Places That Were

Dozens of decommissioned Cold War era ICBM missile silos exist across the country, but very few are accessible these days.



Several days and a few hundred miles from my ultimate destination, a Titan missile silo complex in Colorado still open for exploration, I had a raging case of ICBM fever. Hoping for temporary relief, I stopped to check out a partially unearthed Titan II in Southeastern Arizona.

The morning after my ride into Tucson, I enjoyed a hearty breakfast at Mother Hubbard’s Cafe. The waitress seemed to be having a rough morning, so I tried to brighten her day by being extra polite and smiling a lot. I must have given her the wrong impression because as I was leaving she slipped me her number. It happened so fast that I didn't get a chance to tell her that I'm already spoken for and that I'm not into women. I sure did appreciate the compliment though. Hopefully she wasn't too heartbroken when I never called.

I navigated a series of rural highways until I reached a little dirt road out in the middle of nowhere. There was a simple gate of two thick metal bars to keep vehicles out, but no signs warning away trespassers.


I jumped the gate and wandered the property with a few interesting features, including a rusty metal thingamajig,


An odd cement bucket thing,


a monolithic concrete cube,




several giant concrete cylinders protruding from the ground,





and a rusting metal dome.







I had finished taking pictures and was about to head back to my car, when a white police pickup truck pulled up. The cop, a guy of retirement age with a grown-out crew cut, was quite friendly.

I told him I was there to take a few pictures and didn't realize I was on private property. He said that people often steal the no trespassing signs, which is why none were posted. We talked for a while and he told me he’d like to own a missile silo, but they’re ridiculously expensive because they’ve become collectors’ items. He said I should check out the Titan Missile Museum in Sahuarita, Arizona. I was tempted to check it out, but didn't have enough time if I wanted to be in New Mexico by the day's end.



Next stop: a creepy miniature golf course outside Willcox, AZ.

Nickerson Farms Family Restaurant stood abandoned for decades before the structure finally collapsed in late 2013.

I decided to stop and have a look at the ruins since they were just off the freeway. I'm glad I did because there were two more abandoned places adjacent to it. The restaurant lay in a huge pile of rubble, but the red pavilion next to it was still standing.


And as an added bonus, a decaying billboard.


The Nickerson Farms franchise operated from the 1960s until the early '80s. At one point there as many as 60 locations, most of which were along interstate freeways in the Midwest. The franchise was born when a former franchisee of Stuckey's convenience stores decided he was fed up with the rules and regulations and struck out on his own.

Each Nickerson Farms consisted of a restaurant, gas station, and gift shop that sold honey made from bees on site. They even had a window into the beehive so customers could watch the bees as they went about their business.


Next door to the ruins of Nickerson Farms is the remains of another local attraction, The Picacho Peak Trading Post.



The place burned down in 2002. A neighbor, who witnessed a sudden flash just as the fire broke out, attempted to fight the blaze with a garden hose until fire fighters arrived. Attempts to save the trading post were unsuccessful. Now all that remains is a stone foundation and part of the legs of the giant statue the once welcomed customers.

image from http://roadsidepeek.com/roadusa/southwest/arizona/azroadside/azroadmen/index.htm

I headed toward Tucson, stopping to appreciate an abandoned restaurant and the beautiful sunset.







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Phoenix, Arizona and the surrounding area is home to a fascinating variety of abandoned places. My favorite so far were the incredible ruins of Phoenix Trotting Park, and I couldn't wait to find out what else Arizona had in store for me.

I woke up at sunrise, my mind running through the list of places I hoped to explore before the day's end. A man in a bright yellow construction vest gave a long suspicious glare at my car before climbing into his pickup truck and driving off. I'd hoped to be on the road before any of the locals had a chance to notice the unfamiliar car with California plates parked in their quiet Phoenix neighborhood. I jumped into the drivers seat and headed out.

I'd driven only a few miles when an abandoned building caught my eye, so I stopped to take a closer look. The fading sign read Pancho's Market.



A little research online turned up a Pancho's Market in a different part of Phoenix, but no mention of the location I'd stumbled upon. I looked up the address I found online, but Google Street View showed an empty storefront. Either Pancho's Market has moved to yet another location or gone out of business.

I drove downtown to check out the beautiful remains of the First Baptist Church. Built in 1929, the church had a huge auditorium in its center with seating for 1500 people. The congregation relocated in 1969, leaving the building vacant. I assume they moved for financial reasons, but I can't be sure. If anyone has any information, please let me know in the comment section below.



The church was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.


A devastating fire broke out in 1984, gutting much of the inside and causing the roof to collapse. The building was saved from demolition by the Housing Opportunity Center, a nonprofit organization, which purchased it in 1993.

I was looking forward to seeing how nature had transformed the roofless structure over the decades. But when I arrived the building was buzzing with activity. I peered inside to find a construction crew hard at work as a small group of well-dressed men meandered through on a tour. From the look of the place, it appeared construction had begun within the last several weeks. It's nice to know that the building will once again serve a purpose. I just wish I'd gotten a chance to see it before all the excitement began.




My next stop was Scorpion Gulch, the site of an old stone house, soda shop, and curio store with a huge cactus garden.

Thankfully I got there early enough that no one else was around. When I passed by an hour or so later, quite a few people had arrived, along with several rolling racks full of clothing. It looked like a professional photo shoot was taking place.

Next I headed into South Mountain Park Preserve to check out Max Delta Mine. A short easy hike took me to the foundations where structures once stood along the side of the mountain.

And one very lonely fireplace with a beautiful view of the countryside.


Max Delta Mine operated in the early 1900s, supplying massive amounts of Gold, Silver, and Copper. in 1935 Max Delta Mine was the fourth largest producer of gold in the US.




The network of tunnels inside the mountain is quite extensive, but also incredibly hazardous. I had no intention of trying to explore the mine itself. It has many levels, some completely flooded, others lined with rusting rails and fatal drops into the darkness below. My adventure through the hills of Arizona's Black Mountains several days earlier had satisfied my desire for mine exploration for the time being.


The short hike to Max Delta Mine got my blood moving and I felt invigorated and ready to take on the day.

I got back on the highway and headed to the former site of Beeline Dragway (a great name for a racetrack, don't you think?). The site was not well marked, and I almost missed the turnoff.

Beeline Dragway was a popular drag racing site in the '60s and '70s, featuring two quarter-mile racing strips. People came from miles around to watch muscle cars and custom-built racing vehicles compete against one another. Entrepreneur Jim Rogers built Beeline Dragway in 1963 on land he leased from the Salt River Pima Indian tribe. It closed in the early '80s when the popularity of drag racing was in decline.

Sadly, all that remained of Beeline Dragway by the time I arrived was the concrete slab where the main building once stood. The Google satellite image I'd looked at had been out of date and still showed at least one building standing.


Nearby was a small picnic area...


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