Last night I was talking to a couple of friends from New Mexico and I was trying to explain what life is like in a small farming town in Central Louisiana. I talked in depth about the poverty and the decay. I tried to explain about how the town of Lecompte was once very prosperous, how it used to be a railroad town that thrived on cotton, sugar cane and lumber. I continued to explain how the decline in the need for those goods and the construction of a interstate highway nearby that diverted tourists away from the town all but sealed it's fate.
They were truly shocked when I explained that I could see about a dozen abandoned houses and stores from my front yard.
You really can't quite understand just how dire things are in this part of the country unless you see it with your own eyes. My mere words couldn't possibly due the subject any justice.
After taking some time to reflect on the conversation I decided to grab my camera and set off to document the state of things here in Lecompte. It was an unusual Saturday morning here in Central Louisiana because it was cool and dry. Just the right weather conditions that would allow me to travel around the town and gather the images I wanted. Normally it is so hot and humid that such and outing would be a miserable experience.
But enough about the weather.
The image above tells a story that is repeated all over town. I don't know when the owner of that car parked it there but it has been long enough that the fauna is starting to envelop it. Likewise the house behind it nearly covered in vines. Someone walked away from that home and the car in front of it and never came back. You see that a lot around Louisiana, vehicles and homes that people just simply abandon. It always freaks me out a bit when you find both an abandoned home and car like this. I always wonder if the owner passed away in the house and no one ever came to check on them.
I always pray that's not the case.
It has been said that a picture is worth a thousand words so it is my hope that these images that I captured will speak volumes about life here in the town of Lecompte. Granted not all the homes and businesses here are vacant. There is a successful old restaurant out on the old highway called Lea's Pies and there is a furniture store, karate studio and a company that works on power lines downtown. There are also about 900 residents that still call Lecompte home. It wouldn't be fair to refer to Lecompte as a Ghost Town. But if you knew the history of what the town was and compared it to what it is now, sadly it paints a grim picture of what it will eventually become in the future.
Soak in these images and listen to the stories the tell about life in a small farming town in Central Louisiana.
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