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Cabbagetown
Provides portraits of the children and families living in a poor section of Atlanta, Georgia
90 pages, Hardcover
First published August 1, 1985
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April 8, 2016
Background:
The Fulton Bag and Cotton Mill in Atlanta began operations in 1881 and was one of the first textile processing mills built in the south. Its primary product was cotton bags for packaging agricultural products. Its work force consisted of poor whites recruited from the Appalachian region of north Georgia. The surrounding mill town, known as Cabbagetown, was home to a tight-knit, homogenous, and semi-isolated community of people whose lives were anchored by the mill until it closed in 1977. Afterwards, the neighborhood went into a steep decline, which didn't end until Atlanta's in-town renaissance of the mid-1990s. The mill itself was renovated into the nation’s largest residential loft community, which houses everyone from artists and musicians to business professionals. (source: Wikipedia)
The photographer:
Oraien Catledge was born and raised in the Mississippi Delta of the 1930s and 40s, so he is no stranger to poverty. A long-time resident of Atlanta, he became interested in Cabbagetown after seeing a television news story. In 1980, he began exploring the area and taking photographs of the residents, sharing his photos with them and becoming a regular part of their lives. At that time, the impoverished residents were still hanging on and getting by. His Cabbagetown book was published in 1985; however, he continued taking pictures of Cabbagetown folks for twenty years.
Although Catledge was visually impaired and not a professional photographer, his work has a lot of heart and grit. His images have been likened to the work of Depression-era documentary photographers such as Walker Evans and Dorothea Lange. (source: GPB)
Closing thought:
There may still be pockets of poverty in the area, but the Cabbagetown of 1980 has largely disappeared. When an urban area gets gentrified, what happens to all the poor people?
The Fulton Bag and Cotton Mill in Atlanta began operations in 1881 and was one of the first textile processing mills built in the south. Its primary product was cotton bags for packaging agricultural products. Its work force consisted of poor whites recruited from the Appalachian region of north Georgia. The surrounding mill town, known as Cabbagetown, was home to a tight-knit, homogenous, and semi-isolated community of people whose lives were anchored by the mill until it closed in 1977. Afterwards, the neighborhood went into a steep decline, which didn't end until Atlanta's in-town renaissance of the mid-1990s. The mill itself was renovated into the nation’s largest residential loft community, which houses everyone from artists and musicians to business professionals. (source: Wikipedia)
The photographer:
Oraien Catledge was born and raised in the Mississippi Delta of the 1930s and 40s, so he is no stranger to poverty. A long-time resident of Atlanta, he became interested in Cabbagetown after seeing a television news story. In 1980, he began exploring the area and taking photographs of the residents, sharing his photos with them and becoming a regular part of their lives. At that time, the impoverished residents were still hanging on and getting by. His Cabbagetown book was published in 1985; however, he continued taking pictures of Cabbagetown folks for twenty years.
Although Catledge was visually impaired and not a professional photographer, his work has a lot of heart and grit. His images have been likened to the work of Depression-era documentary photographers such as Walker Evans and Dorothea Lange. (source: GPB)
Closing thought:
There may still be pockets of poverty in the area, but the Cabbagetown of 1980 has largely disappeared. When an urban area gets gentrified, what happens to all the poor people?
Displaying 1 of 1 review