The next stop was originally known as the Ralph Waldo Emerson School went it opened in 1909. It was also known as the Emerson School for the Visual and Performing Arts when it closed in 2008. The past ten years have not been kind to the once grand building as you can see in these pictures. It was abandoned by the Gary School board due to a severe mold issue and pretty much left to decay on it's own. I don't have a lot of words to say about my visit. At times I was impressed by something I saw in here. But mostly I was disheartened by how much history was just discarded like it wasn't worth the trouble to save it.
Definitely appropriate graffiti.
I understand taking what you can salvage and graffiti artists using the abandoned walls, but why come here just to destroy things.
There was lots of music sheets and booklets in the storage area.
After walking through the decaying hallways, I guess I focused on more historical items in the dark storage area upstairs.
The "Work - Study - Play" was the motto of this school and it's first superintendent William Wirt.
The Gary Poetry Project has several panels on the old school.
"just love
we hear about it's arrival, we had three seasons yesterday
put the phone down, enjoy the view...breathe
and death comes"
- from a poem, "Summer Sun, Summer Fun" on the side of an abandoned school building
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