The Wide View in South-Central Jackson (Hasselblad XPan 08)

Jackson, Mississippi, is fun for my type of photography because so much of the city is rough (I am trying to be polite). Let's continue our explorations using the Hasselblad XPan panoramic camera. Here are some examples of south Jackson around South State Street and Gallatin Street. This frames are from Kodak Portra 160 film, expired since 2013 but frozen for all of its life. Click any picture to expand it to 2400 pixels.

South State Street view north (45mm F/4 lens at ƒ/11)

Anyone here? 330 S. Rankin Street, Jackson

South State Street was once prosperous and lined with car dealers and various other businesses. Not today. Heading west, South Rankin Street may be even more desolate. I took black and white photographs here in 2020.  

South Gallatin Street view north (45mm lens)

Warehouses, South Gallatin Street

Addison Auto Body, 828 S. Gallatin Street (30mm ƒ/5.6 lens)

Turn north on South Gallatin Street, and there is a bit more commercial activity. The road dips under the early-20th century railroad girder overpass, which is in regular use. I have photographed along here in the past. 

South State Street (BW400CN film, Voigtländer Vito BL camera, 50mm ƒ/3.5 Color-Skopar lens)

As a comparison, here is the view of South State Street taken on black and white film with my 1959 Voigtländer Vito BL camera and its 4-element 50mm ƒ/3.5 Color-Skopar lens. The XPan's lenses are modern, sophisticated, and amazingly capable on the 68mm wide frame, but this simple 4-element Skopar (a Tessar-type of design) holds its own for the normal 35mm frame. 

Railroad overpass, S. Gallatin at W. Porter Street (TMax 100 film, Rolleiflex 3.5E 75mm Xenotar lens, 1/250 ƒ8, yellow filter)

Here is the north side of the railroad bridge where West Porter Street intersects South Gallatin. This is from my 1959 Rolleiflex camera. Hmmm, how come this "antique" equipment works?

Standby for more Jackson photographs next week.

More decay in West Jackson: Bailey, Gallatin, Louise, and Neatum Streets

Dear Readers, after some exploring in the great US West, it is time to turn our attention again to Jackson, Mississippi. This will be the first of several posts dealing with the state capital. You can see older articles by typing "Jackson" in the search box.

West Jackson is rough. Regular readers know I have been documenting abandoned houses and closed businesses for many years. This group of photographs is from a gloomy day in 2016 when I drove along Bailey Avenue and on some of the side streets.

Bailey Avenue

Eddie's Soul Food, 2853 Bailey Ave., Jackson, Mississippi

2855 Bailey Ave., Jackson

Bailey Ave. runs north-south and carries a lot of traffic. Many businesses and buildings are run-down or empty.

Warehouse, 2720 Bailey Avenue, Jackson

This big warehouse at 2720 Bailey Ave was empty and no longer secure. I do not know what business was formerly here, but the building is reasonably modern. The tile on the inner hall was glazed brick, similar to what you see in subway stations.

Louis Street

1044 Louis Street, Jackson

1040 Louis Street, Jackson

1036 Louis Street, Jackson

Louis is a short side street that merges into Bailey Ave. and Gaddis Street. When I was there, it looked like most of the cottages along the street were empty or burned.

Neatum Street

Asbestos shingle-clad duplex, 1101 Neatum Street, Jackson

Stucco or plaster duplex, 1010 Neatum Street, Jackson

Wood clapboard sided duplex, 1015 Neatum Street, Jackson

Interior of 1015 Neatum Street, Jackson

Neatum Street, one block north of Lewis, also was lined with empty and abandoned houses. In one house, it looked like the last tenants abruptly departed, abandoning clothes and other possessions.

180 N. Gallatin Street, Jackson

197 N. Gallatin Street, Jackson

189 N. Gallatin Street, Jackson

Drive south on Bailey and at Monument Street, the road makes a jog to the left and turns into North Gallatin Street. This was formerly an industrial area but is now run-down with closed businesses and empty warehouses. The road surface is rutted, and water seeps out of leaking pipes onto the sidewalks. Dude-mobiles rattle by with thumping rap music. Not a scene to inspire new businesses to relocate here.

I wrote about the area further south, at West Porter Street, in 2015.

These digital files are from mya Fuji X-E1 digital camera, with raw files processed with PhotoNinja software. PhotoNinja is one of the more successful software packages for processing the Fuji X-Trans raw files.

More Urban Decay: West Porter Street, Jackson, Mississippi

Jackson west of the railroad tracks was once a prosperous, busy area of small shops, warehouses, and industrial concerns. Further west were tree-shaded neighborhoods, schools, and churches. Today, warehouses are boarded up, houses are abandoned or crumbling, and empty lots give little clue as to what was once there. A few weeks ago, I drove south on South Gallatin Street and saw a brick warehouse at the intersection with West Porter Street. It warranted a few photographs. I think the street address would be 2034.

This is the view west along West Porter at sunset in November.

The little cottage at 2032 West Porter was abandoned. The small fireplace was probably intended for a coal stove insert.

The resident at 2030 restores interesting old American cars, real Detroit iron.

On the north side of West Porter is another warehouse or shop. I could not tell if any part of the building is occupied.

This is the view north along Gallatin Street. It is somewhat desolate now.

These are the Kansas City Southern railroad tracks at the Gallatin Street underpass. These massive girders are early 20th century, the great era of railroad construction.

Photographs taken with a Fujifilm X-E1 digital camera, with some frames through a 35mm f/2.8 Olympus shift lens (to eliminate converging lines). I processed some of the RAW files with PhotoNinja software.