“These Boots Made For Rockin” (Think Nancy Sinatra’ s big hit.) was made at Yellow Dog Village north of Pittsburgh. It was a company town—non-unionized—hence the name. The homes were built in the early 1900s by the company for workers. The limestone mine closed in the 50s. People continued to reside there. Then the water to the property was shut off. The last family left in 2010. The village was abandoned until 2014. Many of the homes (19 duplexes and single family houses) were vandalized and stripped of anything of value. Joe Meyer purchased the entire town in 2014 and attempted to restore the property. It was sold in 2022. The current owner is a very gracious immigrant who charges about $50 for a tour. He is working on restoration and addressing any safety concern. He uses sheep and goats to control vegetation. The boots were well made although a bit dirty. The red color contrasted with the dark flooring and white spindles of the rocking chair. The scene reflected the bittersweet passing of an era.

I saw a woman in pink posing and noticed that her companion was about to take her photo with his phone. I also noticed that the sunlight was hitting her pink dress and that compelled me to take this photo. (Handheld Settings: ISO 160, Focal Length 24mm, Aperture 4/14, and Shutter Speed to 1/125.)

The picture was taken on a field trip to the West Virginia Penitentiary in Moundsville, WVa in the summer of 2023. Old cells had lots of prisoners’ art, which was often quite vulgar. They also contained patches of very bright colors that caught my eye. (Sony 7r IV with Sony FE 70-200mm F4 G OSS lens. 0.4 sec, f/9.0, ISO 800.)