Lenoir

I grew up in Lenoir, North Carolina and have watched my hometown slowly dry up as factory after factory closed and thousands of furniture workers lost their jobs. I no longer live there, but I have watched Lenoir become more like a ghost town with each return visit. This publication serves as a brief overview of the economic and social issues facing Lenoir through the eyes of former furniture workers who have experienced hardship firsthand. It is also a documentation of my work on the video installation exhibition Lenoir: Former Furniture Capital of the South. I felt it was important to have a published record of all the interviews conducted with individuals who worked in the furniture industry. It is my hope that this publication will continue to raise awareness about the situation in Lenoir and other industrially-based communities and perhaps what we can do to help rebuild them.