Dear Readers, this is the third installment of our mid-state Mississippi road trip. This time, we are approaching Interstate 55 from the east. I-55 approximately follows the much older US 51.
Beauregard
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| Shack or former store, Beauregard Rd., Beauregard (Kodak BW400CN film, Leica IIIC camera, Canon 50mm ƒ/1.4 lens) |
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| Victorian cottage, Elmore Street, Beauregard (note the white circle, a pinhole in the rubberized Leica IIIC shutter curtain) |
Beauregard is a small town of only 326 in Copiah County. It is on old US 51, and likely had much more commercial traffic in the era before I-55 was built. I looked around the historic Beauregard Cemetery but did not take any pictures there. This cottage on Elmore Street must have been quite handsome in its day, as were a number of other older homes in the vicinity.
Hazelhurst
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| Hwy 51, south end of Hazelhurst (Panatomic-X film, Fuji GW690II camera, yellow filter, ¼ sec ƒ/8.0½) |
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| 207 Caldwell Drive, Hazelhurst (digital file) |
Hazelhurst is the seat of Copiah Country and was first settled in 1819. The city is just off I-55 about 35 miles south of Jackson. I had never driven through town, just buzzed by on I-55. I assumed that it would be reasonably prosperous because of its proximity to the interstate, but what I saw on old Highway US 51 was pretty rough. The house in the photograph above was empty but clearly had been a nice home in the early-mid-20th century. The car title loan company occupying an old
Pan American Petroleum & Transport Company station says a lot about the financial conditions in the town.
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| Pine Bluff Lodge 428, 11155 Dentville Rd., Hazelhurst (BW400CN film, Leica M2, 50mm ƒ/2.0 Summicron-DR lens) |
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| Templeton Grocery, 1011 Jack Rd., Hazelhurst (BW400CN film, Leica M2) |
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| Templeton Grocery, 1010 Jack Rd., Hazelhurst (expired Kodak Ektar 25 film, Rolleiflex 3.5E with 75mm Xenotar lens) |
Some of the side roads in the area are pretty out-of-the-way. Dentville Road runs west-northwest out of Hazelhurst. About 13 miles west of Hazelhurst, an old grocery store occupies the junction with Jack Road. The store was closed but boarded up and not abandoned. I experimented with some expired Kodak Ektar 25 film in my Rolleiflex, but the film was well past its prime.
Crystal Springs
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| Wilson's Meat House, Crystal Springs (Panatomic-X film, Fuji GW690II camera) |
On my 2019 trip, I was heading home, a bit disappointed with the day's photographic opportunities. But wait, a big cow on Hwy 51 just south of Crystal Springs. Just waiting for a portrait. It was too good to resist. I love scenes like this. I should do a cross-country expedition looking for cows, chickens, catfish, and what-not - folk art at its best.
Pattison
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| Store, MS 547 near White Hall Rd., Pattison (Kodak TMax 100 film, Olympus Trip 35 camera) |
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| Store, MS 547 near White Hall Rd., Pattison (Kodak TMax 100 film, Olympus Trip 35 camera) |
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| House on Lopiah Rd., Pattison (Kodak TMax 100 film, Olympus Trip 35 camera) |
In 2017, my wife and I drove home through the center of the state via Hwy 547. We passed through Pattison, a quiet and rather sad little town. It was probably more prosperous 50 years ago.
This ends out mid-state road trip. I have written about other small towns further north, such as
Utica,
Edwards,
Learned, and
Bolton.
Most of the photographs above are from film cameras. The house in Hazelhurst and the cow portrait are from Kodak's long-discontinued
Panatomic-X film taken with my Texas Leica (the Fuji GW690II camera with 90mm Fujinon lens). Many of the others are from BW400CN film taken with Leica M2 and IIIC cameras with various lenses.
