When I first created this photograph, I thought perhaps the print would reveal a ghostly face staring forlornly from the upper window. Unfortunately, that didn't happen, but the old house still speaks to me evocatively of families that once enlivened this little town of Flora, Oregon.

I found this ghost town listed in a 25 year old book of Oregon ghost towns, but a lot has changed in 25 years. Flora is one of the few such towns that still exist largely in a ghostly state--most have burned, decayed, or been revived.

The vines taking over the house, the unshoveled snow, and the boarded-up church tell poignant stories of a changing economy that left Flora behind.

Lee Rentz