When I studied Photography at Arizona State University, Bill Jay taught me about Walker Evans and the FSA photographers. About 30 years ago I decided to start building my photography collection by ordering a number of my favorite FSA prints from the Library of Congress. The largest print I ordered was a Walker Evans print from Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.
I love photographing in cemeteries, I always find it fascinating to work there, and I loved the composition of this Evans print. I made a point to stop in Bethlehem on a 2006 road trip to photograph this cemetery. I got to the same spot in St. Michael’s Cemetery as Evans did in 1935, photographed, but was pressed for time to get back on the road. I put it on my bucket list to return and spend more time there one day.
In March of this year I was in Boston with my son, watching his hockey playoffs, with the plan being to drive his truck back to California through the South after the season. We have never seen the south and were looking forward to exploring it. When COVID-19 hit Boston his season was soon cancelled and it was obvious the country was going to shut down quickly. I decided on the most direct route home so we wouldn’t get stuck, but I still took in to account the things I wanted to photograph along the way, Bethlehem being one of the spots.
Our first night on the road trip was spent in Bethlehem and I used the following morning to photograph before continuing on to Chicago. I had seen one thing driving in that I wanted to photograph, Herbert’s Typewriter , and that led me to a few other discoveries before the cemetery. I got lucky on the way to the Bethlehem Steel Mill when I saw an old timer with a camera waiting by the Norfolk Southern Railroad tracks. I assumed a train was approaching so I got my son to stop. Turns out I was right about the train which arrived five minutes later. I also discovered that the man with the camera was Bob Wilt who lives in Bethlehem and has been photographing trains in the Lehigh Valley for well over 50 years.
Photographer and author Bob Wilt watching a Westbound train - Bethlehem, PA
The Bethlehem Steel MIll
The City helped create an Arts District called the SteelStacks around the old Bethlehem Steel Mill which allows awesome access to photograph the old steel mill. The last time I was there it was somewhat fenced off, now it is a fantastic place to visit, so well designed. It was incredible to get so close to the mill and appreciate the scale of the facility.
The approximate line of Walker Evans’s 1935 photograph
St. Michael’s Cemetery is still not cared for, but that adds to its photographic qualities. The large white cross headstone in Evans’s photograph is gone now, I need to check my files because I thought it was there 14 years ago. Whenever there is change in a subject that I specifically went to photograph I do the obvious, I adjust and see what other opportunities there are. I had plenty of great images there still. All my photographs from Bethlehem are posted on a new second web site which just features my images from 2020. I decided to launch a second website because most of my new work is in color and 2020 just belongs off on its own, its just an insane year.
I was impressed with Bethlehem, I would love to go back there and photograph again.
William Karl Valentine in St. Micahel’s Cemetery - Bethlehem, Pennsylvania Photo by Brent Karl Valentine 3/14/20