On your way to the Needles District of Canyonlands National Park in Southern Utah on the top of the first hill you will pass by a small ghost town with a locked gate and a sign over the entrance that says Maries Place. Most people will hardly notice and just pass by this desolate and nondescript grouping of buildings without ever knowing the colorful story of what happened here. Above: the Inner Portal of the Home of Truth. The story of these buildings can be found in the wikipedia entry “Home of Truth, Utah”. 
Above: The locked gate. Respect private property and photograph the Home of Truth from the road. Hopefully in the future it will be open for visitors to explore.
Above: Abandoned buildings at the Home of Truth. I would love to someday tour the facility and see the view from that wrap around porch.
Above: The largest building at the Home of Truth photographed in early morning light from North Flats Road. The area around the Home of Truth is great for scenic driving with many striped rock outcroppings and the occasional corral.The better part of an hour south of Moab it is usually passed by as visitors are on the way to the famous newspaper rock petroglyph site.
Looking at the West 
I read the Wiki bio of the founder of Home of Truth. While Mrs. Ogden appears well educated there is no mention of a degree in Divinity.
I understand why people move to the desert to find God. It’s less cluttered out there. And I understand why people want to find God. We all want an explanation.
Still, 30 years of practicing law has taught me one thing; the First Amendment can be a dangerous thing.
I saw this place last June and wanted to stop but ran out of time. Thanks to you, now I know what it is about.
I like to think that this blog is not just for me to show my photography but to also inform others about many of the great locations to visit out here in the American West.
Amazing
Nice, real nice photos.
Great shots. Stopped in time.
Hello, anyone know the formation name of the sandstone prominent at Marie Ogden’s place? Is it the same sandstone as forms Church Rock not far away? Also I am looking for people interested in the uranium mining of the 50s around this part of Utah (around Monticello to Moab) — thanks very much in advance if anyone knows anything. John.
The buildings just fade into the landscape. Not interrupting nature is nice.
Reminds me of those ol cowboy movies I saw yesterday. I like looking at structure in the wild wild west because they represent the history of the town.
Not sure how I missed this Andrew but it is a great intro to a bit of Western history. Quite an intrigue, something my husband and I would no doubt love to explore.
Hello,
In reply to “Where God Takes Me”, I’m John in Sydney (Australia), down south of you lot a long way but collecting info on Marie’s place too .. plus the surrounding geology. I do not do very much on American/Americans but I am also compiling on just a few other places/people as well, including the sad story of Wounded Knee and one of your ‘outlaw’ ladies about whom so much is written that’s sheer junk that it become extremely difficult to unravel the real truth – that is Belle Starr ‘bandit queen’ and I have uploaded what I have so far on her, viz. http://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/5737284/belle-starr-short.htm … I have tentatively concluded she was not a bad person, so much as just caught up in a whole heap of most unfortunate circumstances – being on the losing side in the Civil War then further involvement in the Indian ‘civil wars’ from having married son of a person prominent in the fighting between those who sold the original lands to the US government and those who passed the sentence of death for so doing. Re Marie and Marie’s place, well I’m just “still reading” – no ‘conclusions’ there. Best Regards, John ~at~ http://someinterestingsites.wordpress.com
Hello,
In reply to “Where God Takes Me”, I’m John in Sydney (Australia), down south of you lot a long way but collecting info on Marie’s place too .. plus the surrounding geology. I do not do very much on American/Americans but I am also compiling on just a few other places/people as well, including the sad story of Wounded Knee and one of your ‘outlaw’ ladies about whom so much is written that’s sheer junk that it become extremely difficult to unravel the real truth – that is Belle Starr ‘bandit queen’ and I have uploaded what I have so far on her, viz. http://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/5737284/belle-starr-short.htm … I have tentatively concluded she was not a bad person, so much as just caught up in a whole heap of most unfortunate circumstances – being on the losing side in the Civil War then further involvement in the Indian ‘civil wars’ from having married son of a person prominent in the fighting between those who sold the original lands to the US government and those who passed the sentence of death for so doing. Re Marie and Marie’s place, well I’m just “still reading” – no ‘conclusions’ there. Best Regards, John ~at~ http://someinterestingsites.wordpress.com
This kind of gives me the “Breaking Bad” feeling!
Vere good pictures.
very* good pictures.
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