The old Town I went to as a kid is a ghost town now. The old street that was once bumper to bumper on Saturdays, is rough and rarely sees a car. When someone does drive through, it's to reminisce. "There is where the Masonic Lodge once stood. There's the bank.  The old theater was between the dry goods store and Johnson's Barber Shop."

These days the west wall is covered in layers of faded graffiti, proclaiming the class of......

I've worn the soles off many pairs of shoes walking the street (singular).  Up on the hillside just above the old Dora Motor Company, and overlooking the L&N Railroad tracks was the old Dora Library. It was built from stone dug from the earth around the town during the Great Depression. President Roosevelt's plan to get out of the depression was to pay people to do useful work.

The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) built the old high school gymnasium and the archway into the football field. They also built the old library.

The facility was closed in the 60s and the building fell into disrepair. Soon the brush and brambles hid the old building from view except for those adventurous enough to tunnel through.

A few years back, I parked at the foot of the hill and made my way toward where I thought the old building stood. I had the forethought to take a machete with me and hacked a path in.

The old structure was still standing. The roof and floor had since rotted, but the stones set by the CCC were still standing proud almost a hundred years later.

I wish there was some way this historic old building could be revitalized, but I fear this is a pipe dream, to use a tired cliche.  There is so much need today, that a project like this wouldn't stand a chance to get funded.

It's just that each time I drive through the old town, it seems a little piece of my past has faded away.