Empty Street Through Abandoned Housing, George Air Force Base, Victorville

George Air Force Base operated from 1941 until its closure in 1992 under the federal Base Realignment and Closure program, a casualty of post-Cold War defense cuts. At its peak the base supported thousands of Air Force personnel and their families, with base housing built to accommodate airmen stationed there for tactical fighter training. The residential streets, curbs, and driveways remain intact decades after the base shut down, though the buildings that lined them have been stripped and left to deteriorate. Part of the former base was later redeveloped into Southern California Logistics Airport, but sections of the old housing area were simply abandoned in place. The San Bernardino Mountains rise to the north, the same backdrop that would have greeted residents commuting to the flight line each morning.

Photo taken in December 2011.