Photo: "Sorter"

Here's another image from the former coal breaker near Manahoy City, Pennsylvania.

These sorters were located near the top of the facility and helped pick through the coal to weed out the unusable materials. 

This coal breaker opened in 1932 and is currently being demolished after being closed for 50 years. Sad to see her go.  

(Print - http://smu.gs/1eHe8XU) 

 

Photo: "A Life Lost"

Unfortunately, today's image comes with a sad story of a history lost. The Saint Nicholas coal breaker, just outside of Manahoy City, Pennsylvania, is undergoing demolition as I write this post. 

The plant opened in 1932, but to begin construction in 1930, half of the village of Suffolk had to be relocated to make room for the massive facility. The construction process included laying 20 miles of railroad track, 1.5 miles of conveyor and 118 miles of wire and cable. 

The Saint Nicholas breakers were the largest coal facilities in the world and at the time this was the second largest plant in the world. The factory was constructed with 2 separate sides that are able to operate independently and produced a combined volume of 12,500 tons of coal per day. 

This plant closed since 1963.

I Miss These Places

Since TheSouthern1800 trip to a few Southern states in May, I haven't explored too many abandoned buildings. I miss the asylums and hospitals, waking up at 3am to be in the buildings for blue hour and dawn, the hours spent in the car listening to music and getting to know your travel companions. 

A few weeks ago, some of that longing was fulfilled when a friend invited me to this old shipyard to photograph a few of the buildings I hadn't yet explored.

This is an old military barrack at the former Mare Island Naval Shipyard, which housed around 100 military personnel when the base was in operation from the late 1800's to the late 1990's. 

Around California, most of the abandoned historical locations once belonged to the military. Land is so expensive here that when most things become abandoned, they are torn down and replaced by something new. The old shipyard and military bases are typically the longest standing abandonments in the area. 

(Print - http://smu.gs/19oemvJ )

Photo: "Natural Draft Tower"

Cooling Tower, Hartsville Nuclear Power Plant

The concept of a cooling tower is to reject heat by cooling water in an evaporative manner. The heat from the water transferred to the air raises the temperature of the air and increases the humidity and that air is released into the atmosphere.

Cooling towers are very effective at the disposal of heat, more so than dry devices, as water can cool much faster than other methods. This natural draft cooling tower relied on the buoyancy of the heated air to provide the draft up the tower and was incredibly efficient as it cooled water by the thousands of gallons. 

'Women In Photography' Panelist

Former California based pipe factory during blue hour

This afternoon, I'm heading down to Google to be a panelist on the 'Women In Photography' Hangout hosted by +Laurie Rubin. I'll be a guest amongst some other talented female photographers; +Alexis Coram, +piper mackay and +Jessica Ambats. It begins at 6pm PST and can be viewed via the link below!

Hangout Link: http://bit.ly/1e6QhAu 

Photo: "Peeking"

Top floor in the Walker Building

The Walker Building at Central State Hospital was constructed in 1884 and abandoned nearly 100 years later. The last 30 years have not been kind to this building. Days like this, humid and rainy, have taken a toll on the wooden elements of the building, causing much of the roof to collapse onto the floor of the third level. 

(Print - http://smu.gs/18H8VsH) 

Photo: "Break In the Darkness"

Hartsville Nuclear Plant

The Tennessee Valley Authority never imagined that construction on this plant would end a few short years after it began, in 1983, with thousands of government dollars wasted, creating a paradise for people like me. 

Walking around this plant, I felt small. Being surrounded by a massive world of nuclear concrete that is slowly being overtaken by nature, after being abandoned for three decades, is an experience you can't easily forget. 

These places are my home. It's hard to convey how much life lies within the places most people consider to be dead. The walls of these buildings speak many words as long as you're willing to listen and embrace the history. I don't believe in ghosts, if they existed I definitely would have seen them in some of these places, but I believe in the countless stories and memories the patients and employees left behind.