Some new photos from Fort Wayne

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

Inside the store with the "Make America Love Again" sticker on the front window. The store's owner had another one held by these dolls.

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

The political statement stenciled on the side of the trailer says:​

"Save U.S.A. From Socialism and Corruption. Elect Trump - Pence. Defeat Clinton - Bayh Corrupt Dems."​

The "Corrupt Democrats" referenced on the trailer were Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton and former Indiana governor and Senator Evan Bayh. Bayh left the Senate in 2011, and decided to run for the senate again in 2016. He was defeated by Republican Todd Young.
​

It also urged people to vote for several other Republican politicians, including Lt. Governor Eric Holcomb (misspelled S. Holcomb) who was running for governor since Governor Mike Pence was running for Vice-President.​

This is one of several old semi trailers and cargo containers sitting next to Boyd Machine, a business on US-33, just north of the small town of Wolf Lake, Indiana.​

I had also photographed this trailer earlier this year, before Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton were chosen by their parties to run for president. Back then, the trailer had anti-Obama slogans painted on it.

 

[Darthfeeble]

Last Thursday, I made another series of abstracted images of rapidly changing cloud formations in the sky. These were made in rural Allen County, just south of the city of Fort Wayne, Indiana. This is the first of them.

It appears Nature is flying the American flag in this shot.

 

[radi(c)al_cam]

I had also photographed this trailer earlier this year, before Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton were chosen by their parties to run for president. Back then, the trailer had anti-Obama slogans painted on it.

I read «OBOMA» — hence my question: are they just unable to write it correctly, or is «OBOMA» some sort of insult or racial slur perhaps?

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

I read «OBOMA» — hence my question: are they just unable to write it correctly, or is «OBOMA» some sort of insult or racial slur perhaps?

I think its just poor spelling. Those who dislike Obama because of his race usually refer to him by names like Obummer, Obongo, or Barry Soetoro. His name is also sometimes claimed to be an acronym (One Big Ass Mistake America). I've never seen any anti-Obama wakos call him Oboma.

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

This is a wall in one of the rooms at Little Shop of Laura's, a secondhand shop on Broadway in Fort Wayne, Indiana.​

The store's owner, Laura Hancock, hired a local artist to paint the fanciful rendering of the word "Love." Love is a theme found throughout the small store, which also has hearts painted on other walls. This is the same shop with the big red heart and the "Make America Love Again" sticker on the front window.

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

This 150 foot long lighted Santa Claus with his sleigh and reindeer is the most famous Christmas decoration in Fort Wayne, Indiana.​

Originally built in the late 1930s to adorn the side of the Wolf and Dessauer Department Store in downtown Fort Wayne, it was lost after the store closed around 1970.​

A decade later, it was discovered hidden away in a warehouse. In bad condition, it needed hundreds of hours or work and thousands of dollars worth of parts to restore it to functioning condition. A group of local electricians, including my grandfather, John Westerfield, volunteered their time to rebuild the historic display.​

Nearly all of the wiring needed replaced to meet modern safety regulations, and it needed more than 40,000 small colored light bulbs! After the restoration was completed in the early 1980s, Santa was put back on display on the side of the Fort Wayne National Bank building.​

Every year, right before Thanksgiving, Santa and his reindeer are assembled in sections on the side of the building, now known as the PNC Bank Building.​

In addition to the Santa display, Wolf and Dessauer also had two large wreaths, also made of thousands of colored lights. They were found and restored alongside the Santa display, and both are displayed each year on other downtown Fort Wayne buildings.​

Eight minutes after I made the first photograph, I made another. The light had completely changed character in that very short time, as the day's last light was fading away.

 

[Timmyjoe]

Love stories like that Chris, thanks for sharing. Also some really wonderful pictures.

 

[jsrockit]

Some really great ones Chris.

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

New Beginnings Community Church is a storefront church in a former gas station building on the corner of Main Street and Harrison Street in the small town of Atwood, Indiana.​

I found the sign amusing. It looks like an old gas station sign (which is exactly what it is), and it says: "New Beginnings Community Church. Stop-N-Go Service. Food For The Body & Soul."​

There was also a readerboard sign under the main sign. One side of it said: "Miracles Happen here." The other side said: "Pray For Nation."​

 

[trip-xa]

This 150 foot long lighted Santa Claus with his sleigh and reindeer is the most famous Christmas decoration in Fort Wayne, Indiana.​

Originally built in the late 1930s to adorn the side of the Wolf and Dessauer Department Store in downtown Fort Wayne, it was lost after the store closed around 1970.​

A decade later, it was discovered hidden away in a warehouse. In bad condition, it needed hundreds of hours or work and thousands of dollars worth of parts to restore it to functioning condition. A group of local electricians, including my grandfather, John Westerfield, volunteered their time to rebuild the historic display.​

Nearly all of the wiring needed replaced to meet modern safety regulations, and it needed more than 40,000 small colored light bulbs! After the restoration was completed in the early 1980s, Santa was put back on display on the side of the Fort Wayne National Bank building.​

Every year, right before Thanksgiving, Santa and his reindeer are assembled in sections on the side of the building, now known as the PNC Bank Building.​

In addition to the Santa display, Wolf and Dessauer also had two large wreaths, also made of thousands of colored lights. They were found and restored alongside the Santa display, and both are displayed each year on other downtown Fort Wayne buildings.​

Eight minutes after I made the first photograph, I made another. The light had completely changed character in that very short time, as the day's last light was fading away.

I grew up in Fort Wayne and am old enough to remember it in its W&D days before it disappeared and then the reappearance while I was in high school Wonderful to see that they are still maintaining it.

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

I grew up in Fort Wayne and am old enough to remember it in its W&D days before it disappeared and then the reappearance while I was in high school Wonderful to see that they are still maintaining it.

Nice to see another RFFer from Fort Wayne! I'm not old enough to remember the Santa on W&D, they closed several years before I was born. I need to go photograph the wreaths, too. The big one hangs on the side of the Indiana-Michigan Power Building, which you probably remember as the Summit Bank Building.

How long have you been gone from the Fort?

 

[Brian Atherton]

As always a fascinating insight into rural America, Chris.

Thank you for continue to post images from your neck of the woods, I really appreciate the time and effort to document and post these.

A wonderful body of work.

 

[TennesseJones]

This is a great thread Chris, do keep it running, and it's especially fascinating to follow this year and on the back of this terrible election campaign. Many thanks.

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

This is a great thread Chris, do keep it running, and it's especially fascinating to follow this year and on the back of this terrible election campaign. Many thanks.

Thanks, Tennesse Jones. I plan to keep working on these projects as long as I am able, financially and health-wise. I've been shooting a lot of new stuff lately. I'm trying to catch up on editing them now, so I have a lot of new stuff I'll be adding this week.

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

I made this photograph on County Road 250W, looking south, from a spot between County Road 275S and County Road 400S in rural Noble County, Indiana.​

The road, like many country roads in Indiana, is a gravel road. This area in the southern part of Noble County is hilly compared to most of northern Indiana.​

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

This harvested cornfield is on the east side of County Road 250W, between County Road 275S and County Road 400S, in rural Noble County, Indiana.​

This is the second of four landscape scenes that I photographed along this country road.​

 

[robert blu]

Love traveling through Indiana thanks to your photos Chris. thanks.
robert

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

This is the third of four landscape scenes that I photographed along County Road 250W, between County Road 275S and County Road 400S, in rural Noble County, Indiana.

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

This is the last of the four landscape photographs that I made on County Road 250W in rural Noble County, Indiana.