For those of you that have been enjoying my blog posting on Burke, Idaho...here is Part 2. More than likely, this will be a 4-part "series". It did dawn upon me that being as this site is "iKnifeCollector.com", my posting something not-so-knife-related might turn a few people off...I decided to do it anyway. Why? Well...I've noticed that most of us that enjoy slip-joint pocket knives, think a little "differently" and tend to truly enjoy Americana and American History. Sure, I enjoy modern knives. Heck...I enjoy all kinds of knives! Slippies are where I got my start...and, to some degree, are still my favorite type of knives. For me...really...it's a connection with an older way of living (that I like)...and it keeps me in touch with things that interested me when I thought the world a huge and wondrous place.

Last time...we left off with the explosion of the Frisco mill. After taking in the devastation and history behind this historical site, we pressed on. A few miles down the road, we drove by a house (that ended up being on the outskirts of Burke). For some reason that I can't really explain, I felt compelled to stop and take a closer look. From the condition of the house, my guess is that it was last inhabited in the late 60's or early 70s. Hard to say for sure. This house was located, quite literally, right on the side of the road. You'll see that this house has a metal roof. Most of Burke's homes feature a metal roof. This is necessary to endure the harsh winters that plague the area. Burke is located in a valley that tends to capture snowfall and harsh weather (and the canyon walls limit sunlight time...so the snow tends to hang around longer than it does in some of the surrounding towns).

While looking at the house, I noticed that the glass in the upper window was gone...making it easy to see inside the upper room. As you can see from the second photo, someone had painted stars, hearts and rainbows on the wall/ceiling of the room. This reminded me a bit of the decoration that our daughter's room had when she was little. Clearly, this was the room of another little girl. These paintings offered an enduring vestige of happiness that stood in profound contrast to the rest of the dismal surroundings. Sometimes when we look at abandoned homes, we see them from an emotional distance...forgetting that the dwellings provided refuge for other souls who were striving and struggling through the challenges inherent to our existences. I hope that this room provided happiness and comfort to someone...and that they went on to lead a happy and fulfilling life.

Shortly after leaving the house with the star paintings behind, we encountered the entry sign to Burke. The sign offers some interesting information about the town. Apparently, in 1888, Burke had a hotel called..."Tiger Hotel". This building was built over Canyon Creek (which runs through the center of town). Not only did the Tiger Hotel have a creek running through it (take a moment and let your mind's eye picture this), it had a highway and railroad tracks running through it as well. Frankly, I'm not sure how the people staying in the hotel were able to rest with the kind of commotion that surely must have come with the traffic! Be that as it may...the Tiger Hotel vanished ages ago and no real evidence of the building was apparent at the site.

A few homes lined the left side of Burke's main street. Most of the homes shown in the photo below are still occupied. Unless my guess is wrong, these homes house the majority of Burke's current residents. Supposedly, a 2009 census indicated that 300 people still live in Burke. Nothing I saw indicates that this is true. I'd be surprised if the population exceeded 75. Be that as it may, I found it interesting that some of the homes appeared to be in very reasonable condition...while others were clearly in a state of serious disrepair. I'm not sure what the few residents that exist do to make a living...perhaps most are elderly and retired. Given that logging and mining in the surrounding area is at a fraction of what it was just 30 years ago, who knows? In the photo...you can see Canyon Creek running right along the road.

The houses shown in the photo above...look a lot like many other homes that you can see in the more remote towns of Idaho. So...my wife and I both thought, "What's so different about this?" Little did we know...that just around the bend (outside the far right of the photo shown above)...was a VERY different view. I've been to ghost towns before...all of them very "western" in nature...very "cowboy" in feel. Candidly, we were not prepared...at all...for what we'd see next. There is an interesting difference between a "Western Ghost Town" and what I'd call a "Modern Ghost Town". We went from inhabited houses...to TOTALLY ABANDONED BUILDINGS...

Once again...we've reached a point where I can't post more photos. So...before I close "Part 2", I'll give you a little information to prepare you for "Part 3". The part of Burke that we had entered had some abandoned homes on the left side of the road. Past that...still on the left side of the street, were what remained of what must have been Burke's commercial district. You can see the 3 buildings at the end of the photo shown above. They are all that remains of what must have been an active part of the town. On the right side of the street...well, suffice it to say that I'm not going to tell you what's on the proverbial "other side of the tracks" just yet.  Indeed...before we get to that point, I'll probably show you more of the "left side of the street"...in preparation for seeing the rest of the town...

Things are going to get visually...VERY INTERESTING...and so is the tale. So join me for the next edition of "Burke, Idaho...a modern ghost town and a lesson in economics".