The photographic body of work Disappearing Few is meant to provide a visual

reference to the dying sport of bank fishing in urban America. These images seek to

capture the people and places that represent bank fishing in and around the city of

Louisville, Kentucky. These images depict a tradition that is slowly being decimated

because of industrialization and urban development.

My love for fishing started at a very young age. I can remember when my grandmother

would tell me stories about the rare species of fish her husband, Mr. Herbert, would catch at the Ohio River. It wasn't until I was old enough, around the age of eight, that my father started taking me on trips with him to the Ohio River. I felt at home along the banks of the Ohio River. Nothing was more exciting than holding a fishing pole that was almost taller than I was. I can remember when I caught my first fish: my bait was a colorful plastic worm. My father taught me how to jig my bait along the bottom of the river—bouncing it up and down along the rocks, making sure it didn't get snagged. Suddenly, I felt a tug so powerful I thought it would drag me to the bottom of the river. This was the moment I fell in love with fishing. It was not just the fight of catching the fish: it was knowing that this amazing body of water had so much to offer. Sadly, those days are long gone. The love for fishing that was instilled in me at a young age is still there, but the Ohio River that once had so much to offer for bank fishermen is no more.

The Disappearing Few is a collection of images captured with the intent of illuminating the way of life that is often overlooked or scorned in urban America. With increasing industrialization, urban fishermen are often dismissed as poor, low-class people who are trying to hold onto a tradition that has begun to lose its place in American society. The intent of this project is to reveal the true faces of bank fishermen in and around Louisville, and to challenge the stereotypes that are often associated with them. These images show the diversity of the fishermen along the banks of the Ohio River in Louisville. When viewing this project, you will see that these fishermen are diverse in terms of race, income, and political preferences. Each fisherman in this series seems to share a common bond: keeping the tradition of bank fishing alive. Many of the fishermen photographed for this project expressed concerns about a bleak future for bank fishing in Louisville, with most of them worried about the negative implications of urban development and pollution that continues to plague the Ohio River region for years to come. In addition to capturing the fishermen, these images also focus on the places that they frequent. When one thinks of a large city, he or she typically imagines noise, dense population, crime, construction, and pollution. While many of these symptoms of city life do exist in and around Louisville, the images that comprise The Disappearing Few bring to light some of the hidden spots along the banks of the Ohio River that evoke a sense of solitude, peace, and memories of the past.