I decided that today was just too damned nice to sit indoors. I started my day off at Starbucks then hit the back roads of Tennessee. I was on the hunt for abandoned places and then some in hopes to add to my Forgotten Tennessee travels. I drove down US Hwy 99 and hit Eagleville. From there I traveled down a road at random until I hit Hwy 31. Turning left onto 31 I spied an oldish cemetery that had a large stone fence and an entrance with a bronze legend upon it. I hopped out of my car crossed a road and began to shoot.
As I wandered between the rows of graves stones I purposefully looked for the oldest stones. I didn’t have to look far. Old? No some of these were ancient. Some were so old that their faces were worn smooth and had little if any markings upon them. These oldest grave markers had a strange patina. They looked rusted. Yes, rusted. Later I may post some of the stones in color. But for now I feel Black and White is best. Finishing up my shoot I headed back to the car. I stopped at the entrance and read that the cemetery was a family plot belonging to a family named Riggs. the entire area had been founded on Rigg’s original land of about a 1000 acres.
I drove about 1/8 of a mile and came drove by a roadside general store/garage. I pulled over ran began to shoot the place. I aimed my camera at the sign hanging from a light pole which read Riggsby Bros Garage and Grocery. I had to wonder if there was a relation? Likely there was. I fell in love with this location. I’ve no idea how long it’d been closed down, or if perhaps the grocery was still open. From the sun washed and blistered state of the paint and the wood of the garage door and the style of the signage I guessed the place had gone under more than two decades ago. I spent about 45 mins shooting around and getting a feel of the place. As I said, I loved it.
I hope you the reader enjoy these shots of Allisonia, TN Unincorporated as much as I enjoyed shooting them. As always if you’d like to purchase a print in this story or in any of my other stories contact me at jerry.winnett@gmail.com be sure to check out my Easy shop for prints as well https://www.etsy.com/shop/ForgottenTennessee
