Small towns in Athens County, Ohio have many abandoned homes and buildings that are deteriorating and causing problems. Vacant structures can attract squatters and criminal activity. The mayor of Trimble said the abandoned buildings deter new residents and the town has struggled with housing abandonment after major floods in 2004 caused several residents to leave. There are health and safety issues with the vacant properties as they have become breeding grounds for rodents and disease.

1. Vacant Villages
Athens County small towns are mottled with abandoned homes

2. The front porch of an abandon house in
Jacksonville, Ohio. Athens County is the
poorest county in the state, according to
U.S. Census data.

4. Windows are boarded off at this seemingly abandoned home in Millfield, Ohio.

5. Upon crossing the border into Trimble, Ohio,
you are greeted by this abandoned
warehouse. Vacant structures can be a
problem for parties and “squatters”.

6. Trimble Mayor, Donald Davis, said that
abandoned structures throughout the village
deter new residents from moving in.

7. Graffiti stains the walls of an abandoned
warehouse in Trimble, Ohio.

8. A view in the doorway of an abandoned
warehouse on Route 13 in Trimble, Ohio.
Abandoned buildings are often a place
where disease-carrying rodents and
raccoons breed.

9. An abandoned house that looks to have been
destroyed by a fire in Trimble, Ohio.

10. There are at least 15 abandoned homes in
Trimble, Ohio. Several residents left after three major
floods hit the small town in 2004.

11. The doorway to a vacant home in
Trimble, Ohio. Mayor Douglas Davis
worries that vacant houses could be a
hotspot for drug dealers.

12. One of several vacant houses in Trimble, Ohio, a small
town with an even smaller budget.

13. Overgrown brush lines the foundation of this abandoned
home in Trimble, Ohio. Rodents that could carry diseases
see places like this as a breeding location.

14. Broken glass hangs from the front windows of this
vacant home in Chauncey, Ohio.

15. Boards cover the front door of this empty house in Chauncey that
seems to have suffered a fire.