Noah Markunas

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Street

Lexington, IL

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A man by the name of David Congdon is found leveling out a stump on the side of the street. He would then tell me that the stump was being turned into a fairy house for the local children, Lexington, Illinois, 2023.

Everyone knows everybody and it’s clear to see just from walking around the town. This town is Lexington, Illinois, a small town just fifteen minutes outside of Bloomington. The people of Lexington seem to all have one thing in common, and that they are hard workers who help out when they can. There are also many small details that can be found in Lexington that make the town special in its own way.

Another example of how David Congdon is a man of the people when he offers a hand to help a woman down the freshly salted stairs, Lexington, Illinois, 2023.
A middle aged man struggles to keep control of one child as the eldest looks on in embarrassment of its siblings behavior, Lexington, Illinois, 2023.
After weeks of waiting patiently, I was pleasantly surprised by a completed fairy house and I was absolutely blown away by the craftsmanship, Lexington, Illinois, 2023.
As the town recovers from a sudden snow fall, a man willingly helps out by shoveling the snow off the sidewalk and tosses it into the street, Lexington, Illinois, 2023.

The goal of this essay is to capture the essence of a small town that most people can’t say they have ever heard of. When people drive by small towns in the midwest, all they see in the distance are the gigantic silos towering over the townsfolk. But there’s something fascinating about the small details that Lexington has that make it different from other small towns but there are obviously some things that are to be expected when it comes to the architectural details of the midwest. The silos and the constant stopping for passing trains are sort of a given.

When you drive into Lexington after exiting the interstate, you’re greeted with a Lexington sign that stands next to an elephant sculpture made up of car parts. This sculpture was built by Kasey Wells. This Sculpture was taken across the USA in 2020 by Wells in a failed presidential champaign, Lexington, Illinois, 2023.
Like most small towns in the midwest, Lexington is overpowered by giant silos that towers over downtown, Lexington, Illinois, 2023.
Not all midwestern stereotypes apply to everyone. Especially not to this home seller, Lexington, Illinois, 2023.
Within the silos of Lexington, theres an unattended gator but also known as the golf cart of the midwest, Lexington, Illinois, 2023.
Every time that I visited Lexington, I could always count on a train passing through at least three times, Lexington, Illinois, 2023.
As you walk through town, you begin to notice who’s from around there and who isn’t. One of the most common reasons for visitors is the local dress shop since it’s prom season after all, Lexington, Illinois, 2023.

The environment just feels different when you visit Lexington. It isn’t just Lexington because small towns as a whole have a feel to them that gives off a sense of calm and relaxation when walking down the sidewalk of downtown and the parks. Every time I drove to Lexington throughout the last three months, it always felt like a nice change of pace that I needed. You never feel like the way that Lexingtons people live is too fast to handle.

In the time that I spent in Lexington, I learned a lot from the people and how they interacted with one another even on the days that weren’t the sunniest or the warmest. They would find ways to help each other out when others needed it. A few people that I had the pleasure to talk to really showed what Lexington is really like and that’s selfless. Towns may be able to say they function because of the higher ups but Lexington is different. The people have a sense of trust that allows them to leave their dogs out unattended which may seem unheard of in other places throughout the country. This place is only as functional as the relationships of the people who live in it.

When I was walking down the street, my head was turned by two dogs sprinting around a shed in their yard. But one of them took the time to say hello while the other continued its journey around their yard, Lexington, Illinois, 2023.
The half hazard-ally placed bags of the competitors sit behind the dugout as they are draped with the shadow of the surrounding trees of a field that’s placed only where it can fit, Lexington, Illinois, 2023
An elderly dog rests after fifteen long seconds of protecting his or her yard, Lexington, Illinois, 2023. When I was walking down the street, an elderly do began barking but after only fifteen seconds, right when I lifted my camera, it quickly sat down as if that fifteen seconds of barking tuckered the dog out.