Whitewater11 Loc: Ellensburg, Washington

The rush to prove up on a bit of land to call your own in the late 18 hundreds has left us with many stories, vacant foundations and curious clumps of required woodlot trees. Drought tolerant honey locust were planted from politician obligation to have wood growing on your new property as you proved your claim. The amount of land was scarcely enough to make a living and I suspect the bitter cold, winter snows and challenge of protecting livestock were big part of the successful neighbors ability to grow their acreage. Where ever you see these clumps of locust you are likely looking at an over hundred and fifty year old homestead marker.

This snapshot is a quick shot from a blind turn on the narrow road just north of the Central Ferry bridge. It is overlooking the breaks of the Snake River drainage. I feel a connection to that history and I thought that monotone as it is it speaks of a challenging time of horse drawn equipment that is vanishing from the landscape. I did several subtle tests with tone and color in camera raw but felt that this final image has the mood I wanted.
If you have a related image to share pease post it.

vanishing homesteads

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tradio Loc: Oxford, Ohio

Great shot!

R.G. Loc: Scotland

I notice there doesn't seem to be a proper road up to the homestead. Is that an indication of the horse-oriented society of the time?

Linda From Maine Loc: Yakima, Washington

Powerful storytelling in both photo and words, Lynn.

jederick Loc: Northern Utah

An abandoned hay ranch in Utah's arid west desert...a similar sense of despair and remoteness.

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couch coyote Loc: northern Illinois

A photo that makes you think, I love it. Thanks for the further explanation of the history behind it.

bsprague Loc: Lacey, WA, USA

We had those trees when we had a house in Yakima. Now I know why! Thanks.

Whitewater11 Loc: Ellensburg, Washington

Thank you.

Whitewater11 Loc: Ellensburg, Washington

There is a new ranch house near the highway a couple of miles north of this image and someday I may stop and get the rest of the story if they know it. The structures in the photo look sound, but I am sure it is an old homestead and the successful grain farmer has rebuilt somewhere else. Suspect the road has long been obliterated by modern farm machinery.

Whitewater11 Loc: Ellensburg, Washington

Thank You Linda,

Whitewater11 Loc: Ellensburg, Washington

Thanks for posting your image. There was so much to making a living on these homesteads. The wooden tripod may have been used to stack hay, but the climate has changed enough that hay might not get enough moisture today. My grandfather homesteaded successfully on a sheltered bench in eastern Washington where winter winds built a huge snowdrift that irrigated an acre plus garden with fruit. I go back 81 years and already the climate had warmed enough that I never saw that snowdrift form.

Whitewater11 Loc: Ellensburg, Washington

Thanks for your comments.

Whitewater11 Loc: Ellensburg, Washington

Thanks for commenting. Most of those little woodlots have been removed. Locust is really hard to cut up and after 150 years of stunted growth there is not much wood to harvest. It was another brilliant plan from politicians who have little understanding of nature. It makes me smile as I see an occasional desperate clump tucked into the North face of an ancient dune surviving out of the way of farming in eastern Washington.

Cwilson341 Loc: Central Florida

Exceptional work. You turned what must have been a nice shot into an absolute work of art.

Whitewater11 Loc: Ellensburg, Washington

Thank you.