The ghost town that wasn't

Right after Christmas, I posted some old pictures that I got from my BIL of some of the old rivertowns around the area, especially Woodbury. This morning, I woke up with an idea. Try to find my way to the old ghost town and do some "then and now" pictures

I was able to get there in just a little less than an hour, and when I got there, I got a surprise. It wasn't a ghost town. People live there. Ok, not many, there are like 12-15 occupied houses. But it is by far one of the strangest places I've ever been. Some of the old buildings that I have pictures of from over 100 years ago are still there, decaying and falling down; and just a few dozen yards away, a new home that must have cost over $90,000. It makes a very strange contrast.

So, I decided that what I would do was to try to duplicate the angles of the old photographs; and found out right away that was impossible. The photograph of the business area was obviously taken from the 2nd floor or the roof of a building that was no longer there, and a rather thick stand of new growth trees was in the way as well. So, I got it as close as I could;

My old photograph;


And the business district today. The entire street is gone, and the building in front of the old Union church can barely been seen above the roofs of the other buildings in the old photo. The church however, is still used and is in fantastic shape



And this one, of the "Little Eddie" locking through the locks and dam, I couldn't get it right either. I got the end of the guard rail, but could not get it to line up with where the old dam had been;



And when I walked down to the locks, I found out why....at least 40 feet of the old retaining wall is missing, apparently having collapsed a long, long time ago

Alas, the old Woodbury Hotel has not fared well at all. Nearly all the old buildings were posted as private property or "danger; keep out", so I wasn't able to get inside any of them. I didn't know how many of Woodbury's so far unseen residents were watching



And here is the old Hotel this afternoon

What interesting pics! sounds like a great explore for you I love looking at old sites! Thanks for sharing

AWESOME pictures!! I have an obsession of old abandoned buildings. I have only been in one or two but I take pictures of some of them. I am starting to do more of it. I love the creepiness of it. Anyways, where exactly is Woodbury?

Awesome pics! I love seeing old photos. and also before and after pics.

Originally Posted by Jen

AWESOME pictures!! I have an obsession of old abandoned buildings. I have only been in one or two but I take pictures of some of them. I am starting to do more of it. I love the creepiness of it. Anyways, where exactly is Woodbury?

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Woodbury was actually the headquarters town of the Army Corps of Engineers in Kentucky. It's only about 500 yards downriver from the confluence of where the Green and Barren rivers join. It has a very colorful history too. During the American Civil War, the city of Bowling Green sat at the very crossroads of the Louisville and Nashville railroad, and the Barren River. This made it THE town in Kentucky that was a "must have" for both sides. The Union forces took Bowling Green early in the war, but had a problem; Confederate forces held the the town and navigation locks at Woodbury. It was the scene of some pretty lively battles with the Union finally winning...and the Confederates leaving some VERY large boulders inside the lock when they left.

Once it went back into operation, Woodbury was a roaring rivertown, rivaling some of the townships on the Barbary coast. River sailors were some pretty rough and tumble type o' guys.

In 1965, the dam at Woodbury broke, and by then, US70 was completed and Interstate 65 was only a few months from opening, so the Corps abandoned the upper Green river. They left Woodbury entirely in 1972. It's been mostly forgotten ever since.

That is so cool! And, also so sad. It's good that the town is getting more people moving into it, and at least you have the pictures to show how it used to be. I would be SO tempted to explore the hotel and some of the old houses, but they probably aren't safe now.

Well, you certainly had a great idea!

Very neat! Thanks for sharing that!