Hollins Market Tour reflection

Before our tour of Hollins Market, there was a lot I did not know. I though the market was 1 building, just a market, but it is an entire neighborhood. Our tour guide Curtis was extremely nice and well informed of the area. He spoke of some remolding of the area that I think would bring more modernism to the area, but the history of the area is rich, and intriguing as is. We ran into an older barber in the barber shop that had a ton of information about the history of the market, I think interviewing him about the history and community would be extremely beneficial for our project. My favorite part, as you probably already know, was the stables. I found it really fascinating that there was still a horse stable in the middle of the city for over 100 years. Not only was the stable still open but it was still running by the original family. Of course, the newest generation was the one running it, but the son was able to give us a lot of information about his family and stable history. I did not really like the puppetry building, I found it a little creepy and probably would never go for a show. The owner though seemed nice and had a lot of information about the history of the neighborhood. Both men would also probably be able to provide us a lot of information about the history of the community for our research purposes.  The market itself has been home to many families since its opening, there were 2 stalls in the market that had been there for well over 50 years and had stayed in the same family. For these family’s running a stall in the market isn’t just a job, it’s a legacy that has been passed down for generations. My favorite part was learning about how these stalls and the stable had been in the same family for generations. I find it really fascinating when a business stays in the same family for many generations, its not only a part of community history but a part of their family history as well. We have done one tour of the Hollins Market, but I would be interested in doing another now that I have had time to reflect on the area and think of more questions.