one of the more well know locations in my area is a old house the was built to house the aged and orphaned members of a well known insurance company. the main building was built in 1927-1929 and opened in 1930. The annex building was dedicated, and the home was opened with a handful of young and aged residents.





the number of orphaned children needing to be housed continued to rise. So in 1933 the Pennsylvania house was built to house them and by 1935 {at its peak} there where more then 50 children living in the house. Later in the 40s a administration building was added.





The house continued to operate until 1971. When it closed it had served 165 aged members and more then 100 orphaned children.



After it closed, it was sold to a group of attorneys that later leased it to Dr. Ariel Sherman and New Life Tabernacle. The New Life Tabernacle was a faith healing cult founded by the "doctor" and over the years the Tabernacle faced countless court cases over child abuse, neglect and endangerment.



The cult abandoned the house in the early 80s and its been vacant ever since. After countless vandals, neglect and fires the inside is unrecognizable. the roof is caving in and the lower floors are starting to buckle in on themselves. the once beautiful house now just sits rotting away.


time line -

• 1928 - Ground was broken on November 14th, and construction began.

• 1930 - The administration building was opened

• 1931-1935 - More orphans moved into the home.

• 1948 - The number of children living in the home fell to 4. Only 8 more children were taken in from 1948 onward.

• 1966 - The last new resident was accepted in July, 1966.

• 1970 - The Home closed, having sheltered more than 100 children, and 165 elderly.

• 1971 - The home was purchased by a group of attorneys.

• 1977 - 1980 - The property was leased by Dr. Ariel Sherman and New Life Tabernacle.

• 1990 - The remaining property was purchased by the current owners

• 1990 and 1991 - A series of fires on the property cause large amounts of damage


how it looks today-

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https://www.facebo...m/MeltedWaxImagery

thanks for looking

Neat location!

great job on an interesting location. and the research you did makes this post stand out.

Bah! This place is a block away from where I live now and Fed Ex delivered my new camera yesterday and I was itching to shoot something. Damn you for not randomly sending me a PM after 3 years of inactivity!

Posted by Aleksandar great job on an interesting location. and the research you did makes this post stand out.

Agreed. I think the story line and research people do on locations, history, etc. dwtaylor999 is great at this! Adds a lot to the location I think. Great job.

I need to get here. This place looks crazy.

Great post Fat...the history and the vintage shots are top-drawer!

Great history. Always brings more life to the location.

This is really cool!

thanks everyone!

Posted by Liquorhead Bah! This place is a block away from where I live now and Fed Ex delivered my new camera yesterday and I was itching to shoot something. Damn you for not randomly sending me a PM after 3 years of inactivity!

haha, glad to see you come back! hit me up sometime and we'll go hit up a few spots, now that you're in the area!

This is fantastic! Great shots!

I see an Astro!

Great write up, fatwax! You know how I feel about that place!

well done brother! we need more posts like this!!

Posted by Astro I see an Astro! Great write up, fatwax! You know how I feel about that place!

Haha yeah, I remember how much you loved the turkey vulture! We will go back the next time you're up here!

damn... just damn.... I miss Texas. I wish I had pix from my visit back in 06.

Great post, cool location, and interesting perspectives on your photos.

Thanks for sharing your trip!

Great shots. Thanks for sharing.

Be very careful if you visit this location. I'd love to see the inside. Or even the outside from a closer vantage point. We have been up to the fence several times, but don't want to take a chance. Rumor has it that one of the owners lives right behind the property and will prosecute any trespasser.

And this is why you're the best explorer in Texas. Point proven. I would love to get her sometime. Great pictures.

Posted by Keaven Rumor has it that one of the owners lives right behind the property and will prosecute any trespasser.

he does and he will.

Posted by Radical Fred And this is why you're the best explorer in Texas. Point proven. I would love to get her sometime. Great pictures.

haha, thanks! _{but I still don't think that's true...}