Some new photos from Fort Wayne

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

Early morning fog hovers over one of the ponds at Eagle Marsh, a restored wetland on the western edge of Fort Wayne, Indiana.

This is the sixth of eight photographs that I made on that foggy August morning.

8-1-23

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

A lone tree on a low hill is shrouded by dense morning fog at Eagle Marsh, a restored wetland on the western edge of Fort Wayne, Indiana.

This is the seventh of eight photographs that I made on that foggy August morning.

8-1-23

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

A lone tree surrounded by wildflowers is shrouded by dense morning fog at Eagle Marsh, a restored wetland on the western edge of Fort Wayne, Indiana.

This is the last of eight photographs that I made on that foggy August morning.

8-1-23

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

Doc's Do It Best is a locally-owned hardware store in an old brick commercial building on the southeast corner of Orange Street (State Road 9) and Jefferson Street in the small town of Albion, Indiana.

The electronic sign over the doors has the logo for Indiana's state lottery, while mailboxes, wheelbarrows, and other items are displayed on the sidewalk in front of the store.

5-17-23

 

[CMur12]

Doc's Do It Best is a locally-owned hardware store in an old brick commercial building on the southeast corner of Orange Street (State Road 9) and Jefferson Street in the small town of Albion, Indiana.

The electronic sign over the doors has the logo for Indiana's state lottery, while mailboxes, wheelbarrows, and other items are displayed on the sidewalk in front of the store.

5-17-23

We had a hardware store much like this in my home town when I was a kid. They tore up the whole shopping area and put in a mall in the late 1970s. The whole area has changed dramatically in the ensuing years.

- Murray

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

We had a hardware store much like this in my home town when I was a kid. They tore up the whole shopping area and put in a mall in the late 1970s. The whole area has changed dramatically in the ensuing years.

- Murray

That's happened to a lot of places, unfortunately. A lot of Indiana's small towns have buildings like this still in use. Albion is very small, only 2200 people. In comparison, Fort Wayne has 275,000 people. Most of these old buildings are gone from Fort Wayne's historic center, replaced with skyscrapers and other ugly modern office buildings.

Doc's hardware is especially cool because they have a CAT! I went back a couple days ago and photographed the cat, whose name is Hank. I'll post pics of him as soon as I get them edited.

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

Hank is the store cat at Doc's Do It Best Hardware in the small town of Albion, Indiana.

I first encountered Hank several months earlier. I tried to pet him, but he kept walking away and went into an office at the back of the store. I told a woman working there that the cat must not like me since he went in the office to avoid being petted. "No," she said, "He is hoping you'll follow him; that is where the cat treats are kept!"

When I went back to the store, the young woman in this photo got out the bag of treats so I could get a photo of him asking for them. He sat up on his hind legs to beg like a dog! After he ate the treats, he let me pet him for a little bit. When he realized that I had no treats to give, he walked away and acted annoyed that I was petting without payment!

9-9-23

 

[Pál_K]

A hardware store with a resident cat has a significant advantage over competing stores.

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

A hardware store with a resident cat has a significant advantage over competing stores.

Absolutely. I bought a Case pocket knife from them; it was a little more expensive than it would have cost me online, but was worth it to support the cat!

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

This is the door at the base of the water tower in the small town of Ossian, Indiana. The water tower stands on the north side of Maplewood Drive, just west of the Town Hall and Fire Station.

Most of the small town water towers in Indiana are built to a similar design. The entrance door is almost always a steel door with rounded top and bottom, like the watertight doors on a naval vessel. This one has a first aid kit hanging on the outside of the door.

9-10-23

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

A honeybee gathers pollen on a wilting sunflower on the edge of a field at Hardy's Farm Market on Knoll Road, between Ardmore Avenue and Smith Road, just outside Fort Wayne in rural Allen County, Indiana.

This farm grows sweet corn, pumpkins, and several other vegetables that they sell from a shop in a large building behind the fields. This year, they had a field of sunflowers; one of my favorite plants to photograph.

This is the first of several photographs that I made of the sunflowers at Hardy's.

9-25-23

 

[Retro-Grouch]

A honeybee gathers pollen on a wilting sunflower on the edge of a field at Hardy's Farm Market on Knoll Road, between Ardmore Avenue and Smith Road, just outside Fort Wayne in rural Allen County, Indiana.

This farm grows sweet corn, pumpkins, and several other vegetables that they sell from a shop in a large building behind the fields. This year, they had a field of sunflowers; one of my favorite plants to photograph.

This is the first of several photographs that I made of the sunflowers at Hardy's.

9-25-23

Exquisite colors! Flowers past their prime have a beauty all their own. I get grief for refusing to throw out cut flowers long after they've wilted and shriveled; I suspect that there's a "memento mori" effect that upsets people...

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

A grasshopper hanging out on a tall sunflower in a field at Hardy's Farm Market on Knoll Road, between Ardmore Avenue and Smith Road, just outside Fort Wayne in rural Allen County, Indiana.

This farm grows sweet corn, pumpkins, and several other vegetables that they sell from a shop in a large building behind the fields. This year, they had a field of sunflowers; one of my favorite plants to photograph.

This is the second of several photographs that I made of the sunflowers at Hardy's.

9-25-23

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

A bud on a sunflower plant in a field at Hardy's Farm Market on Knoll Road, between Ardmore Avenue and Smith Road, just outside Fort Wayne in rural Allen County, Indiana. The bud is beginning to open, revealing the yellow petals inside.

This farm grows sweet corn, pumpkins, and several other vegetables that they sell from a shop in a large building behind the fields. This year, they had a field of sunflowers; one of my favorite plants to photograph.

This is the third of several photographs that I made of the sunflowers at Hardy's.

9-25-23

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

Another photo of Hank, the store cat at Doc's Do It Best Hardware in the small town of Albion, Indiana.

I made this photo after I photographed one of the store's employees giving him some kitty treats. After he ate the treats, he let me pet him for a little bit. When he realized that I had no treats to give, he walked away, laid down on the floor, and stared at me; annoyed that I had been petting without payment!

9-9-23

 

[Retro-Grouch]

That look on Hank's face says it all. Dog people like to claim that dogs' faces are more expressive than cats', but what do they know?

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

That look on Hank's face says it all. Dog people like to claim that dogs' faces are more expressive than cats', but what do they know?

Dogs aren't expressive at all compared to cats. This one of Hank reminds me of another cat photo I posted a while ago, the photo of Sherlock, the very fat bookstore cat:



When I put this photo of Sherlock on a Facebook cat group, one woman commented: "That face has 'customer service' written all over it." So does Hank's! Same motivation, too. Sherlock is less friendly than Hank, and really doesn't like anyone. I asked him one time "Hey Sherlock, if I bring you some MEAT, will you like me?" His eyes LIT UP and he looked up and meowed!

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

Sunflowers in a field at Hardy's Farm Market on Knoll Road, between Ardmore Avenue and Smith Road, just outside Fort Wayne in rural Allen County, Indiana. A bud is beginning to open, looking upward toward a larger mature sunflower.

This farm grows sweet corn, pumpkins, and several other vegetables that they sell from a shop in a large building behind the fields. This year, they had a field of sunflowers; one of my favorite plants to photograph.

This is the fourth of several photographs that I made of the sunflowers at Hardy's.

9-25-23

 

[bcostin]

This is the door at the base of the water tower in the small town of Ossian, Indiana. The water tower stands on the north side of Maplewood Drive, just west of the Town Hall and Fire Station.

Most of the small town water towers in Indiana are built to a similar design. The entrance door is almost always a steel door with rounded top and bottom, like the watertight doors on a naval vessel. This one has a first aid kit hanging on the outside of the door.

9-10-23

That's an awesome door. The local water tower has a little blockhouse built alongside for tower access, which somehow isn't as interesting.

Ever since I as a kid I've been fascinated by "mystery doors" in odd places. The highway sound barrier walls around here (Maryland) usually have doors set in them every few miles. Some have doorknobs or handles, some don't. Are they shortcuts for firefighters and such to get to the other side? Were they used during construction and then sealed? Many are nearly hidden in undisturbed layers of creeper vines and ivy, forgotten, waiting patiently for someone to come walk through them again, someday.

 

[DaveTaylor]

Chris, I am enjoying your Photos from Fort Wayne thread, keep them coming!