The Abandoned Yellow Payphone at the Abandoned Yellow Building

I first noticed this abandoned payphone in September, 2008, when this picture was taken:

Over 3 years later the vacant hull of a former payphone still stands at attention, idling in blighted uselessness. The only difference today seems to be that more graffiti has been sprayed on the wall.

I never knew this payphone. I don’t remember seeing a live phone in this stand.

If I have an old picture of a place I sometimes will leave that picture at the place, as close to the exact spot as possible. I did that with this abandoned payphone, leaving a print of the September, 2008, photo inside the stand. A few days later the photo was gone. It probably blew away, but I like to imagine that someone found the photo and saved it as a strange souvenir.

When I look payphones that have been abandoned or disemboweled, I see a mouth, and eyes, as if something is screaming in horrified sadness at the removal of a public telephone.

The building has been vacant for years, yet the “OPEN 24 HOURS” neon sign stays on all day, and all night. The building most recently hosted a Check Cashing business. In the past it also housed a cell phone store, a place called European DTM Tuning, and another place called EDT Sportline.

The graffiti on the back wall is ornate.

See more photos of the Abandoned Yellow Payphone at the Abandoned Yellow Building.