A visit down to south Georgia

I love the way small towns look, and I like to imagine that I'd love living in one - though in reality I'm not so sure. I wish that more of America's little towns were like they were before the nineteen sixties when the concept of the chain franchise really took off and the importance of the railroad declined. My mom tells me wonderful stories about what downtown Waycross was like when she was a kid. Bustling department stores, cafes, soda fountains, and movie theaters. There was even a beautiful high rise hotel - currently boarded and vacant.

I get a kick out of this little snippet I read about Waycross on Wikipedia: "During the 1950s the city had a tourist gimmick. The local police would stop motorists with out-of-state license plates and escort them to downtown Waycross. There they would be met by the Welcome World Committee and given overnight lodging, dinner and a trip to the Okefenokee Swamp. The tradition faded away after the interstates opened through Georgia."

Now, Waycross has a mall and a Walmart along with a number of other big box retailers. The majority of businesses people patronize are located away from downtown, isolated in seas of parking lots. Still, there is an effort to rehab the historic buildings and homes that have been neglected for so many years, and I think a lot of progress has been made in reviving them. I hope it makes a turn around. I definitely have a special place in my heart for this little town.

One of my primary motivations behind taking photos around town was to capture some of the architectural details on the buildings. Architecture translates easily into pattern in my mind and lately I have been searching out interesting elements to turn into repeat print designs.