# Roebuck Plantation House - USA - March 2015



## mookster (Mar 28, 2015)

I have been itching to share this place with everyone, so much that I have been trying my hardest to not rush through the rest of the places just to get to it sooner! I rarely fall in love with places, but this place totally captured my heart. I thought I wouldn't see somewhere I liked more than the American asylum I did until I walked into here. I'd even go so far as to say I liked it in here more than Lumiere and Great Tew - at least partly because this place has rarely been explored at all and it gives me a thrill seeing somewhere not well-travelled like those aforementioned locations.

The original house was constructed in the early 1800s overlooking a 10,000 acre plantation, but was almost totally destroyed in a fire in the late 1800s. The only part that survived, the kitchen wing, was incorporated into the new house built in 1902. The building was abandoned in 1989 and bought by a computer software developer, who later sold it to another party and it still remains empty.

It sits atop a hill and where once there was an unbroken vista across the land now sits a new development of 300 large, new, crass, soulless mansions of the kind only Americans can build and live in. The kind lived in by people who probably sneer and turn their noses up at 'that old derelict house', also the kind of people who more than likely would call the police at the drop of a hat if they saw anyone snooping around, which made the - literal - run up the steep curving driveway that bit more intense but all the more rewarding when we found ourselves in the stunning entrance lobby.

I hope you enjoy the photos of this place as much as I enjoyed exploring it. I did take quite a lot of photos of the stairs and for that I have no apologies.











































































































Thanks for looking, more here https://www.flickr.com/photos/mookie427/sets/72157651542541436/ ​


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## Big C (Mar 28, 2015)

Wow! Nicely done that man, looks absolutely superb.


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## mookster (Mar 28, 2015)

It had an affect on me definitely, walking away from it down the drive I kept stopping and looking back at it! When I win the lottery...


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## tumble112 (Mar 28, 2015)

This is really special. That stairway merits plenty of pictures. I wonder why pianos always get left behind?


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## smiler (Mar 28, 2015)

Another gem Mook, you've posted a shed load of lovely pics from your American excursion and apart from a bit of urban art our American cousins seem a wee bit short of firebugs and metal Maggie's, should we send em some?


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## mookster (Mar 28, 2015)

smiler said:


> Another gem Mook, you've posted a shed load of lovely pics from your American excursion and apart from a bit of urban art our American cousins seem a wee bit short of firebugs and metal Maggie's, should we send em some?



Oh they have those you can be sure of that - but America is so vast and some places so remote like this one that they don't even feature on those sort of peoples radars. After the asylum I paid a flying visit to an infamous epileptic colony nearby which has been bashed, burnt, stripped and trashed to within an inch of its life just to get a shot of the bashed, trashed, graffiti covered mortuary. Being a 'tourist' and able to travel around I could pick and choose the nice spots 

One of my friends over there lives in a city that had a large number of its derelict buildings burnt down by a single serial arsonist for instance...


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## coffee (Mar 28, 2015)

Stunning

I thought the American look after their historic building better then we do here


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## HughieD (Mar 29, 2015)

Wow...really liking that one. Absolutely stunning.


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## mookster (Mar 29, 2015)

coffee said:


> Stunning
> 
> I thought the American look after their historic building better then we do here



Nope, they have no system of compulsory listings of buildings of special architectural interest, significance or importance whatsoever. All they have is the 'register of national historic places' which doesn't stop anybody wanting to demolish them. A prime example of this at the moment is the recent unbelievable agreement to demolish Greystone Asylum in New Jersey, one of the largest and most historically and architecturally significant asylums in the country. It's being torn down despite objections from near enough every party other than the developers and the local councillors and there is legally nothing they can do, realistically.


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## Chopper (Mar 29, 2015)

Wow, this place is amazing. Would love to see it. And those sinks and baths, etc. Amazing. Shame to see it rot, but wouldn't have seen it if it wasn't rotting, so...


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## flyboys90 (Mar 29, 2015)

What a grand building,great shots thanks for sharing.


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## brickworx (Mar 29, 2015)

Stunning place and great set....really good work here....can see why it had such an impact on you, it's beautiful. Thanks


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## brickworx (Mar 29, 2015)

tumble1 said:


> This is really special. That stairway merits plenty of pictures. I wonder why pianos always get left behind?



I used to be in removals....have you ever tried moving a piano?! More hassle than it's worth


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## smiler (Mar 29, 2015)

mookster said:


> Oh they have those you can be sure of that - but America is so vast and some places so remote like this one that they don't even feature on those sort of peoples radars. After the asylum I paid a flying visit to an infamous epileptic colony nearby which has been bashed, burnt, stripped and trashed to within an inch of its life just to get a shot of the bashed, trashed, graffiti covered mortuary. Being a 'tourist' and able to travel around I could pick and choose the nice spots
> 
> One of my friends over there lives in a city that had a large number of its derelict buildings burnt down by a single serial arsonist for instance...



Shame that, I was hoping we could set up an exchange programme, i.e. we send em our Maggie's and they send us Arnie as the new Mayor of Bristol.


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## UrbanX (Mar 29, 2015)

Wow! What a place! 
I can imagine how stunning that must be walking into a hallway like that! 
The whole place just looks perfect. Brilliant photos as always. Just stunning.


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## mookster (Mar 29, 2015)

I think you can see why it was my favourite


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## Trinpaul (May 23, 2015)

Brilliant location!


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