​Abandoned Washington State

 
​This is the companion web site for the book, Abandoned Washington State by Howard Frisk, published in 2023 by Fonthill Media and distributed by Arcadia Publishing and Casemate Publishers. The book features photographs and the stories behind them for Washington State's abandoned farmhouses, one-room schoolhouses, ghost towns, hospitals, railroads, industrial sites, and military complexes.
 
This web site serves two purposes:

For those who have purchased the book, this web site provides additional photographs that were not included in the book.

​For those who have not purchased the book, this web site will give you a sampling of the photographs and stories in the book. 

All photographs were taken by me unless otherwise credited.

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​Rural
Eastern Washington State is home to hundreds of wheat farms, some of which have been in the family for generations. Many farmhouses that have been abandoned for decades remain in the fields as silent reminders of the original homesteaders that pioneered the area to make a living off the land. The Palouse region of Southeastern Washington State is now one of the world’s most productive wheat growing areas. Its dry climate is ideal for dryland (non-irrigated) farming and preserving homesteads that were originally established in the 1880s. Because they are a part of a family's history, famers often decide to let them remain standing.

​Rural photos

 
​Ghost Towns
Washington State is home to dozens of ghost towns. Most of them were founded in the eastern part of the state as mining towns. Two of the most interesting towns were Molson and Bodie. They owe their existence to beer and chewing gum, respectively. In 1898, promoter George Meacham and investor John W. Molson, of the famous Molson brewing family of Canada, arrived and founded the town of Molson. All the gold mines except one turned out to be duds, so most of the miners left and the town’s population dwindled back down to just few people by 1901. Eventually everyone left and Molson became a ghost town.

​Ghost town photos

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Industry
In 1906, the Seattle Gas Lighting Company began operating its coal gasification plant on the north shore of Seattle’s Lake Union. Its purpose was to convert coal into flammable gas for lighting in homes and businesses. The process involved passing steam through superheated coal, which released a gas consisting mostly of carbon monoxide and hydrogen. In 1937, oil replaced coal as the fuel source for the gasification plant. Operations ceased in 1956 with the arrival of natural gas via a pipeline from Canada. The coal gasification plant consisted of six generators. The two on the left are Semet-Solvay type generators built in 1938. They could produce 6 million cubic feet of gas per day. Others were added in 1947.

​Industry photos

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Urban
The story of the St. Ignatius Hospital would not be complete without highlighting the role of one remarkable individual, Mother Joseph Pariseau of the Sisters of Providence. Responding to a need for healthcare in the Washington Territory, Mother Joseph and four nuns traveled on a forty-five-day, 6,000-mile journey from Montreal to Fort Vancouver in 1856. Mother Joseph was an architect, and during her lifetime of service she was responsible for building eleven hospitals, seven academies, five schools, and two orphanages, including St. Ignatius Hospital in Colfax in 1893, which was the largest building in Eastern Washington and was Whitman County’s only hospital until 1964.

​Urban photos

 
Railroads
Near the town of Chehalis is a graveyard of sorts for abandoned train cars.  Passenger cars were originally built with wood, most notably from the Pullman company from the late 1800s into the early 1900s, which is when steel passenger cars were manufactured.
 
​Some passenger train cars were as long as 85 feet. 

​Railroad photos

 
Schools
The population of the Washington Territory grew rapidly following the Civil War. With an increasing population came the need for more schoolhouses. In 1869, there were twenty-two, and by 1889, there were over a thousand, mostly built from logs. They were gradually replaced with wood-framed schoolhouses as seen in the small town of Govan and elsewhere. Schoolhouses like these were the pride of small farming communities and were used for civic, religious, and political events. If they could afford it, the townspeople would add a belfry to house the school bell. Hundreds of these schoolhouses were abandoned as farming communities grew and needed larger buildings, and because school districts were being consolidated over time.

School photos

 
Military
Fort Casey on Whidbey Island was one of three forts built at the entrance to Puget Sound. It was part of a “triangle of fire” that included Fort Worden in Port Townsend and Fort Flagler on Marrowstone Island, designed to protect Seattle, Tacoma, and the Bremerton Naval Station against attack by sea. Construction began in 1898 and was completed in 1903. This 10-inch disappearing gun is in the firing position. It weighs 125 tons. The gun barrel alone weighs 33 tons and fired shells weighing over 300 lbs. It took twenty-six soldiers to load, aim, and fire this gun. They were called “disappearing guns,” because the recoil would lower them so they could not be seen from offshore. Only two 10-inch disappearing guns remain in the U.S.

​Military photos

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These are only a few of the dozens of abandoned locations explored in the Abandoned Washington State book.
The book and this web site are organized into the seven sections as shown in the links below.
Let your exploration begin!