Once Upon A Time...In Farmington

A couple of photos were posted on Facebook by Jim Anderson last week and I found them fascinating. If you're familiar with the social network you know they have groups you can not only join, but create as well. I am part of a group entitled, If You Grew up in Farmington, You Remember...

I did grow up in Farmington and I'm still there. Before the west side of the city exploded, Farmington grew steadily. Each former plot of farmland kept getting turned into homes. We've seen most of the open land in the city limits be turned into subdivisions. I know many people hate that, but I can't complain too much. Years ago, our little family moved to Farmington. We dug up an orchard and built a house. It would be very hypocritical of me to think denying others the same opportunity I got is the best thing for our city. Sure, we're growing and issues come from that. We'll just have to adjust and adapt.

The pictures Jim posted on Facebook are shots of my town taken in 1967. We moved sometime between 1969 and 1970. I was only four or five at the time. What I love about these shots is it shows the city almost how it looked when we moved here. And in the bottom right corner of the top picture, you can barely see an orchard. The house my dad built is just out of frame of the shot, but those trees were part of the property my parents bought. My mom sold that lot after my father passed away.

From these pictures I can see what it looked like on the roads I walked and biked. I see the houses I passed and sometimes visited. I see the school I attended that was torn down decades ago. I can see my friends's houses. I see the church we attended, and where we held funerals for both my parents. I see Lagoon Amusement park, the arcade, the roller coaster, the fun house--all places I visited and haven't seen in almost fifty years.

So much has changed. What amazes me is that tomorrow I can climb the mountain and look down from almost that exact vantage point and take pictures of what the valley looks like right now. Then in fifty years these pictures can be posted and shown to others and they will be amazed that the valley at one time looked like that. They'll have the same reaction I have when I look at these pictures. 

I love that.