While traveling through Kentucky we came into the small mining town of Sterns. The area was a boom town for the coal mining and the lumber industry in the early to mid 1900's. We camped for a few days in the Big South Fork National Recreation Area. As we road around exploring the area we found a privately owned coal mining camp that offered tours into an authentic coal mining camp, with a walk down into an old mine. It was a fantastic place to visit and learn about the early coal mining industry in Kentucky. The camp had all of the equipment left on site from the day it had shut down. I spent a couple of hours just walking around and looking at all of the different equipment used in the mining industry. While walking down the railroad tracks I saw this old mining truck sitting in the woods. Immediately it caught my eye and I was fascinated by its rugged stature and the sense of abandonment it gave to me. I am certain that it provided a lot of hard work in its day at the camp and now sits quiet as part of the past. When I come across old things that have been abandon it always stirs a sad feeling thinking of the people and their lives of hard work that have all vanished from these places.
http://www.barthellcoalcamp.com/
John, your work is spectacular. I love your landscapes but this old truck struck a cord in me because I also love the old trucks and classic cars of the past. And, I too, think about the people who drove them and the stories they could tell.
ReplyDeleteThanks Rene for commenting on my work. These old abandon vehicles always provoke a sense of nostalgia and I feel fortunate when I stubble onto them.
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