Its sad to see abandoned homes that maybe once housed a family with love and laughter. Also abandoned cars make me think of when they were brand new and someone went excitedly into a showroom and bought it. Who knows what adventures it took them on.
This is Hands down, one of the best Channels on RU-vid, it’s my favourite, I love Joe’s easy going & affable commentary & his videography & ability to take us to these “off the beaten track” small Towns in America, this is so interesting to discover all the local History & statistics of what makes America great, absolutely wonderful, thank you for taking us along for the ride, what a privilege & a adventure to follow your journey, keep up the tremendous work Joe, your a legend.
Agreed, I love seeing someone appreciate those little places otherwise forgotten about rather than just the big landmarks. These are the sort of places that give a place real identity and tell a story
@@NoNameNoFace-rr7li But who would you buy it from? The guy who parked it could have died 40 years ago and it has gone through and estate or two. How would you find the person who actually owns it? The town or county probably own the lot for back taxes. I wonder if they could sell it as abandoned property? Probably quicker and cheaper to buy the lot for back taxes than trying to buy the car. What have you built?
Joe, i can't tell you how much i enjoy these videos. I am past my traveling days and i really love watching these videos. Thank you for doing this. Kind of sad seeing these old towns dying out.
@@johnking8896 Us in rural towns usually make a big drive once or twice a months to bigger towns/cities. Some folks go more or less than that. Buy items in bulk.
The USA has over 2500 small dying towns that could take 3000 refugee families for a 10 to 15 year resettlement sustainable living resettlement programs They are lying when they say America does not have room. It is the races of the refugees that is the issue
@@jedmlnabsolutely and also the efforts of content creators. Writing From India. Stayed in USA for 5 years. But always on job. Was a dream to explore. But his videos are making me satisfied.
I like that you got out of the vehicle a little longer, for a closer look. I really like the factual objectivity, yet friendly and personable voice. Really a fresh vibe on RU-vid!
Hey Joe, just watched your video in Nebraska. We live in Vancouver, Washington but lived in the small town of Ritzville for 7 years. About 1600 people, it’s the county seat and has the original 1800’s county courthouse, it also has a golf course, swimming pool, a restored working Carnegie library, a beautifully restored 1937 movie theater still running movies on the weekends,a hospital, a family doctor on Main Street, and a pharmacy. Since you love finding small towns all across the country, we know you’ll love the small town of Ritzville, Washington. We look so forward to your videos! Thanks, Monty and Lorrie
I grew up in a middle class muslim family in Karnataka India watching American cartoons on TV. My entire childhood was taken over by Flinstones, Scooby Doo, Richie Rich, Woody Woodpecker, Ed Edd n Eddy, Dexter's Lab, Hey Arnold, Cat Dog, and oh so many American cartoons. And i always want to see America in reality but couldn't due to financial reasons. Thanks to your videos, I'm seeing places I wouldn't otherwise ❤
@@Kellz58 Absolutely, I wouldn't have imagined I'd see so much of the world and it's all thanks to the internet. They say if you really like something, it will come to you and I happened to stumble upon this channel out of nowhere and I'm so glad I discovered it.
@@ganiwaseem9210 perhaps one day you can visit the US, my traveling days are over. I've only made it to Mexico in the 80s, otherwise this is my way too of seeing the world at this point in life. Your country is beautiful too from what I can see ❤️
Wow, so this is what happens to the "All American towns" they disappear gracefully. How sad and haunting this is. So many houses just left, cities disappear, so much open space for everyone and yet so beautiful. Thanks for sharing and have a great day with safe travels
some gracefully....many not so much. The school closes (no kids to fill it)...the grocery store closes (not enough revenue to make a living)... mechanized farming means less labor needed......sad facts....
@@TOCC50I don't know exactly what you're referring to, but I don't think I've ever heard a disrespectful word come out of Joe's or Nicole's mouth. I'm sorry you felt that way and I'm sure they would be, too.
I'm from the hot California valley where every summer reaches 114 degrees. We get over 300 days of sunshine a year and 19 inches of less per year. I certainly take cooler weather over this oven.
Dodge - Jay Leno says, "We find an old car in a barn or on the desert, take it back to the shop, put $100,000 into it, and Congratulations! You've got yourself a $40,000 automobile!"
.....That you probably couldn't sell for even 30K after storing, maintaining, and advertising it for a decade or so! Unfortunately, it is such a shame to see something so, so glorious weathering away as it's presently just too costly to transport to safe storage.
@@northernbohemianrealist I have to agree with him. My two best friends are car guys and own a garage. They’re into the hi performance jobs and own a couple of dragsters they race and like they said no matter what you finally sell it for you’ll never get your money back. LoL and I’ve been with em when they have laid out a lotta money. LoL
I grew up in a small town in Nebraska . The population was 250 people which was also the population of the schools. What you are not taking into account when you see these towns at the lot of them the majority of the population is in the outlying Farms which do not count in the town population but that's where the majority of the people live in these towns.
@@Joseph70663 Not really. They haven't since the car became popular. These towns were platted by the rail roads. Their market consisted of the people that lived in the area that one could travel to and fro in a day. Even then people would travel even further on week long trips to shop. They did this because the prices were cheaper in the large areas. Plus the farmer actually had more time than money so the economics worked for them. Then came the car and people started going more to the county seats because of variety and price. Then better roads and cars and people started going to the more regional centers to shop. What people forget is one company changed retail in America. Sears Roebuck. Farmers could order from the catalogue and have it delivered cheaper than they could buy it locally. Amazon? I have a history degree from the University of North Dakota. Great-great-grandparents homesteaded.
@@erikthorne I would imagine the same thing that made these towns also helped spell their downfall. Trains, driving through all hours of the day and night. That would be unsettling to be jarred awake by the noise and vibration every evening. These towns would be very quiet until they're not.
@@DonariaRegia Eh...I've lived all over the place and you're never all that far from railroad tracks. In most of the places I've lived, I could hear trains.
@@the_gilded_age_phoenix8717exactly I’ve lived in California pretty much my whole life and the only place I never heard a train was across the border in Mexico when I lived there last year
Almost bought a home in a small town in Nebraska. It was a two-story, two-bedroom, with a stand-alone 1 1/2 car garage, on 2/3 of a acre, for 26,000 7 years ago but insurance on the home was 2,684 a year. Home had hardwood floors, new roof, new storm windows, and new metal siding. Would have been my retirement home as my income this year is $1234 a month. Nearest store, gas and banking was in a town 12 miles away. The town's population at the time was 63.
I graduated from Brewster High School in 1964. There were only 10 kids in the 12th grade, only 1 in the 11th grade. Registered for the draft in the County seat there. I hardly recognized much of the town. You did not show the school. Turner Garage was where I left my uncle's car after the radiator froze up on a cold winter's day.
When my fiancee and I had traveled through Nebraska in '88 we traveled through many towns that had population signs stating as much as 300 and some at less than a 100, one or two with less than twenty. They were exactly as this video portrays; at times we would be stared at as we were from another planet. These little towns were on the brink of extinction even then.
There were never really big towns out that way. As another poster has said, most of the populations of these areas live on nearby farms. It's always been that way.
There are many small towns out in the sandhills of Nebraska still doing well and lost hardly any population... I live in Ord Neb. we maintained a population of 2300 and we been at that same population for at least 40 years... Ord is just over an hour east of Anselmo...
@@user-hd3dq1wj1c Ord sounds familiar. We were asked to video tape a wedding. They put us up in a bed and breakfast in the country. Neat place. About 20 years ago.
The Sandhills of Nebraska with Highway 2 are a very scenic area. Most of the towns along Highway 2 were established by the CB&Q railroad as it pushed northwest all the way to Billings, MT. The train you showed was an empty, double coal train headed back to the mines near Gillette, WY. That train was about 3 miles long. These trains are supplying power plants south and east as far as Georgia and Alabama.
Hey Joe I’m fan of yours . I’m from manila Philippines. You have a nice content . Very relaxing & chill everytime I watch your vlogs . Keep it up take care
Great video Joe really appreciate it. Thanks for the ride along. These small and extremely small towns are my favorites. Where others see desolation and decay I see peace and quiet. The first town you showed I imagine that was an old Soddy house. Where they literally cut sod out of the prairie and stacked it like brick to make a house. With wood on the prairie being scarce. And the other towns with that population you could indeed say…. I know everyone in town. LoL. I can’t help it I just love these places. They still have a beauty to me. And on a last note. The last town with 12 souls you just have to love a place like that. And I’m glad you will actually take time to go to them. All the stats are great appreciate you always doing them, they’re one of my favorite parts. The last town with the average age of 81.5 is one of the oldest I can remember you having on here maybe I missed somewhere else but I don’t remember it. The only reason I can think of for the houses there to be more expensive is maybe it’s the lifetime home of these older people and it’s the sentimental price considering the age of the folks that live there. Just me saying. Looking forward to your next video. Safe travels my friend, keep videoing and I’ll keep watching.
That's some pretty wide open country. I can't help thinking that there's people in these lonely old towns that would rather live there than anywhere else. As I get older, I've come to relate to that.
I'm a rural Nebraskan who lives about an hour and 15 minutes east of the first town he showed in a town named Ord... There are some towns in rural Nebraska still doing well like my town, and many others he showed some of the hardest hit small towns... I do remember those towns he showed use to be bigger back 40 to 50 years ago...But people die off and kids leave town and this is what happens...
@user-hd3dq1wj1c I think a lot more has to do with the nature of modern agricultural enterprises. Not as many people needed and the ability to travel longer distances for services.
Dunning's population never exceeded 300 and yet at some point somebody chose to block that garage instead of parking literally any where else on that empty street.
Grew up in omaha , spent 30 years in the army , retired and moved back to Nebraska ( small town) people who have never lived in nowhere dont get the peacefulness and the quiet!! If more than 2 cars drive by the house, its a traffic jam!!!
No need to be sad, I am from Nebraska, and we are doing fine. This life is not for everyone, and we like it that way. We think people miss or don't get why we like it-like I said, not for everyone.
I worked in Nebraska on the railroad and drilling rigs back in 1981. There are some lively towns. When you get into the corn. the pheasant hunting is great.
that was your best decision to visit this place .i love it all .every second i watched it make me feel fueling myself .i love to see such abandoned places . thank u very much to visit it ❤
Fun fact about Anselmo! That sod house there was built in the 60s for Nebraska’s centennial celebration. The small wooden building next to it was actually the jail of the town (no longer in use, of course.) The grocery store there is also the only grocery store for 20 miles, so it brings in a lot of people from the surrounding area. It actually almost closed in 2021, until someone bought it Also, in Brewster, the white building on the left at 23:56 is an church that just this year celebrated their 125th anniversary!
Thank you, from England, for showing us these beautiful towns in your videos. We don't really have any towns/villages quite like this in the UK, in England anyway. In fact village life is disappearing rapidly as the villages get housing estates built around them (occasionally in gaps within them). There are still some villages around Somerset where we live but usually in more (for England) inaccessible places. It is fascinating to see these, in so many ways, sad, old towns with some attractive buildings still but as you say, dying and maybe in 20 years time, empty and dead. What amazes me is the space you have, I mean the wide-open spaces even around and in/among towns like these. I suppose many of them for various reasons have had their day, like most of the towns and cities in Siberia also. But thank you for showing us a selection of them before (as others say) nature takes its course.
We have a national housing crises. We could bring a lot of these sort of towns back by having people work to own these buildings - i dont know if population of under 500 will work out well to revive - but who knows , the first town looks very possible It would be better to invest on these towns and find people who need housing than billions on wars half a world away
My ancestors came from Poland to here in Kansas in the 1870s. They lived close to the Malbork castle. They were Mennonite. I believe a Catholic congregation has the church where our ancestors are buried.
@gosbeskidu1929: Poland: a great President and a great country. Your President is sorely needed in the USA, Canada and Australia in order to save these nations like he has saved Poland.
That old Dodge would be spectacular if restored! I was so glad to see you had posted this morning. Anselmo is a good-looking little town to have lost so much population. I fit right into Brewster! lol Uncle Buck's Lodge is a working cattle ranch. It offers a lot of amenities. Thanks a bunch.
These towns were always designed to fail. Their purpose was to provide the rail roads with pick up points for wheat. So as the farms grew and the towns died the rail road did not care. Why should they? The grain is still there to haul a 140 years later. Then instead of incurring the cost of taking care of the rails they tore them out. Now the farmers have to haul further to a pick up point. Less cost for the rail road with no loss of volume. I have written 400 and 500 level research papers on this.
Do you see any way of retrofitting and rethinking these deserted towns and areas to bring them back to life? It seems an impossible task without employment opportunities .
@@neonrust None. As Elwyn B. Robinson who wrote the History of North Dakota termed it "The too Much Mistake". There were too much of everything to survive. Too many roads, churches, schools, towns, et. al.. The state was sold as it was going to have 5 million people living there. Never came close. This could be said of South Dakota, Kansas, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Montana, Iowa, and Minnesota.
An awesome video! I love exploring these "middle of nowhere" towns, always so interesting! The old storefronts in the downtown areas are amazing, and the church in Anselmo is beautiful! Thanks so much, Joe and Nic.😊💖
In a way, the Burlington and Missouri Railroad still goes through Anselmo. The freight train you saw was BNSF, the b being Burlington! Burlington Northern Santa Fe.
There's a popular WW2 RU-vid channel called "WW2 Wayfinder". He goes back to cities in Europe that have soldiers in the pictures during WW2. He then takes pictures of the same spot today and lays the pictures over each other for the then/now effect 80 years later. The pictures are fascinating and powerful. Every time I watch your videos of dying or close to abandoned old towns, I always think how cool it would be if you could do the same. Find old pictures of the town (if they exist) to show a then and now comparison. I know that could be a lot of work for you to find old pictures from back in the day of a particular small town but I think it would add another layer to the whole nostalgic feeling of these videos. Just a thought. Keep up the good work!
Rural America is almost desolate but it would be good for those who do not like city life. Writers and those who like solitude would thrive in these locations.
Don't be ridiculous. You don't understand the reality. Visiting and living two very different propositions. You move into these communities only to find out how insular and small minded the locals are. I moved from the city to the country 30 years ago. I moved to where I am because my aunt had a holiday house here we all used in summer to get away from the city heat, so I had connections to the town. Immediately I was here full time the relentless endless bullying started - they never let up, it's still going on. I'm not the backdown type so they just keep coming. I got punched from behind in 2017 after 21 years of living here smashing 3 on my teeth and the offender going to prison. Then I really became a target for locals. It's a constant pressure. The local police couldn't care less but I forced the issue since I could afford a lawyer. I hoped it would send a message to the others but it didn't work out that way. I'm a qualified mechanic. You get to realize every liar and thief finds you to fix their crap and they don't pay you. You try to recover your money, they go to the police and complain you're harassing them. The only reason they come to you is every repair shop in the town won't deal with them. That's the reality of small town country living. There's even widespread acceptance of the use of amphetamines is country life by town folk. If you're a clean living, fitness oriented type you're never going to fit in. If you want inclusion they'll exclude you. If you want to be left alone they'll endlessly torment you. You can't beat them. Age makes them worse not better. You would think you'd be welcomed but you're just walked into a world of exploitation by entitled piglet lovers. We don't take kindly ta yur type 'round 'ere... Now I'm stuck here and the still don't leave me alone. Been single 22 years not that there are any drug free local prospects.
all along highway 2.....one of the most desolate roads I've ever driven. done it several times going from Grand Island up to South Dakota. Basically once you leave Grand Island, almost all the towns look like this and theyre far far apart. I'm from the city and it was so surprising to see such emptiness. South Dakota felt like a crowded metropolis after being along this highway for 8 hours!
American Legion Post 323, Brewster, Nebraska - original charter application Nov 1919 - that's the origin year of the American Legion itself. Active Post 323 is now in Lehigh Acres, Florida.
My father played basketball for Anselmo High in that community building. It was one of the better gyms in the county at that time. Howard Smets ran the cafe for years and his wife, Lucile, taught eighth grade in Anselmo and Merna. She was an excellent and caring teacher.
I hope everyone understands that most people in these towns work and do business in Broken Bow. Also the farms and ranches which could cover a 60-70 mile radius of these small towns do business there
Awesome car treasure you found! I was in the Midwest in the Army. I miss the beauty! My wife had me move back to Georgia! She is from a farm8ng town in Iowa. We still clash,lol
I’ve been in big city in all my life, It’s amazing to me how simple life is out there. No schools, supermarkets, gas stations and stores, Do they even have TV, internet 🛜 or what they do for entertainment? Wow!
That exact church design is all over. There was one In my Mothers Noreegian community. In North Dakota. Unfortnately it burned down a few tears ago. (The white church you showed first,). Her father was one of the foundets. She was confirmed there in the Norwegian language.
This was a fascinating trip, Joe ! We didn't see any people either. I bet their winters are rough. If it's 55 degrees in the middle of Aug., can you imagine how cold it is in the dead of winter ? Have you ever gone to someone's door to talk with them ? I bet they have lived there all their lives ! They probably would have a lot to tell you (if they're friendly--that is) I absolutely enjoy your videos !!!! Thanks for taking me along !! I look forward to seeing Iowa on your next trip.....😊😊
I live a little over an hour east of Anselmo it does get damn cold in some winters we can have 30 below zero and a wind chill of 60 below zero.. But 55 degrees in August is uncommon it's usually around 90 degrees at that time of year...
Coming from a small town just southeast of where he is traveling, I can tell you that if you stop filming, somebody has seen him and if they're gossipy enough will pop out and say hey.... That being said, come check out Union sometime, just a little village but it's home.
Such a nice tour! Tellyuh, almost any of these places would be good to be in whenever "it hits the fan." They're quiet, peaceful, well cared for, probably as safe as one could find anywhere....not bad at all! Thanks from a Hoosier fan in Australia!
I look so forward to Sat morning travels with you & Nicole. Although it's sad seeing forgotten little towns it's uplifting to see that the Vet memorial is being cared for. 🥰 The moment you mentioned Uncle Bucks Lodge, I thought of our John Candy. It even looks like something he'd be filmed in. lol. God Rest his soul. Thank you Joe, for another great sharing. Hi Nicole
Good stuff here, I really like the off freeway places. If this gets to you before you leave Nebraska, you should go to Alliance and checkout Carhenge. Stay safe and enjoy the travels.
Joe an Nic, Anselmo seem like such a nice little, so sad to see it dying, such good vibes. Dunning is even sadder, yikes! Brewster!!! Really Joe ,this is too much, county seat or not. This is like beating a dead horse. It makes me shake my head in sadness.
Born and raised in Nebraska until middle school. Town i grew up in was 400 people and still is. But they are building a dozen new houses at the edge of town.
No matter where in the world, abandoned houses and towns make me sad. A history, an experience is ending. My own country, Turkey, was once a country with a rural population and beatiful villages, but even in my country the villages were abandoned.
A village named Ashton NE was where my father and mother grew up. I find it particularly sad that my mother's family, once prosperous and prominent members of the community have almost disappeared from the area. My great-great grandfather started a grocery and dry goods store in the late 1890's, and my great-grandfather took over operation of the general store, placing two of his sons in charge (one was my grandfather), and then my great-grandfather incorporated The Ashton State Bank in 1908. By the early 1930's, my grandfather took over as CEO of the bank and eventually consolidated ownership within his immediate family. My grandfather and another brother (head of the Post Office) served as Mayors of the Village and were also on the school board for years. One of my grandfather's sons took ownership of the grocery/dry goods general store, while two other sons worked in the bank. My youngest uncle was head of the bank from the early 1960's up to 1998. My oldest uncle was the Cashier after serving in WW2 and retired in 1985 after 40 years. My mother succeeded him as Cashier until 1996, then the son of my oldest uncle became CEO in 1998 until the bank was sold in 2022. With my grandfather & grandmother and their three sons with wives, each with three children, living and running the bank and general store in this small town to now only having the wife of a cousin and her son living there is such a change that gradually happed as the family died off or moved away. The general store was closed in the 1980's. The bank was sold in 2022. My father's family met the same fate, his mother's family once counted three brothers and five sisters, all moving away. Where I once had strong family connections, spending a good amount of time growing up in Ashton to now where I have no connections really hits home on how these small Nebraska towns have a rich history but have faded away or changed as families died out. All that is left of my family are to be found in two cemeteries in Paplin and Ashton, NE.
This was such a bittersweet read. It’s a reminder that nothing lasts forever and this life is transitory. Sending you all my love and hugs From Nigeria.
Wow, Joe! You have no idea how happy you've made me. I was NOT thrilled when hubby had us move from Lake Tahoe to Omaha (Due to work). And I haven't been thrilled since. I'm NOT a city girl. I've lived all over the world. BUT, I'm just like you. I love , love the old, small towns. I really do. And your videos have really made me appreciate how wonderful our country is, with these beautiful small towns with fantastic history. So many stories to tell. You always make it so special. When I'm feeling blue, I watch your videos and I'm happy again. You and Nic are so special. Thank you so much xxooxx
My son's buried (along with most of my husband's family) in Austin Cemetery right down the road from Anselmo between Loup City and Rockville. We'll be traveling to Merna next month with my other son's football team.
To be honest, that 42 Dodge would be a really nice project for restoration. It still has a license plate on the back, so that could be used to track down any potential owners. If no owners are found, a trip or two to the DMV could sort out the title issue. From there, it could be turned into a rat rod, or maybe fully restored depending on how rusty it is underneath.
As a Brit suscribed to your video, i love watching these small towns and learning about the history, household incomes, demographics and population changes...those empty downtown streets, wide main streets and sense of space is very relaxing compared to the medieval narrow and crowded streets of the UK .. it makes a nice change! :)
Went thru some towns there I didn't even know existed, and I live on the eastern side of Nebraska. Don't get to the middle of the state often. Thanks for the video.
Watching from the UK- this is the kind of roadtrip I’ve always wanted to do! We have a lot of historical places here but there is something very unique about these towns and a lot of this is just stuff you wouldn’t see here. Fascinating
It was the most depressing state I've been in, the ppl just seemed sad idk why. Many old cars also left in open fields, which were beautiful but a bit bizarre seeing. Still a beautiful state though ❤
So, I’ve been to Brewster Nebraska in 2017. We brought a group of Dutch astronomy club young adults to Brewster to watch the Solar Eclipse. We stayed at the Schniederiet Ranch in Brewster and thé Owners have 3 children! So I don’t understand why the numbers in the information about population say that there are no school aged children, cause I’ve met them! Lol
The Schniederiets were right up the road from the Archie and Esther Snow Ranch, my great aunt and uncle. I spent my last year in high school with them and went to high school in Brewster. I also drove back through there to watch the 2017 eclipse. Not a soul was on out and about.
@@ZappninLLP we actually took our group to Arnold to watch the Eclipse cause of potential cloud cover, but we (round about 40 of us) did stay with Amy and her family at her ranch for a few days leading up to the Eclipse and a few days afterwards. :)
Some three decades plus ago I dated a girl from this area. She moved outside of Omaha and won a beauty contest their against all the big City Girls. Went with her to this small town in the sandhills for Thanksgiving, saw another girl there even prettier than her. Who would have thought? You never know what you’re gonna find in a small town, sometimes it’s a treasure.
You could really get a good picture of these small towns by being in the rural area of each one. The sandhills is the main income which is why there are more cattle in Nebraska than people.. lol Great places to grow up!
Very surprising to see these towns, but is also amazingly peaceful for a person like me, who hails from a populated country (populated with people, cattle and now automobiles) like India.
