Fort Howard VAMC Damaged and Rotting

Photography by David Robert Crews {a.k.a. ursusdave}

For nearly a decade, the Fort Howard Veterans Affairs Medical Center property has been used and abused by various people from near and far. Young people party there. Many kids and adults explore the spooky old buildings - some wanting to experience proof of the place being haunted. Thieves steal copper and other metals for selling to recyclers. Worst of all, destructive vandalism - by oodles of ignorant jackasses - is a consistent evil force wreaking havoc all through the place.

The VA has permitted: police swat team members to practice hostage rescues there, and I've heard stories of the cops blasting doors open with explosives; I have also heard that fire department personnel in training cut a huge hole in a beautiful antique hardwood floor; movie and television crews use the hospital building for film sets. But I've heard that the VA is not paid for any of those VA approved uses. I understand the good in allowing the police and fire departments to use - but they shouldn't abuse - the property for free. The wealthy movie and TV production companies, though, should pay rental fees - monies that can help the VA afford better care for American military veterans.

The property has been woefully neglected by the VA. Ever since the VA hospital there was closed in 2002, the VA hasn't done much maintenance work on the property. And although there is still a small medical clinic serving vets at Ft. Howard, many people believe the place to be abandoned property. That clinic has recently lost copper wiring to thieves, which cut off the clinic's phone and Internet access, even though that doctors' office is clearly in daily use by the VA.

I have created a set of "Ft. Howard VA Damaged and Rotting" photographs that clearly reveal how terrible it is there today. Plus, the photos show what great, historically significant and important buildings there are on the Ft. Howard VA property. Those superbly constructed, large, old wooden homes, seen in amongst my photographs, were built a century ago - by true craftsmen.

I have added a few of the photos to this blog post. Unfortunately, I can't add more, because, my current Internet connection doesn't upload files very well. But, if you go to my Flickr pages, you can view the full photo set of "Ft. Howard VA Damaged and Rotting" here:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/ursusdave/sets/72157628453938431/

The View From Ft. Howard Veterans Hospital Grounds

Photography by David Robert Crews {a.k.a. ursusdave}

A ship passing Craig Hill Upper Channel Light, seen from the Fort Howard VAMC property.

You may already be aware of the ongoing efforts to save the Fort Howard Veterans Affairs Medical Center property - the old Ft. Howard VA Hospital - for veterans only. The situation is rapidly heating up, and I shall continue working on it partly through a series of blog posts on this web site. The VA and commercial property developers are intent on building 1400 living units, several retail outlets and some commercial office spaces on the Ft. Howard VA grounds. They will have to have a VA medical clinic there, and a small clinic is all there is in use there today. The local community knows, many veterans (including myself) know that 400 living units plus more VA health care facilities is the best way to redevelop that property.

For everyone to understand what the Ft. Howard VA has that is extremely valuable to the veterans community, and the local Ft. Howard/Millers Island/Edgemere/Dundalk community, all must see what the view is like from that VAMC property. On Flickr, I have uploaded a set of videos and photos of that Patapsco River/Chesapeake Bay waterfront property view for you:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/ursusdave/sets/72157627769536063/

The Road To And From The Ft. Howard VAMC

Photography by David Robert Crews {a.k.a. ursusdave}

Looking up Old North Point Road, from here at the gate for the Fort Howard VAMC - the old VA hospital - you can see the entrance to/exit from Baltimore County's Ft. Howard Park there on the right side just outside the VAMC gate.

You may have already ready been aware of the ongoing efforts to save the Fort Howard Veterans Affairs Medical Center property for veterans only. The VA and commercial property developers are intent on building 1400 living units, several retail outlets and some commercial office spaces on the Ft. Howard VA grounds. They will have to have a VA medical clinic there, and a small clinic is all there is in use there today. The local community knows, many veterans (including myself) know, that more VA health care facilities, plus a maximum of 400 living units, is the best way to redevelop that property.

Old North Point Road is the main road going into and coming out of the Fort Howard Veterans Affairs Medical Center. For nearly four miles, that road is the only way out of, or into, the VA property - which is located down in way out on the North Point Peninsula. Every side road - connected to that four-mile section of Old N. Point Rd. - is a short ride to waterfront property.

For those of you who have never been to Ft. Howard to be able to understand what the proposed development of the Ft. Howard VA will mean to the adjacent communities, in terms of vehicular and pedestrian traffic, I have created a set of photos and videos of the main road to and from Ft. Howard. That road cannot handle an increase in traffic from the proposed over-development of the Ft. Howard VAMC property. The full set of photos and videos is at:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/ursusdave/sets/72157627998713755/

A Cormorant Pops Up by Ft. Howard Park in Baltimore County, Maryland

Videography by David Robert Crews {a.k.a. ursusdave}

Shallow Creek - next to Fort Howard Park in Baltimore County, Md..

Photography by David Robert Crews {a.k.a. ursusdave}

Photos Of Bands And Musicians Mostly Performing In Dundalk And Southeastern Baltimore City

This is the link to a photo set of bands and musicians mostly performing in Dundalk and in Southeastern Baltimore City.

You'll see photographs taken at the Dundalk Heritage Fair, the Village Coffee & Tea Company, Earth Day Festival 2010, Frank Zappa Day - Zappa Plays Zappa - in Highlandtown, and more.

And here is a slideshow of those photographs:


Photography by David Robert Crews
a.k.a ursusdave

Photographs Taken at Fort Howard Park in Baltimore County, Maryland

Photography by David Robert Crews
{a.k.a. ursusdave}

I have begun a set of photographs taken at Fort Howard Park, in Baltimore County, Maryland. The park is right where waters of the Chesapeake Bay merge with those of the Patapsco River. The park was a US Army coastal artillery installation, from 1896 to 1939, and most of the army structures still stand. From the park, you can look straight down the bay to see the Bay Bridge, and up the Patapsco River to see the Key Bridge. Here's a link to my Fort Howard Park photo set:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ursusdave/sets/72157625132535377/

Maryland's Fort Howard Haunted Dungeons

Photography by David Robert Crews
{a.k.a. ursusdave}

Every October, on Friday and Saturday evenings, Maryland's Fort Howard Park is turned into the very scary, ever-thrilling-chilling and fright-fan fulfilling Fort Howard Haunted Dungeons.

Ft. Howard Park is a Baltimore County park that sets on the shoreline where the Chesapeake Bay merges with the Patapsco River. The park is heavily wooded, and is a former US Army coastal battery - it once had massive cannons and mortars that protected Baltimore City from attack by enemy naval vessels. From the park, you can look down the Bay to see the Chesapeake Bay Bridge and up the Patapsco River to see the Key Bridge. So, any ships coming up the Bay, to attack Baltimore, could be fired upon from Ft. Howard. Hence, Ft. Howard used to be "the Bulldog at Baltimore's gate."

In Ft. Howard Park, there are large, concrete, thick walled structures that once had huge cannons and mortars mounted upon them and cannon ammunition stored down inside the heavily fortified bowels of them. The "dungeons" were never actually dungeon cells where prisoners were kept, those were rooms for targeting equipment, electric generators and other military equipment plus cannon and mortar ammo that all needed protection from bombardment by enemy watercraft. Those structures and the wooded parkland around them are perfect for use as the Halloween style, scary, thrilling, chilling, but family friendly, Fort Howard Haunted Dungeons.

Fort Howard Haunted Dungeons is a series of short, scary skits - some have a slightly 'twisted' punch line and all are delivered with a good dose of horror movie humor. It is great performance art. Art performed by dedicated volunteers. Proceeds from the event go the Edgemere-Sparrows Point Rec Council.

I have created a set of photographs that I took at the 2010 Ft. Howard Haunted Dungeons. The photo set: http://www.flickr.com/photos/ursusdave/sets/72157625070703149/with/5095457623/

Photography by David Robert Crews
{a.k.a. ursusdave}

Below is a slideshow of my set of Fort Howard Haunted Dungeons photographs. If you view this photo set in slide show format using full screen mode, it gives you a good idea of what it is like to take a tour of the Fort Howard Haunted Dungeons; but without the scary sound effects and experiencing the well conceived and presented performances of the volunteer actors all along the way. All together, the folks - of all ages - who make those haunted dungeons happen create a great piece of performance art, in Baltimore County, Md.'s Fort Howard Park.

Photography by David Robert Crews
{a.k.a. ursusdave}

I also have made some videos of Fort Howard Haunted Dungeons, and they are on my Facebook profile: http://www.facebook.com/ursusdave#!/profile.php?id=1053787981&v=app_2392950137

If you dare to wanna go to next year's Fort Howard Haunted Dungeons, get y'ur info at: http://haunteddungeons.com/forthoward.htm

Photographs, titles and descriptions are Copyright © David Robert Crews{a.k.a. ursusdave}, but are free for non-commercial, non-profit, use by the anyone connected to the Fort Howard Haunted Dungeons. That includes every volunteer who has ever worked there and any person who has toured the dungeons or any who want to share good information about the Haunted Dungeons.

Sunset Seen From Ft. Howard Veterans Hospital

Photography by David Robert Crews

Those strange things that look a bit like steamboats on the Patapsco River are Anne Arundel County shoreline buildings of the Baltimore Gas and Electric Company.

I have seen several fantastic sunsets from this point of view, when I was a patient in the Ft. Howard, Maryland Veterans Administration Medical Center and was temporarily confined to a wheelchair. It is so safe there that I had no fear of being out there by myself while I was quite crippled up and mostly helpless for awhile.

I went back down there one evening, when I wasn't a patient, and took this photo. I'd sure like to photograph a few more sunsets from down there.

David Robert Crews
photography
ursusdave
fort howard maryland
maryland

Big Sky Over Todd's Inheritance

Photography by David Robert Crews

This is the view from Old North Point Road, just outside of Ft. Howard, Maryland, out over Shallow Creek towards the Chesapeake Bay. It is a view of great historical importance, because it was from this area that early Americans spotted the British coming up the bay to attack Baltimore during the War of 1812, and the alarm was sent out to the mass of defenders making ready for battle in and around the City of Baltimore.

David Robert Crews
millers island
photography
ursusdave
edgemere
maryland
David Robert Crews
fort howard