Some new photos from Fort Wayne

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

This is a computer lab in a middle school in Fort Wayne. As an artist and a literature teacher, I liked the message on the bulletin board

"Be an original. A copy is never worth as much. Don't plagiarize."​

The teacher who posted it probably intended to discourage kids from copying essays from the internet when writing research papers, but the message is important for the kids on a more personal level as well.

It can be incredibly difficult to get kids, especially middle schoolers, to think for themselves, to live their own lives according to their own desires and needs. They are so concerned with 'fitting in' with the rest of the crowd that they sacrifice something far more important than their social lives.​

 

[dave lackey]

This is a computer lab in a middle school in Fort Wayne. As an artist and a literature teacher, I liked the message on the bulletin board

"Be an original. A copy is never worth as much. Don't plagiarize."​

The teacher who posted it probably intended to discourage kids from copying essays from the internet when writing research papers, but the message is important for the kids on a more personal level as well.​

It can be incredibly difficult to get kids, especially middle schoolers, to think for themselves, to live their own lives according to their own desires and needs. They are so concerned with 'fitting in' with the rest of the crowd that they sacrifice something far more important than their social lives.​

^ There ya go! Words to live by!^🙂

 

[robert blu]

As always a good work here. Intense portrait of mr. Hall and interesting details of your environment. Thanks to take me to Indiana through your photos 🙂
robert

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

A condemnation notice from the Fort Wayne Neighborhood Code Enforcement office is taped to the entrance to Team Auto Group, a now-closed used car dealer on Bluffton Road, between Sandpoint Road and Engle Road, in Fort Wayne, Indiana.

The sign says that the building is "Unsafe and unfit for human occupancy." I wonder what is wrong with it? The building looks well-maintained on the outside. The American flag hanging from the mailbox is made to mount on the top of a car window.

This place has been home to several used-car dealers over the years. I photographed it a few years ago, when it was called Freedom motors. I made this photograph last week.
​

 

[lynnb]

I wonder if they put the condemnation notice up because the owner hasn't paid taxes.

I think that's an excellent portrait of Mr Hall and his dog. Very well taken Chris. It's always a pleasure to come back to this thread to see what you've been up to.

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

I wonder if they put the condemnation notice up because the owner hasn't paid taxes.

I think that's an excellent portrait of Mr Hall and his dog. Very well taken Chris. It's always a pleasure to come back to this thread to see what you've been up to.

Thanks, Lynn. I knew when I shot the one of Sterling that it was going to be great. That little dog was guarding him from his place under the wheelchair!

About the condemned building, there is a different notice used for tax seizures. There's a different government agency that does those. This was from Neighborhood Code Enforcement, which handles safety issues with buildings.

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

This is a mural in a hallway at Blackhawk Middle School in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Further down the hall, the mural has the words "Sportsmanship" and "Character" over shooting stars. I photographed it Tuesday afternoon.

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

Lots of businesses use the American flag on their signs and advertising, but car dealers seem to be the most enthusiastic business category to do so. This is GBNC Auto Sales, a buy-here, pay-here used car dealer on State Road 930 in New Haven, Indiana. The name stands for "Good Bad No Credit," a reference to their willingness to loan money to people with bad credit, or no credit history.​

New Haven is a small city in the eastern part of Allen County. When I was young, New Haven was a couple miles east of Fort Wayne. In the last 30 years, both cities have expended to the point that they now have a long common border.

I photographed it Wednesday afternoon.
​

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

This house is on the west side of Runnion Avenue, about a block north of High street, on the working class west side of Fort Wayne, Indiana. I don't think anyone lives in it anymore.​

Right after I photographed this house, I photographed Sterling Hall and his little dog in the doorway of their nearby home. I shot this photo two weeks ago.
​

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

Early this morning, I drove down to Willshire, a small town on US-33, just across the state line in Van Wert County, Ohio. I was setting up my camera to photograph the town's American Legion post, when this semi-truck pulling a huge gasoline tanker trailer sped past me.​

It was headed to the Marathon gas station a few blocks down the street. This is on State Street, which is also US-33 and Ohio State Route 49.​

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

Metal "Motel Chairs" are a common sight behind houses in the small towns and rural areas of the midwestern United States. They are often seen in pairs, but this one actually combines two of the chairs into a single bench.​

This is behind a house in the small town of Willshire, Ohio. Willshire is a town of fewer than 1000 people on US-33 on the western edge of Ohio, just inside the state line.​

I photographed it yesterday morning.

 

[oftheherd]

Love the colors Chris.

1000 people. When I was a kid, if we went from NW Missouri to the Ozarks, you would find a lot of 'towns' with populations of 50, 30, 17, etc. Even then we thought it quaint.

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

Love the colors Chris.

1000 people. When I was a kid, if we went from NW Missouri to the Ozarks, you would find a lot of 'towns' with populations of 50, 30, 17, etc. Even then we thought it quaint.

There used to be towns like that here, but most have disappeared. In Fort Wayne, which has 250,000 people, we think of towns like Huntington (population 17,000) as 'small towns.' The 'big city' to us would be Indianapolis (nearly a million people) or (especially) Chicago.

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

This is the Village Office (Town Hall) on State Street (US-33 and State Route 49) in Willshire, Ohio.

Most of Willshire was still decorated for Memorial Day, which was a week before I visited the town. The poster on the Village Office's front door is an educational poster about the United States Constitution. A sign in the window says "Pray For John."​

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

Rivers Edge Carry-Out is a liquor store on State Street (US-33 and State Route 49) in the small town of Willshire, Ohio. The little A-Frame building is unusual, but what's really interesting to me is that they have a Drive-Through window!​

Drive-Thru liquor stores are illegal in Indiana, were I live, but many states, like Ohio, allow them. Considering all of the crying from politicians about the problem of drunk driving, it seems that allowing drive-in liquor stores would make the problem worse! Could be worse, I suppose. When I lived in New Mexico, the gas stations out there all sold hard liquor in little single-shot bottles!​

Willshire is a small town on US-33, just across the state line in Van Wert County, Ohio. The Saint Mary's River runs behind the liquor store. This is the same Saint Mary's River that flows into Fort Wayne, where it joins the Saint Joseph River in the middle of the city to form the Maumee.​

 

[kbg32]

Great stuff Chris.

My home town used to be small even though it was considered a suburb of New York City. I can remember tons of small towns and villages separated by woods and undeveloped land. Th train running through was at ground level, though made elevated eventually for safety. Now, every town flows into one another. Everything is all one strip mall with no division or separation between. No more villages. Just a lot more "nothing".

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

In the Midwestern United States, even very small towns usually have an American Legion post. This is on State Street, which is also US-33 and Ohio State Route 49 in the small town of Willshire, Ohio.​

Though it is mainly a social club for military veterans, the American Legion also lobbies government to protect the rights of veterans and those still serving.​

 

[Michael Markey]

Great stuff Chris.

My home town used to be small even though it was considered a suburb of New York City. I can remember tons of small towns and villages separated by woods and undeveloped land. Th train running through was at ground level, though made elevated eventually for safety. Now, every town flows into one another. Everything is all one strip mall with no division or separation between. No more villages. Just a lot more "nothing".

Yes ... same in the UK.
Good stuff Chris...

 

[airfrogusmc]

Very nice Chris.

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

Yesterday evening was the opening of an exhibit that included two of my photographs at the Artlink gallery in downtown Fort Wayne, Indiana. This 1949 Cadillac sedan was parked in the lot next to the Auer Center, the building on Main Street where the gallery is located.​

Every square inch of this classic car's body is covered in thousands of pennies! Only the chrome parts and the nameplates and emblems were left un-covered.​