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The Irish Sun

I stumbled across a luxury car graveyard where Cadillacs & Chevys rot after owner abandoned hundreds of vintage vehicles

TAKING a spin through his home state, photographer Dax Ward's eyes widened as he spotted a sprawling estate of abandoned cars. But on closer inspection, he was stunned to realise the 20-acre site was packed with rotting classic cars as well as custom boats, vans and trucks. Advertisement 14 Dax Ward came across the car graveyard while driving through Arkansas Credit: Dax ward Photography 14 Vintage cars have sat rotting for years Credit: Dax ward Photography 14 Pictures show once indulgent vehicles weathered by the elements Credit: Dax ward Photography 14 The site is now a magnet for opportunistic thieves Credit: Dax ward Photography 14 Boats and other vehicles have also been left abandoned Credit: Dax ward Photography Delving into its history of how so many vintage vehicles ended up in a graveyard on a hillside in The site is now a magnet for opportunistic thieves with their sights set on selling parts. Dax said: "The junkyard owner once took great pride in his collection, even having shot a thief in the past and pistol-whipping another to protect his automotive treasure trove. "However, the owner has not lived on the property for some 20 years and rarely visits, having abandoned the location after a messy divorce. Advertisement More abandoned sites "There are many cars still remaining, but a number have been stolen over the years and the ones that remain have been stripped for parts by thieves." Jaw-dropping pictures show once indulgent vehicles weathered by the elements and sat rotting on the sprawling 20-acre ground. Antique cars including Cadillacs, Chevys, Buicks, and VWs have been taken over by rust. Dax said: "The property owner once owned a tow truck company and many of the vehicles were sold to him at very low prices from the customers who he served. Advertisement Most read in Motors Latest "He amassed an enormous collection of valuable antique vehicles over the years, which would now be worth millions of dollars. "The collection is still valuable, but thieves regularly visit and the cars are slowly disappearing, piece by piece or body by body. Inside world-famous abandoned 'UFO village' packed with crumbling spaceship holiday homes "Local law enforcement sometimes catches intruders, but prosecution is often halted as nobody has seen or heard from the owner in years and he cannot be located, even by authorities." Dax visited the location twice, and was shown around by a neighbour who had not heard from the site's owner, a childhood friend, in years. Advertisement The explorer added: "He gave me a roundup of the history of the property, the owner and automobiles, as well as describing regular incidents of thieves raiding the property. "Watching the beautiful cars, as well as valuable antiques and other rare and expensive items be stolen or picked clean over the years has left him in frustration. "Unfortunately, there is little he can do but watch. He tries to keep watch and notifies police regularly if he sees trespassers, but they often arrive too late to catch the intruders." 14 An abandoned school bus sits among the discarded vehicles Credit: Dax ward Photography Advertisement 14 The abandoned vehicles sit on a 20-acre site Credit: Dax ward Photography 14 The owner had a tow truck company Credit: Dax ward Photography 14 Parts have been stripped from many of the vehicles Credit: Dax ward Photography 14 Antique cars including Cadillacs, Chevys, Buicks, and VWs have been taken over by rust Credit: Dax ward Photography Advertisement The neighbour told Dax how the owner abandoned the site more than 20 years ago after going through a divorce. Dax said: "His ex-wife's custom Cadillac - sent to Italy and then re-imported after customisation - sits parked in the driveway of the uninhabited house, in the same spot that it was parked and left behind two decades ago. "He left derelict the posh house and many vehicles, became addicted to gambling in casinos over the border in Oklahoma and worked up a severe debt. "While exploring and documenting this fascinating location I was simultaneously awestruck by the amount of classic cars, many of them expensive and rare, and saddened by the loss of such a collection, the remnants of which sit and rot." Advertisement Dax previously visited Taiwan's With its UFO-like buildings the star of the show, the resort's space-age retro splendor continues to slowly fade away. Perched on But what remains is a series of bizarre, decaying structures nestled beside a beach that Dax captured on camera. Advertisement 14 Dax visited the location twice and was shown around by a neighbour Credit: Dax ward Photography 14 Cars have been left to the elements Credit: Dax ward Photography 14 The collection would have been once worth a lot of money Credit: Dax ward Photography 14 Custom trucks have also been left untouched Credit: Dax ward Photography Advertisement