On one of my drives through Middle Tennessee I found myself on the side of the road drinking a bottle of water. In the distance I saw the peak of a roof and drove closer. As I drew closer I noticed the following the house was old, quite old. While the lawn was mowed I did notice that the house was covered, literally covered in Ivy. I stood there for a moment looking at the house and finally I grabbed my camera walked up and began to shoot.

As I walked around the building I read a sign at the front door and could not help but chuckle at it.  While you can’t read it in this image I can tell what it reads “No Trespassing”! I really couldn’t help but laugh, how could someone enter?

 

More Ivy…

and yet even more.

No idea if there was more ivy, too much overgrowth for me to find out.

If the eyes are the windows to the soul, what are the windows of an old house saying?

Recurring theme!

One last parting shot. It was a pleasure to say the least. Just glad I didn’t get too close, some of that ivy has to be poisonous! If you’d care to purchase a print(s) email me at jerry@forgottentennessee.comfor prices and details.

 

I included this photograph because it is a type of cemetery and like many in Tennessee it is always in danger of being forgotten. The main danger for this memorial is that it is off an old dirt road that used to be connected to Mill. Now the only thing that remains of the Mill is the Mills Dam and the road. That’s it. And to be honest I’ve no idea how old this memorial is. It could be new, or it could be decades old. The thing is is that this road is not well traveled or kept up. It could be that this marker has been overgrown many a time and its is cleared and relaid whenever possible. I do know that it’s a good twelve more into the woods which in itself is odd.

 

I just put up a page that details a day spent shooting on the grounds of the Tennessee State Prison which had been closed since 1992 for it’s shocking conditions. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tennessee_State_Prison

It was to date among the best Forgotten Tennessee experiences I’ve had. Below are a few shots but by all means read the full account by clicking on https://forgottentennessee.com/tennessee-state-prison-nashville-tn/

 

If you’d like to buy a print or two email me: Jerry@ForgottenTennessee.com

For the better part of a decade I have been getting in my car with a sack lunch, coffee, bottles of water and my camera. Once in the car I find a back road and drive until I find the past. I’ve compiled a wonderful collection of photos over the years and I’ve named it Forgotten Tennessee. Forgotten Tennessee is my attempt to capture the past even as it vanishes. I will be updating regularly and I hope you the reader will become a fan and visit often. This fall I will be looking for spaces in the Middle Tennessee area to display Forgotten Tennessee so that it has a real world presence. Will you be able to purchase prints on this site? Yes, I am working on that, and you will of course be able to buy at the physical locations where Forgotten Tennessee is displayed.

I hope you enjoy the past as much as I enjoy capturing it.

– Jerry Winnett, Photographer