Hilltop

The Ruins of Ilchester

Location: Ilchester, MD - Status: Abandoned/Condemned

Ilchester is a small town tucked away in a rural, industrial pocket of Baltimore County, MD. Along the areas bordering
the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad can be found the odd juxtaposition of Colonial era structures and 19th and 20th century
homes, many either abandoned or condemned.

I have not been able to find any information about the history of the Colonial structures; specifically, two stone buildings
standing side by side along the southern-most part. One, merely a shell, has been completely burned. Probably the work
of arsonists. This area of Ilchester borders Ellicott City, which has had a troubled history of arson over the past several
decades. The other, seems to have been subject of a restoration effort abandoned early on. It is well sealed (save for an
open basement window), with relatively recently used saw horses, shop-vacs, paint cans, etc. inside. The other structures
are much more modern. Abandoned houses that have been boarded up and presumably fallen into ownership of the state,
most likely for lack of a will by the owner upon their death. Evidence of squatters litters these houses. Neglect and abuse
have taken a toll, but the character they possess seems only to be enhanced by such scars.

Jim O'Connor Photography