To some, they may seem like eyesores on the side of the highway, but for photographer Dion Manastryski, abandoned farm buildings are a unique link to prairie history.
Manastryski told 680 CJOB this week that his book, Prairie Sunset: A Story of Change, is the end result of more than a decade of road trips across the prairies.
“I wanted to photograph these old abandoned places out in the country, because they’re disappearing and they’re an important part of our history,” he said, “and they make very compelling subject matter.
“Partway through, I decided to interview people in a very informal way.
“I talked to retired farmers, railway workers, one-room school teachers, and I asked them what they could tell me about the past way of life in the rural prairies.”
Manastryski’s interviews included many people over the age of 90 – and even a few centenarians – who were able to give him a unique insight into the hardships and joys of prairie life before the area saw much infrastructure or development.
Although the book features hundreds of abandoned buildings, Manastryski was careful not to get too specific about their locations.
“Reusing wood and other parts of these old buildings is great,” he said, “but one thing I really don’t like is when people go and ransack these places or take the wood without asking the landowner. That’s why I didn’t reveal the locations of any of these places.
“My real goal was to capture the images and leave the buildings the way I left them.”
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