140-142/365 Abandoned High School

On a Sunday two years ago I had to get away. I was feeling trapped and isolated in my falling-apart bungalow in Irvington so I took off east on SR40 out into the flat countryside of Indiana where the cornfields and soy beans had yet to be planted for the year. I had never traveled SR40 since the freeway parallels the road and I usually drive the freeway, but on that day I didn’t want the freeway. I wanted country.

It was a bizarre trip. The further away from Indianapolis I got, the more surreal the landscape became. Every small mom-and-pop store loomed large in various stages of deterioration even as their “open” signs invited people in. I wanted to get away from the blight around me. That was the whole point! I was tired of living in a squalid area and wanted to see something refreshing and new.

Instead, I saw this imposing abandoned high school. It sat on high ground and dared me to stop! The previous day I had wandered all over the crumbling grounds of the insane asylum so I was prepped for another exploration of a different abandoned building. I did an illegal U-turn and pulled up the drive to the building.

140/365

141/365

142/365

The above three photos are the ones I chose to represent days 140, 141, and 142, but I couldn’t let the rest of the building go unnoticed.

Just a bit more information about this building. It is not isolated. All around it is a subdivision of nice homes. But no one paid any attention to the woman in the bright blue car parked against the red brick walls. No one glanced at me as I wandered around the grounds, pulling vines and trees out of my way so I could get closer to a window or door. A dog barked nearby and the owner shushed it, but he didn’t look up at me even though I watched him to make sure the dog was contained. A car drove past the left side of the building to get to a driveway, but I didn’t see the driver look up at the building, nor at me. It was as if this big, sprawling building was invisible, and because I was there for the building, I became invisible. It was truly bizarre.

Anyway, here are more photos:

Abandoned High School Close Up

Two Pots in Window

Broken Window Panes

Recess Bell

Greenfield Christian Academy

Lots of trees and things to scrounge through in the back.

No Trespassing, Private Property

Of all the photos I took, I detest this one the most. It repulses me. But because I hate it so much, I am including it. Not all interesting things have to be positive.

It has been two years since I took these photos. For all I know, the building has been torn down or repurposed. I tried to find out more info on it by doing a Google search, but the keywords I used netted nothing. If I find out more about this building, I’ll update.