Sunday, August 8, 2010

Lost architecture: Pearl Street, Vicksburg

Pearl Street is one of Vicksburg's older streets and one of its more interesting. It parallels the railroad line, which has run along here since before the Civil War. The architecture ranges from beautiful bed-and-breakfast homes to shotgun shacks. In the photograph above, the brick building to the left once housed Tuminello's Restaurant. It has been closed since the 1990s and the building stands empty. Visitors who have not been here recently occasionally ask me about it.
The land drops off quite steeply to the west, as you can see in this view of no. 1806. Like many early 20th century Vicksburg houses, the builders placed the front at ground level and had no qualms about supporting the rear on stilts, often 10 or 12 ft above the ground. This building has been razed. Houses can no longer be built on these steep lots anywhere in town.
Number 1804 was its neighbor, seen here in a 2002 photograph. It, too, has been razed.
At one time, there must have been tens of shotgun houses facing the tracks, but most have been torn down. The two above are at 2302 and 2304 (all square photographs are from a Rolleiflex camera using Kodak Ektar 25 film).
No. 2330 is a classic neighborhood store. In an era before people had private cars, the city had dozens of stores like this serving neighborhoods, but most have closed now.
Many of the houses on the 2400 and 2500 block dated from the late 1800s or early 20th century. One by one they have been torn down. The one above is no. 2414.
1997 photograph of 2521 Pearl Street, taken on Agfa Scala film.

The two houses above are 2515 and 2521. They had a view over the tracks and the railroad yard further down the hill along Levee Street. During the steam era, coal smoke must have deposited grime whenever a locomotive puffed by. Now the residents have to listen to the deafening horns of the diesel locomotives.
These two cottages above (nos 2529 and 2531) were identical architecture and are now gone. They were near the corner of Pearl and Fairground Street. Fairground will be the subject of a future essay.
No. 2607 was a handsome duplex.
Further north, near the former Vicksburg Lumber Co., was a trio of shotguns, nos. 2004, 2006, and 2008. As of 2016, the one on the right has been razed, and the two others are empty.

The photographs above are from a variety of early-vintage digital cameras and from film. The square frames are scans of Kodak Ektar 25 film shot through a Rolleiflex medium-format camera.

 UPDATE JULY 2021:  For a more complete inventory of Pearl Street houses, please click the links below

South of Fairground Street

Central section

North of Klein Street

10 comments:

T. Smith said...

How can I reach you? I am a writer and I grew up on this street.

Kodachromeguy said...

Please email morang_a at bellsouth dot net.

Anonymous said...

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Thank you for providing this information.
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Unknown said...

Pretty cool to come across this article. My parents operated Tuminello's in the mid 80s. I grew up around those railroad tracks. Lots of great memories

Jay Parmegiani

Unknown said...

Jay, Tuminello's of Vicksburg in the mid-80s was one of the finest restaurants in the entire United States. I well remember so many of the offerings. I've eaten at one restaurant since those days which was comparable, that being Liza's in Natchez. Thank your parents, if they're still alive, for providing Mississippi with outstanding dining for those years.

Anonymous said...

Looking for old photos of a church that was located on Pearl Street; Traveler Rest Missionary Baptist Church. My email address is; praisenhim@live.com

Unknown said...

Wow! Brought back happy memories of me living with my grandmother, Mrs. Fannie Swanigan Wilson-Reese and great-grandmother, Mrs. Jessie Ware at 1810 Pearl Street. That's my grandmother's home featured in your article located at 1810 Pearl Street!!!

Ursula Clyde-Craft

Khris Mandell said...

Thats u End?

Infrogmation said...

Interesting post, thank you!

I took a photo of the G&A Grocery in September 2008 (Came upon it by chance driving around on a visit to Vicksburg).


https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Vicksburg3Sept2008GAGroceryRememberTheDream.jpg

kodachromeguy@bellsouth.net said...

Thanks, Infrogmation.

Two photographs of the store from 2002 and 2003 are on my other Pearl Street post:

https://worldofdecay.blogspot.com/2021/06/pearl-street-houses-vicksburg.html