Located in Blackford County, Indiana, Mollie is a ghost town. It sits roughly 6.0 km (3.7 mi) SSW of Montpelier.
Mollie is an extinct American village in Blackford County, Indiana, that flourished during the Indiana Gas Boom from the 1880s until the 1920s. The region around Mollie experienced an economic "boom" period because of the discovery of gas and crude oil. Mollie was a stop along the Fort Wayne, Cincinnati, and Louisville Railroad—and happened to be near the region's oil fields, a convenient location for the area's oil workers. Mollie's location on the railroad line was approximately halfway between the two largest cities in Blackford County: Hartford City and Montpelier. In addition to the oil fields, the area was also fertile farmland. Two county roads intersected at Mollie, making it well-located for area farmers as well as the oil workers. The small community had a feed mill, a grocery, a Post Office, and a livestock station. The sole manufacturing facility was a brick and tile...From the Wikipedia article “Mollie, Indiana”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Sunrise & sunset directions
At Mollie the sunrise point swings a long way through the year: about 58° (ENE) at the June solstice and 121° (ESE) in late December. Sunset moves from 303° (WNW) in June to 239° (WSW) in December, and the midday sun climbs to 73° in summer but only 26° in winter.
| Date | Sunrise | Azimuth | Sunset | Azimuth | Noon sun | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox (Mar 20) | 7:46 AM | 90° E | 7:53 PM | 271° W | 49° | 12h 08m |
| June solstice (Jun 21) | 6:12 AM | 58° ENE | 9:16 PM | 303° WNW | 73° | 15h 04m |
| September equinox (Sep 22) | 7:29 AM | 89° E | 7:40 PM | 271° W | 50° | 12h 11m |
| December solstice (Dec 21) | 8:02 AM | 121° ESE | 5:18 PM | 239° WSW | 26° | 9h 16m |
Azimuth is measured clockwise from true north (90° = east, 270° = west). Computed for 2026; values change by less than a degree from year to year.
Golden hour & blue hour by month
Weathered wood and rusted metal show texture best in low-angle light; overcast skies suit interiors and moody black-and-white work.
| Month (15th) | Blue hour starts | Sunrise | Golden hour ends | Golden hour starts | Sunset | Blue hour ends | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 7:33 AM | 8:03 AM | 8:45 AM | 4:57 PM | 5:39 PM | 6:09 PM | 9h 36m |
| February | 7:08 AM | 7:36 AM | 8:14 AM | 5:39 PM | 6:17 PM | 6:45 PM | 10h 41m |
| March | 7:27 AM | 7:54 AM | 8:30 AM | 7:12 PM | 7:48 PM | 8:15 PM | 11h 54m |
| April | 6:35 AM | 7:03 AM | 7:40 AM | 7:44 PM | 8:20 PM | 8:49 PM | 13h 17m |
| May | 5:55 AM | 6:26 AM | 7:05 AM | 8:12 PM | 8:51 PM | 9:22 PM | 14h 26m |
| June | 5:38 AM | 6:11 AM | 6:52 AM | 8:33 PM | 9:14 PM | 9:47 PM | 15h 03m |
| July | 5:52 AM | 6:24 AM | 7:04 AM | 8:31 PM | 9:12 PM | 9:44 PM | 14h 47m |
| August | 6:23 AM | 6:53 AM | 7:30 AM | 8:03 PM | 8:41 PM | 9:10 PM | 13h 48m |
| September | 6:55 AM | 7:23 AM | 7:59 AM | 7:16 PM | 7:52 PM | 8:19 PM | 12h 29m |
| October | 7:25 AM | 7:53 AM | 8:30 AM | 6:26 PM | 7:03 PM | 7:30 PM | 11h 10m |
| November | 6:59 AM | 7:28 AM | 8:09 AM | 4:45 PM | 5:25 PM | 5:54 PM | 9h 57m |
| December | 7:28 AM | 7:58 AM | 8:42 AM | 4:33 PM | 5:16 PM | 5:47 PM | 9h 18m |
Local time (America/Indiana/Indianapolis), including daylight saving time. Golden hour runs from about −4° to +6° solar altitude, so the morning golden hour begins during blue hour, before sunrise.
Milky Way & night sky
From Mollie, the Milky Way core is visible in a dark sky from March through September. June gives the longest window (about 4.7 hours on a moonless night), and the core peaks around 21° above the southern horizon. Our light-pollution model puts the sky at about Bortle 4 (rural / suburban transition), good enough for detailed Milky Way images.
| Month | Core visible (15th) | Hours | Max altitude | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | Below 10° in darkness | — | -2° | — |
| February | 5:58 AM – 5:58 AM | 0.0 | 11° | SE → SE |
| March | 5:09 AM – 6:19 AM | 1.2 | 17° | SE → SSE |
| April | 3:08 AM – 5:18 AM | 2.2 | 20° | SE → S |
| May | 1:03 AM – 4:23 AM | 3.3 | 21° | SE → S |
| June | 11:19 PM – 3:59 AM | 4.7 | 21° | SSE → SSW |
| July | 11:10 PM – 2:40 AM | 3.5 | 21° | S → SW |
| August | 10:23 PM – 12:33 AM | 2.2 | 20° | S → SW |
| September | 9:25 PM – 10:35 PM | 1.2 | 17° | SSW → SW |
| October | 8:33 PM – 8:33 PM | 0.0 | 11° | SW → SW |
| November | Below 10° in darkness | — | -1° | — |
| December | Below 10° in darkness | — | -19° | — |
Window when the galactic core is at least 10° high during astronomical darkness on the 15th of each month. Pick nights within a few days of the new moon. Plan exact nights with the Milky Way planner.
Estimated sky darkness: 4 Bortle 4 — Rural / suburban transition. Light domes are visible in several directions; the Milky Way is clear but lacks detail near the horizon. Modeled zenith brightness ≈ 21.11 mag/arcsec². Aurora needs roughly Kp 6.5+ to show low on the northern horizon here.
Weather & best season
Long-term NASA satellite data for this area show September as the clearest month (about 46% average cloud cover) and January as the cloudiest (75%). July is the warmest month and January the coldest, which matters for gear, snow access and how long batteries last at night.
Average cloud cover (%)
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| High °F | 64 | 70 | 81 | 81 | 91 | 104 | 104 | 96 | 97 | 90 | 77 | 70 |
| Low °F | -18 | -17 | -1 | 21 | 24 | 41 | 46 | 46 | 37 | 27 | 10 | -7 |
| Precip. (in) | 2.6 | 2.6 | 3.1 | 3.9 | 4.4 | 4.8 | 3.9 | 3.8 | 3.1 | 3.2 | 3.0 | 2.8 |
Monthly climatology for the surrounding 1° grid cell from NASA POWER (MERRA-2). Mountain sites can be colder and cloudier than the cell average.
Photography tips for this ghost town
- Leave everything as you found it; removing artifacts from public land is illegal.
- Respect private property and closures: many ghost towns are on private land or protected historic sites — never enter unstable buildings.
- For interiors with windows, blend two exposures (one for inside, one for the view) instead of relying on HDR alone.
- Old buildings under the Milky Way make strong night images in dark rural skies.
- Look for details: door hinges, faded signs, square nails and window frames tell the story.
- Shoot RAW to keep the most latitude for high-contrast sunrise and sunset scenes.
Season: High-elevation mining towns are reachable mostly from June to October; desert ghost towns are best in spring and autumn.
Suggested gear: Wide-angle lens, Tripod, Headlamp, Sturdy boots. Work out exposures with the depth of field, ND filter and NPF rule calculators.
Permits, drones & access
Private property: Many ghost towns sit on private land or protected historic sites. Respect signs, never enter unstable buildings and leave artifacts in place.
Nearby photo spots
Other locations within 25 km of Mollie, closest first.
FAQ
When is the best time to photograph Mollie?
What time is golden hour at Mollie?
Where does the sun rise and set at Mollie?
Can you see the Milky Way from Mollie?
Do you need a permit to photograph at Mollie?
How far is Mollie from Montpelier?
Sources
Location data: Wikidata, Wikipedia. Sun, moon and Milky Way times are computed by LWPhoto Atlas for 2026. Climate: NASA POWER. Sky darkness is a population-based estimate (Walker's law), not a measurement. See data sources & licenses.