WILSON, Something old, something new
The series “Wilson, something old, something new” work around the idea of movement both through those born and raised in the city who seek to generate change around them and restore life and light to a ghostly town center and the newcomers, who imagined that this city could be their blank page and their place in the world to start a new life. Wilson, North Carolina has been a famous tobacco town, with numerous old warehouses, town houses and the life associated to this industry, before falling into a deep lethargy, watching the businesses close and people leave. It's also a city with a huge black-american community, who works today to rescue its past and its history, like several cemeteries and a complete neighborhood.
It is a series made at the Eyes on Main Street Photography Residency in the city of Wilson, NC, USA. February 2022.
A sunday afternoon at one of the bar in Wilson downtown.
One of the first hotel in East Wilson, the historical Black-American neighborhood
Cast, one of the community leader of the "Lane Street Project" which seek to clean and identify old black-american cemeteries, erased from the map for decades
Goldsboro street in downton
Cherry apartments are waiting for their renovation and to be transformed in a hotel, one block away from the train station. Today, all the hotels are located in the suburb, close to the malls where there is more offer of restaurants and shopping.
View of a grave of the odd fellows cemetery in East Wilson
Maddie. She came to Wilson to study arts at the Barton College
Dorothy and her cousin. They both work at the Freeman Roundhouse museum , the museum of Black History in East Wilson. They were born and raised here.
A small flag signals that a grave is under the soil, at the Odd fellows cemetery, in East Wilson.
An old mannequin in a window of a closed clothing store in downtown Wilson
The first headquarter of the BB&T bank, created in Wilson in XIX century. Today the building remains empty.
Rusty, raised in Wilson
George Ward, a pastor during a soup kitchen in East Wilson. He prays with homeless people
An abandoned house in Wilson. Many historic properties are in bad conditions.
The community during a pray, at the "lane street project" cemetery clean up
Will and Rusty, wilsonian and friends since they are children
Marti created " Tig's" a coffee shop in downtown, seeking to bring life to the historical part and the city.
Cat comes from California. After one year helping her father , who lives around Wilson, during the pandemic, she finally decided to move to her own appartement in downtown, betting on life in this city
Daniel st house is part of " preservation of Wilson" a project which try to save old houses, buying them, renovating one room to show how it's possible and after this selling them to new inhabitants.
Scott and Rob came fomr Minesota 5 years ago and contribute to the renovation of an historical house they transformed in their shop. Some blocks away, they also bought they proper house, one of the biggest in downtown
Daniel st house is part of " preservation of Wilson" a project which try to save old houses, buying them, renovating one room to show how it's possible and after this selling them to new inhabitants.
Craige's family
Craige still live where his family owns the land. Today, he focus on ecological production.
Wilson 'sunset