As some of you may know, Mrs. Ulcer has been having a terrible time at work and is stressed out as hell. Added to that her being married to me and me being unemployed for almost a year and you can understand shes at the end of her rope. A couple of weeks ago we headed for the hill country and did a great day trip seeing some incredible stuff. Well Friday she was ready for another go, so she found a rental cabin up north, we packed up the dog and off we went early this morning. Whats even more amazing was that she asked me what I wanted to Urbex along the way!
The first stop
The Grave in the Road in Hearne Texas. There is a GREAT story behind this place. The following was lifted from Atlas Obscura:
The town of Hearne is known as “The Crossroads of Texas” because it sits at the intersection of several highways and railroads. The little town used to be a hub of transport and commerce, but is now fairly sleepy pit stop. Amid the suburban houses and grassy lawns though, there is an unusual sight: a body buried in the middle of the street. The lone grave is marked by a sizable oak and a two plaques set in an almond-shaped median. The first marker reads: “COME YE BLESSED”. The second: “TO THE MEMORY OF ‘OUR MOTHER’ HOLLIE TATNELL 1859 – 1911”, and below that, “MRS. GEORGIA E. GARTER Washington D.C. ANDREW L. HUNTER M. D. Marlin, Texas”.
According to the scant history that exists, Hollie Tatnell was born a slave in Texas. Upon her death in 1911, she was buried in Hearne’s colored cemetery, which had allegedly originated as a slave burying ground. Hollie would have been one of the last people interred at the cemetery as it was closed in 1912.
When real estate developers purchased the land in 1947 they edged out the families of color in the neighborhood, who were forced to exhume and rebury the remains of their ancestors in the cemetery. The only family that refused to budge was Hollie Tatnell’s children, Georgia and Andrew. The developers, eager to move forward, had to construct a median around Hollie’s diagonal grave. As proof of their triumph, the Tatnell children placed the second marker on their mother’s grave in addition to her original headstone.
In 2007 the median also received a sign from the Texas Historical Commission, denoting it as a Historic Texas Cemetery despite only containing the remains of one person. “This single grave,” it reads, “serves as a reminder of the area’s early African-American community and of the sanctity of burial grounds.” They should have added, "as well as a middle finger to racist fucktards."
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The next stop on our little adventure was completely unplanned. While driving down the highway Mrs. Ulcer said, "What are you looking at?" then looked in the direction I as starring. "You want to go there dont you?" and she immediately pulled off the road onto an exit ramp and we were off to see a tall rusted building in the distance.
After some driving around (there was no direct route) we finally found what I was looking for, a large red brick structure with a caving in wooden roof about 7 stories high. She dropped me off and headed into town with BeauBeau The Dog so they could both pee (each for the 3rd time in as many hours...).
There were a couple of pickup trucks parked inside a gated fence that was open so I approached and went into a large metal building attached to the brick one. A man came out from behind a huge curtain and I introduced myself and said that it smelled like he had been welding. He responded, "Yep. And you cant take pictures of this place". I asked if he got a lot of requests and he said I was the 10th person in 5 years to come by and that the city owned the property and instructed me to call them on Monday (all as he was escorting me back outside). I called the wife to come pick me up and as I got past the fence a woman emerged from the building and locked the gate!
Moments after I got into the car to leave a cop car comes down the road. We flash our brights, slow down and pull over. The cop stops, hits his lights and I get out to go talk to him. After introductions were made the guy became much less suspicious and told me to talk to the city manager on Monday and he will probably let me in. He then told me the the place used to be an aircraft parts manufacturing plant and that its really cool inside. He also told me that there are cameras everywhere and the neighbors really look after the place. I get back into the car and watch him and he goes to the site, hits his lights and gets out. I was there literally less than 10 minutes and the cops had shown up!
So that one was a bust, for now. We head back down the road with the destination of a Nike missile command site. When we get there, there is a huge ornate metal gate with a call box. Mrs. Ulcer begins to turn around and I ask what shes doing. She says that its closed and we cant get in. I reply that we should try, all they can say is no, so I approached the call box and dialed 000.
A guy answers and I tell him who I, that my wife and I were on our way to a ranch for a few days for vacation and that I was really hoping that I could photograph the old site. He said that he was trying to get the lawn mowed before the rains came in but that he would let me in for 15 minutes and with that the gate opened!
The site was constructed in 1959, activated in 1960 and deactivated in 1968. I have no background no idea how the current owner came into possession of the property as he stayed on his mower the entire time but I can say that it is in GREAT shape. The main building is the guy's home and the other two buildings (living quarters and mess hall/day room) are now workshops.
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The Guard Shack was SWARMING with yellow jackets!7.
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We had one other spot on our list to check out before we made it to our final destination – an old horse barn with a great history. While looking at my map I realized that there was another Nike site not far away from the highway we were on. Mrs. Ulcer liked seeing the other place so much and was a bit nervous about the trespassing thing so she opted for the Nike site. As it turns out it was one of the coolest and creepiest explores I have ever done.
When we arrived we see a gate with two signs: DO NOT ENTER and NO TRESPASSING but the gate is open. I tell Mrs. Ulcer to pull in and she refuses so I get out and begin hiking to where I see a couple of cars parked. When I get close to the cars I begin shouting, “Hello! Hello! Hello!” probably a dozen times. I arrive at another fence and I see two guys walking towards me, one with a shotgun in his hands!
“Whaddaya want!” the older guy in front shouts, followed by two small dogs that I could tell right away were not mean. I put my hands up and ask him if I can come inside the fence to talk. Not getting an answer I went in anyway with shotgun guy about 25 yards back and the gun leveled at me like hes going to make a hip shot.
I introduce myself to the old guy and explain that I’m writing books on forgotten places and was hoping I could take a few photos of the old Nike base. He says that hes busy and asked if I could come back Monday. I explained that I was staying about an hour away and that I had plans to shoot another location on Monday how about Tuesday? He cant. Well that seemed to end the discussion and I start walking back to the car with him in tow. I then asked about the artwork hanging around and he tells me that it’s a hobby and all about where he gets his material and on and on and on. I explain that my wife and I had rented a 40 acre ranch for the next few days and were just passing through so I thought I would stop by.
“Where is she? Down by the gate?”
“Yeah she and the dog are waiting for me.”
“Well go get her and tell her to park up here.”
Jackpot!
I get back to the gate and tell Mrs. Ulcer to pull in and as she does she rolls down the window, says hi and introduces herself.
“Park up there but leave Fido in the car”
“No that’s ok I’ll stay with him, he doesn’t like to be alone”
“Park up there and leave the dog in the car”
Ok now Im starting to get a weird vibe (as if the shotgun wasn’t enough…)
She parks, leaving the car running and my 130lb German Shepherd freaking out. He then begins taking us around the property and explaining what the various building are (see below). I ask if he had ever been in the military himself and he said he was in the Army. I asked what he did in the military and got, “I don’t wanna talk about it”. End of subject….
As we get back to where he and shotgun guy were we’re stopped and talking. Shotgun guy comes out of a building less the shotgun but I’m still getting the creepy feeling and so is Mrs. Ulcer. She says that shes going to check on the dog.
“No. Hes fine”
“Well hes really protective and doesn’t like us being away”
“Hes fine, leave him alone. We’re almost done”
At that point I see him raise one finger and nod to shotgun guy. I look over and he just nods back but doesn’t move. I’m nervous as shit. Nobody knows we’re on vacation much less where we are. My dog is in the car, I have my wife with me and a guy I know has a gun.
We stop look at some of his creepy artwork, and I get a few photos. I then ask him if he has any plans to sell his stuff and he said no that hes working on something bigger. “What would that be?” I ask. He then tells me the story that a few years ago there was a guy on a bulldozer doing some earthwork nearby. After doing some scraping the dozer fell 20 into an underground room! As it turns out there are miles of underground tunnels in the area dating back to just after WWII and hes exposing them with a website (the name of which I cannot give out as it will give the location away). I play along, ask him about it and get him to expound on his psycho conspiracy theory more.
We get back to the car and he gives me his number and tells me that the next time I’m in town to call him – he has some things he wants to show me. I readily agreed and we got the hell outta there!
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Barber shop, officer and enlisted quarters.
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Original doors to the building!
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Main work area for the base.
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Entrance to the main building
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North side of the main building and home to "Leatherface". Note the creepy artwork on the walls.
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Mess Hall kitchen. On the right where the back of the microwave sits is where the soldiers returned their trays.
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Workshop/Maintenance/Electrical. The square rusted box sitting on top of the pole to the right was where the electrical lines entered the base. From there they were pipped into the building and run underground throughout the facility from there.
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Looking down Radar Row. According to Leatherface, he planted all of those trees and lamented that he'll be dead before he sees them all get big. He also said that the place had 6 different radar stations at various times but from what I have seen the construction is inconsistent with a radar dish and the cinder blocks on which these allegedly sat look too new in addition to the fact that I havent seen anyplace that had 6 radar dishes. Maybe I'm wrong but what do I know?
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One of the 6 alleged radar sites with the control room behind it (allegedly).
25. Weird artwork made by one of Leatherface's friends.
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Another radar site pad with the dog "Killer". I actually believe this at one time had the radar on it as the pad was the right shape and in the right place.
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Overview of the base from one of the radar pads.
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Overview of the base from one of the pads with the nearby city skyline in the distance.
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Leatherface's creep artwork
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More of Leatherface's work
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but hey its a job! Hopefully I can show 'em what I've got and climb the corporate ranks lol. Thanks man!
