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Within the 45,000+ square miles of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, lies a tiny linguistic enclave tucked away between hills known as Frenchville. French settlers from Normandy and Picardy commenced here in 1835 and after five years, nearly 40 families had gathered in the area.
Back in the 1960s, visitors weren’t very welcome, but those who did visit noticed the pure, classical French spoken throughout the community. However, those residents lacked the ability to read and write the language. It’s been said that even the oldest tombstones contain misspellings.
Frenchville is much different today, and that’s the subtle story that Madrid-based portrait and reportage photographer James Rajotte is trying to tell with his images. One church, one bar, and a back road (actually called “Back Road”) where residents have small farms or hunting cabins are enough to make the scene look like one from a movie. The once reigning French culture has suffered from an identity crisis since the controversial process of hydraulic fracturing began in the region.
Now based in Madrid, James grew up in the State College area of PA and has gradually returned home over the last five years to spend time embedding himself as a resident and recognizing the visible changes in morale. He has made it a point to meet locals that would let him in on their family history and allow him to photograph them.
What James noticed most after investing time in visits was the culture and way of life slowly being forgotten with the promise of a more prosperous future. He elaborated on his intentions with the project:
It is not meant to outrage anyone to or to advocate for a specific cause. For me, the body of work touches on a feeling of the loss — both of culture and community identity. Of course time is the major factor in change, but witnessing the rapid change in Frenchville, I am left to conclude that things change faster now that they did before, and probably even faster in the future.
The Story of Frenchville appeared as a solo exhibition at the University of Notre Dame last spring. James is currently in search of further exhibition possibilities.