The Upshaws of County Line
Subtitle: an American family
By: photographs by Richard S. Orton ; foreword by Thad Sitton ; preface by Roy Flukinger
Contributors: Sitton, Thad, 1941- writer of foreword; Flukinger, Roy, 1947- writer of preface
Edition: First edition.
Publisher: University of North Texas Press
Published: 2014
Place of publication: Denton, Texas
Language: eng
Number of pages: 91
ISBN-13: 9781574415711; 9781574415841
Subjects: Pictorial works; Biography; Social life and customs; African American farmers; Agricultural colonies; Freedmen
Description: "Guss, Felix, and Jim Upshaw founded the community of County Line in the 1870s in northwest Nacogdoches County, in deep East Texas. As with hundreds of other relatively autonomous black communities created at that time, the Upshaws sought a safe place to raise their children and create a livelihood during Reconstruction and Jim Crow Texas. In the late 1980s photographer Richard Orton visited County Line for the first time and became aware of a world he did not know existed as a white man. He went down the rabbit hole, so to speak, and met some remarkable people there who changed his life. The more than 50 duotone photographs and text convey the contemporary experience of growing up in a "freedom colony." Covering a period of twenty-five years, photographer Richard Orton juxtaposes his images with text from people who grew up in and have remained connected to their birthplace. Thad Sitton's foreword sets the community in historical context and Roy Flukinger points out the beauty of the documentary photographs. This book should appeal to anyone interested in American or Texas history, particularly the history of African Americans in the South in the aftermath of the Civil War. The book should also be of interest to anyone with an appreciation for documentary photography, including students and teachers of photography"--Publisher's website.
Table of contents: title: Preface: Come on in / by Roy Flukinger; title: Going to County Line / by Richard S. Orton; title: Photographs: The Upshaws of County Line: an American family; title: My favorite story / by Richard S. Orton.