Wilson is not far from Slaton. You go right on the Slaton highway to avoid the overpass that takes you into downtown Slaton. And then another right at an intersection and in about nine miles you are in Wilson.
We stopped to photograph the first building we saw in Wilson. I had never been there before, but my wife remembered Wilson well. Of course, there had been changes.
Wilson is a very small town, and I think it is safe to say that it is struggling to survive. I thought we would not have much to photograph, but I was wrong.
We had a good visit. My wife has bad memories of the place and we would certainly not want to live there, but it does no harm to visit.
It seems, as I've mentioned before, that Slaton is dominated by a few wealthy and prominent families; if you are not connected to one of those families in some way, you are a second class citizen. That was my wife's experience. It sounds rather feudal, and I suppose that is the case.
Well, we are done with this particular look at Slaton, Texas. If you ever visit, be sure to check out the bakery, and the BBQ.
We tried to go off the beaten track in Slaton, to the extent possible, driving through residential areas as far from "downtown" as we could.
And we stayed in the lower income part of town, which was easy because, as usual, there was a definite division. Seems like every town has a sort of "color line", no matter what the size.
In a day or two we'll finish Slaton, and then move on to WILSON, a town of about 550 population about nine miles from Slaton. We had a pleasant experience there, and I'll explain when we get there.
Yes, Slaton features one of the few surviving "Harvey Houses", once common features along the Santa Fe lines. This one is still in operation and preserved in as authentic condition as possible. You can eat there. We didn't because it was closed Sunday.
Yes, the railroad is a major employer in Slaton.
What you see is a lot of stuff that seems to be related to the Santa Fe Railroad and maybe agriculture.
I have no idea what these structures are for. But other things are less hard to interpret.
Small towns in this part of Texas don't have the time or resources to waste time being "pretty", although they might try. Their business is survival, and that is tough enough. No sissies need apply.
We stopped to photograph the first building we saw in Wilson. I had never been there before, but my wife remembered Wilson well. Of course, there had been changes.
Wilson is a very small town, and I think it is safe to say that it is struggling to survive. I thought we would not have much to photograph, but I was wrong.
