The Upshaws of County Line: An American Family

In 1988 photographer Richard Orton began what would become a 25 year project documenting life in the African-American community of County Line in deep East Texas. Known as a “freedom colony,” County Line came into being when, in the 1880s the Upshaw brothers, Guss, Felix and Jim, brought their families there to create a community of their own.

Credit: Exhibition overview from museum website

Whether or not you go, The Upshaws of County Line: An American Family documents the history of African Americans in the South in the aftermath of the Civil War. 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.

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