Our platform is the most extensive digital repository of the Northeast's historic, at-risk, and overlooked structures, infrastructure, New York City streets, and other locations.
Abandoned Cotton Mill (Baltic Mills Complex)
Get link
Facebook
Twitter
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps
A rotten-out four-story mill.
In before the wrecking balls.
This mill surely did not need an interior demolition of its own because inside the wooden floors had already sagged and caved in from years of decay and neglect. The solid stone walls stay true to the craftsmanship and mortar the bricklayers hundreds of years ago laid down with expertise and solid workmanship.
Now the structure awaits the fateful day when the demolition crew rides in and delivers its final blow into forgotten history. The ground floor was mostly dark and decayed. A plethora of rotting wood littered the ground. The stairs leading to the first floor revealed there won't be any venturing upstairs. The flooring was completely rotten and caved in. From the steps of the staircase, you could look straight up and see the clouds in the sky. There was no way up without falling right back down to the ground floor.
Ground Floor
Interior
Boiler House Smokestacks
Venturing to an open driveway we located the mill's two smokestacks. The boiler house has seen better days. Inside the open space, we found three different car manufacturer brands forlornly sitting side by side. A Pontiac, a Chevrolet pickup, and an unknown truck. It is not unusual to find cars stowed in former mills like these throughout the eastern seaboard. I have found my share of cars in mills and former power plants. It's only recently I found three cars at one site. At most, I find one car and usually, it's either wrecked or as these cars here still contain most of their parts intact.
Chevrolet pickup
Pontiac Firebird?
Custom License Plate
Interior of Chevy
Next, A and I ventured inside one of the smokestacks and I attempted to climb to the top. It was only until the 13th rung of the pigeon shit-encrusted ladder rungs that one bent backward under the weight of my foot and I immediately headed back down defeated. It would have been a great climb to sit atop a smokestack and take in the oncoming sunset in all its glory minus the mother pigeon watching me faithfully from the 2nd rung. A lone solitary egg sat against the cold inner ledge. I don't think I've seen someone climb a smokestack before in the never-ending exploration chase going on numerous social media platforms. It would have been a great notch on my risk-taking climbs since last year when I climbed a major bridge linking Manhattan and Brooklyn.
Boiler House
Collapsed room of boiler house
Driveway
P.S.
A close detailed look at cars inside the boiler house.
The top of a smokestack would have been a hell of a place to get stuck had the ladder collapsed beneath you. But like you said, the opportunity was absolutely worth giving a try. I'm assuming the other smokestack was in even worse condition or you would have tried to climb it too? I'm new to urban exploration so the most interesting thing I've climbed so far was a large water tank at a power plant. Goals! http://brandtwilliamsphotography.weebly.com/blog
We only climbed the second one on the right. I would have loved to get to the top without incident. But getting stuck on top of a smokestack wouldn't have been a good idea. I didn't even check the status of the first smokestack. Perhaps in the future another smokestack would be climbable. I also have climbed oil tanks too. So far not a water tank. I may in the next few weeks. Found two on one site! Hopeful!
As I recall that April day in 2018, the memory unfolds with the vividness of a carefully preserved photograph. The sky, a vast expanse of unyielding blue, served as the perfect backdrop for our excursion. J and I, driven by curiosity and a keen sense of adventure, stood at the threshold of the historic Ballouville Mill in Killingly, Connecticut. This relic of a bygone industrial era was nestled imposingly between two homes as if guarding the secrets of its storied past. Our entry into the mill was less an act of intrusion and more a gentle push through time's veil. An opening – not quite a door, nor a window – beckoned us into the heart of a forgotten world. Inside, the mill presented itself as a cathedral of industry, now silent and solemn. Wooden beams and columns, like the ribs of a great leviathan, stretched upwards, supporting the weight of history and time. The machinery, once the pulsing heart of this place, had long since ceased their hum of productivity. In their absence
In the realm of industrial history along the Passaic River in Northern New Jersey lies a captivating tale of an oil company's struggle for survival against the evolving landscape of progress. Amidst the modernization of Route 21 in the 1950s, the Riverbank Petroleum Company later renamed to Northern New Jersey Oil Company stood as a fierce opponent to the development. Their existence pivoted on the river's access, a lifeline for their business. Relinquishing it meant demise, so they fiercely contested the eminent domain battles. Ultimately, a compromise was reached: a tunnel beneath McCarter Highway, enabling oil transportation without disrupting the flow of the newly expanded route. Riverbank Petroleum Company Wharf had its last recorded shipment of under 2,000 tons of fuel oils in 1997. Time has seen the oil company fade into history, leaving behind an abandoned, flooded tunnel. However, a peculiar sight remains – a doorway, a relic from the past, etched onto the side of Rou
Here we find ourselves, reminiscing about the now abandoned factory walls that once pulsed with vibrant colors. The irony is delightful and surreal. A property that once contributed world-class paints for an array of applications from household to military-grade, now wears a patchwork of graffiti, as aerosol artists exploit its crumbling facade. Today, the site is cordoned off by a formidable galvanized steel gate, its adjacent grounds appropriated for tractor-trailer parking and storage, while the building itself remains in a state of disuse. Over the years, it has served as a temporary shelter for the homeless, a playground for mischievous teenagers, and a backdrop for adventurous photographers and explorers. Access to the property has now been barred, in stark contrast to a time when you could casually tread the train tracks onto the site. Pittsburgh Plate Glass Company's Newark Operations The property in question, situated at 29 Riverside Avenue in Newark, New Jersey, was hom
Rockaway Metals Products (RMP) began as a sheet metal fabrication factory beginning in 1961. RMP occupied the site from 1971 to 1987 leaving a plethora of hazardous waste materials onsite. From 1990 to 2004 the building housed various tenants which even included an auto repair shop. Rockaway Metals a manufacturer of filing cabinets and other metal products closed down in 1987. It was leased a few years ago to different owners who did not manage the 4.85-acre parcel. The 155,000-square-foot building has long been an eyesore and trouble in the neighborhood since its closure. A coastal storm in March 2018 blew debris materials to adjacent properties. Rockaway Metals was acquired by Nassau County in 1995 by tax deed. The county has held onto the property for 22-plus years. In February 2011, the site was damaged by fire and condemned soon thereafter. For more in-depth legal ownership of the property, you can read more below in the source list under U.S. v. 175 INWOOD ASSOCIATES LLP.
EOS 600D/T3i synced with a gorgeous orange Yashinon 50mm. Click to enlarge pictures. A powerhouse pairing. No benchwarmer 1:1.4 Yashica and an EOS T3i/600D. Pairing a vintage Yashica Yashinon-DS 50mm 1:1.4 lens with a Canon EOS 600D turns out to be a delightful experiment in photography, infusing images with a magical orange tint that seems to add a warm, ethereal glow to the subjects. In a creative endeavor, I captured several indoor raw JPEG images within the whimsical confines of a dollhouse, featuring characters from Skylanders Spyro's Adventure and Skylanders Giants. Opting for settings of ISO 800 and f/16, with a neutral picture style and white fluorescent lighting, I aimed to bring out the richness of the scene, further enhancing it with an exposure compensation of +1, all the while forgoing the use of a tripod. This session underscored the necessity of investing in a MeFoto tripod to stabilize future shots. The lens, even when used wide open, astonishes w
The top of a smokestack would have been a hell of a place to get stuck had the ladder collapsed beneath you. But like you said, the opportunity was absolutely worth giving a try. I'm assuming the other smokestack was in even worse condition or you would have tried to climb it too? I'm new to urban exploration so the most interesting thing I've climbed so far was a large water tank at a power plant. Goals!
ReplyDeletehttp://brandtwilliamsphotography.weebly.com/blog
We only climbed the second one on the right. I would have loved to get to the top without incident. But getting stuck on top of a smokestack wouldn't have been a good idea. I didn't even check the status of the first smokestack. Perhaps in the future another smokestack would be climbable. I also have climbed oil tanks too. So far not a water tank. I may in the next few weeks. Found two on one site! Hopeful!
Delete