of prolonged water damage and lichen/moss buildup.

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