PARIS, Texas' Shocking State Of Decay (Toured With Daughter)
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- Опубликовано: 28 сен 2024
- I have always wanted to visit Paris and had read that the downtown is busy and vibrant. So my daughter and I took a day trip to spend some time together, ready to do some shopping and to try the dining options. We were surprised at what we saw when we got there.
Travel Vlog #102
I'm so impressed by your daughter. It's clear to me that she is very knowledgeable. Her input makes for a better video because of the conversation.
She's very smart. Graduated at the top of her class. :)
@@JoeandNicsRoadTrip Proud dad as you should be. I know about a few things she mentioned Was thinking, wow, not many young people would know that.
It's great that y'all spend time together doing what you love. A wonderful blessing.
Daddy daughter date! Awesome. Good job dad!
Try visiting battle grounds of our past, to learn our direction.
Agreed
A daughter hanging out with her Dad. You can just tell she was raised right. Great job Joe.
Thank you!
Thank you for posting the video. Paris has been home to 8 generations of my family now. I grew up there in the 60's when all the downtown area was still the hub of the area. At one time in history, Paris was larger than Dallas. It just stopped growing and now is declining rapidly. Some of my ancestors owned a brick yard there, and a multitude of the buildings were built with their brick. Seeing so many of them in decay is very sad. Growing up in Paris during the 1960's was magical it seemed. I haven't lived there since 1976, but have family still there. I'm sorry you and your daughter's expectations were not achieved. Sadly, Paris has not been "busy and vibrant" for decades. The crime rate in Paris is one of the highest in the nation now.
We were honestly surprised at what we saw.
I'm a native parisite. Paris has been thru hell and things have recently become more revitalized in recent years. But to say paris has one of the highest crime rates in the nation is debatable. Because of all the destruction paris has gone thru different developments and usually areas close to Walmart (unfortunately) are usually more developed. Just like every city/town, places are left in neglect.
@@matthewlovelady8944I
Sad to see such things happen to what once was probably a nice place to live.
That same sad story is told all over rual Texas. Small cities were founded to support farmers. As the farms go out of business and the farmers die off the cities slowly close down. Businesses shut down. There are no jobs. The young people leave. Soon the towns are just the home of elderly. As they die off thee town dies with them.
Great travelog. Your daughter is an intelligent young lady.
I'm just wondering if eventually when more people can work from home and live anywhere they want, they'll decide to forgo all the plazas and malls and traffic rings around the city and miles and miles of nothing but muffler and nail shops and move back to these small towns for the quality of life (and the price of real estate).
They should send all homeless in California here.
@@charleshoang566 why would Texas want California's mentally ill drug addicts? We don't want their best people let alone their worst.
@@charleshoang566 lol no. Keep California's failure in california
@@charleshoang566 NO, NO, NO. The homeless in California are there because they choose to be. The vast majority are homeless due to addictions. Do not send them to Texas....we have enough druggies as it is.
I'm from Paris and actually still live here. Seeing our town the way tourists might see it is very shocking. From fires to tornados our town has been destroyed several times. We continue to rebuild as we can. The downtown area with the empty shells of businesses were destroyed by fire. I hope you get to see the historic area with all the beautiful homes! Thank you for visiting! I hope you come back soon
We took our honeymoon through Texas and other states and we stayed in Paris Texas for three days because we fell in love with the place and people. That was in 2008 and it brakes my heart seeing it now 💔
I’m from Paris too. I love our city! No matter how others see it, it’s our HOME & we LOVE IT!
Yea lived here all my life
I've been there recently, it's a tourist attraction now. Because of the lights around the fountain. It's a nice little place with a lot of stories. I can see why people would love to live there.
I wish our country would start a rebuilding process and focus on our nation instead of other countries. We have neglected our own citizes. Texas has some beautiful towns. was born there and lived there (Texas ) for 34 years before leaving in 1992. I know live in Washington State.
Quite a bit of action downtown during the week. And Jax throws down a good burger.
Best burger around
Jax is good but Burgerland is better ;-)
As soon as I heard the words "Paris, Texas", I thought of the Ry Cooder song of that name.
A mournful, lonely tune, kind of like the town. How nice to see you touring around with your daughter. She seems like a fine person.
Thank you for the kind words, Grey!
I hated coming to Paris to visit family as a kid. It has looked like this since I started coming here in the mid to late 80's, and I'm sure long before. I grew up in Dallas and moved here in the early 2000's full time. I still don't like certain parts of this place, but strangely after going back to Dallas to visit family, I can't wait to get back here. My younger self would've thought I was out of my mind for saying that.
Hi ,
I live here in Paris Tx.
The reason it looks so empty is because you were here on a Sunday and The shops and stores here most all of them close on Sunday to give the Families a chance to go to church.
If you were here on A Saturday you wouldn't be even able to park and the streets and stores are full of people .
I lived in McKinney TX too but there not everything is shut down on Sunday.
I really wasn't concerned about the square. It's the blocks around it that's filled with abandoned, crumbling buildings that shocked me.
@@JoeandNicsRoadTrip I would encourage you to plan another visit to our town. But this time, please take a few moments to talk to some folks that live here and are familiar with the history of downtown if it truly interests you. It is my opinion that you truly did Paris a disservice with this video. Yes, there are areas surrounding downtown that are in disrepair BUT there are also buildings and homes that have been painstakingly and lovingly restored. It also seemed, coming from the point of view of a resident, that you either inadvertently, because you were not familiar with the area, left out a few of the major historical and architectural landmarks of downtown. For example, Bywaters Park, The Gibraltar Hotel, the original Fire Station and The Farmer's Market just to name a few. The view on screen was evident that they were directly behind you. Maybe you just didn't realize what you were missing. I don't know. What I DO know is that we actually have an active downtown with concerts on the square, movies in the park, the Pumpkin Festival, Friday Night Rides (vintage cars), several parades throughout the year, a number of antique stores, boutiques, restaurants and gift shops and public water park for little children. Just a sampling. All within a few minutes walk from our beautiful fountain. Please come visit with us again when you have the opportunity and a little extra time. Maybe you will change your mind or at least find more positives than negatives should you chose to look again.
@@livinwright2788 I think Spoda called it as he saw it. I am sure there are plenty of nice folks...
@@Sealight007 I do, too. And interviewing residents might kind of a "luck of the draw" type thing. The town has a bit of an ugly history of racial violence which some on one side think is overblown and which those on the other side might call it completely differently. Hot and humid summers!
40 years ago on April 2, 1982 a tornado swept through the north side of Paris, Texas claiming 10 lives, damaging many homes.
I was in the 11th grade during the tornado of 82. It devastated the town. People I knew died. I remember the house across from us being destroyed but skipped our house.
Also hit by an EF3 last November.
West side of Paris
Our town survives by the high concentration of factories. We are just out of commute distance to Dfw. So it's very diy around here.
We have a bad slumlord problem. That's why it looks like that most places. But we have a very good local business scene. the rebuild of Paris will be local. Try swaims hardware Paris bakery,jax burger and more!
I loved Swains! those guys were awesome!
It's not just the war memorial that has room for growth. I was in Paris last year and the people I met and shops that I visited were great.
DFW has everything - but 50% of everything sucks. Paris doesn't have everything you want but it doesn't have all the bs either. 🗼❤
The fountain in downtown Paris is beautiful
And now (2022) the "movement" is from urban America back to rural America, these small towns are primed for "regrowth." In the 1950's, McKinney, Plano, Richardson, Hurst-Euless-Bedford, were hardly on the map, but "urban flight" brought new life and as someone said earlier, the further away from DFW (big cities) the slower the rural re-birth, but it is coming. Many of the new residents in southeast Oklahoma are displaced Texans from DFW! Nevertheless, Paris, like so many small towns now exhibit a lack of willingness of "city fathers" to enforce codes and ordinances that would prevent much of the decay shown in this video. AND as was predicted, the down area suffers from the flight of local business to outlying shopping centers and Paris is no exception... that's where the shops and people can be found.
I was born and raised in California, but moved to Paris, Texas in the 70s. My brother's managed the Relections Club off of the Ramada Inn. My grandparents were cattle ranchers had a good size piece of land on 82 West at one point we lived on what was Timberlane Road Reno, Tx. We later moved to town eventually on Robin Road. I loved Paris as much as I loved Calif, Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. My grandparents are buried there
The long-term trend for most small towns in Texas is that they are slowly shrinking. Population naturally shifts to where the jobs are - and Paris Texas is not that place for a lot of modern jobs! My own small town of Slaton Texas (near Lubbock) once had a population of ~ 7,500, and we are now just below 5,900 (but the "official" signs going into town says 6,120). In Slaton's case technology has come to farming and a lot of once upon a time local farm jobs are gone. Out of about 2,500 housing units in Slaton, about 280 are long term vacant. As our small city budget allows there are probably 6-8 collapsing houses bulldozed and the lots cleared every year. A few new homes get built every year, some under government poverty programs. There are no real job or career opportunities for our HS graduates, virtually all go elsewhere after graduation. Meanwhile our population ages older than Texas. It's possible that as Lubbock grows and expands its boundaries that may make Slaton more attractive for some budget minded young families - we are only 12 miles from the outskirts of Lubbock.
Most retired people live there. It's been that way since I lived there . Now it's got some folks there that you don't want, but not anyone can do anything about it.
I left there for a couple of reasons. Like you see, letting houses go to ruin, instead of finding ways to keep the younger generation there, and its starting to have people that have been standing with signs starting homeless and hungry. I can't say I've ever seen them till a few years. It also had a big tornado go through there in 1982. I'm pretty sure you could bring it up other internet. There really anything for a younger generation to do. Not like you'd find in Houston or Dallas.
Then why is out population grown by over 30% in the last 5 years
I was just there the last 2 weeks of August to visit the grave sites of my daughter and mom. I noticed they put in a Wendy's, Piggy Wiggles took over Save a Lots, They reopened Big'lot, which closed down a few years ago, putting in a Ross's and a few more stores and restaurants. I don't see them pulling in the younger generation there.
I use to live in Paris Texas many years ago. I really loved it there and hoped to return someday. Ii am much to old now, but i still have fond memories of that little friendly
little town.
You may be interested to know that the town of Blackpool (UK) has a huge replica of the Paris (France) tower. Opened in 1894, at 518 ft high it dwarfs the Texas structure.
Yes, what I meant to say is that the Paris, TX Eiffel Tower is the second largest in cities named Paris. There are many taller Eiffel Towers in the world.
Thanks for destroying the only bragging point we have, ah, er - haven't!
I've been there. It's cool. Elevator takes you to the top. Walk out on a glass floor. Looking down to the ground from your feet.
Now for anyone that doesn't know. Paris has had 2 major fires in its past. Now, that really shouldn't matter as they were so long ago. But, it pushed a lot of people away, in the past, and left a lot of damage behind. However, some of the buildings I saw, were ones that had a business, someone moved, someone else bought the property, didn't do anything with it. As is some of downtown Paris. Only recently have things started to "improve" but it's still the same decay. People have had plenty of time to fix all that up, or destroy. But no. Gotta maintain that historical look. Which kills the vibe of downtown Paris. Not enough life down there but, they're working on it.
Those fires where over 120 years ago. I do agree that some of the buildings just sitting there decaying. As a historian, it’s very important to maintain these historic buildings. They don’t build them like this anymore, including their architectural designs. They need to be around for future generations to enjoy. They’re unique, and is part of the city’s charm and history. You can put whatever you want inside them.
@@doubleedgedfist1535 Chico, California has many historic buildings with brick walls from the town's settlement in the 1840's. Many businesses have maintained the historic look and structure while making the inside more modern for retail and as restaurants. But, it's a college town and there are many people who live within a 50-mile radius who earn a living and spend money in downtown, not to mention all of the college students. There has to be a motivation and reason to preserve yet improve and use the old buildings. It's just not there right now. Maybe in the future and, as you say, they are working on it. I live in Arlington, Texas now. So glad we left California 11 years ago. All of my ancestry is here on my mother's side.
"Paris, Texas" is a movie from 1984, directed by Wim Wenders, music by Ry Cooder. Worthwhile watching it. Love your videos!
There are 2 Paris Texas movies
Paris Texas (the film) is great. One of my favorites.
But the film has nothing to do with Paris they were just from Paris .
Paris, Texas with Harry Dean Stanton and Natasha Kinsky is one of my all time favourite movies. Modern prints cut most of the opening sequence unfortunately. Someone has commented on Ry Cooders music of the same name- it was made for the movie
I also loved the movie and watched it three times. I'm a 70 year old Canadian living in Ontario Canada. My father was born and raised in Pennsylvania and l have always loved going to visit my American relatives.
Actually, nothing of the movie was filmed in Paris, Texas, or even fictionally played in Paris, Texas. It's just the title, but that is obviously very prominent, that much, that nearly every culturally interested European citizen has heard of that town and knows that it actually exists.
@@Dahrenhorst so true, the first thing that came up for me was that scene on some highway junction with the father and son sitting there with the magnificent guitar tunes of Ry Cooder. It felt like yesterday 😉
@@Dahrenhorst Exactly. What a pity it was not even mentioned.
@@tomasviane3844 This series is done by an US American. They are not known to be knowledgeable about European Arthouse Cinema. So no surprise here.
I used to live in Paris and my two best friends who grew up there said that is not the Gibraltar hotel. It has been renovated.
They are right it is a bank building I think it was The First National Bank Of Paris
So sweet that your daughter is exploring with you..
I actually liked that the "almost" ghost town of Paris, Texas is the way it is and it would be cool to turn the old buildings into a series of very cheap artist and artisan workshops. Have a regular festival of arts centred around the lovely square and the larger abandoned buildings around the square. Remove a lot of the properties to increase the natural environment and create an arts retreat within a new park. Invite architects and environmental teams to design innovative developments and sculpture trails throughout the residential areas. The lovely old houses turned into boutique hotels and bed and breakfasts.
Establish campsites in the new park, so you have a range of accommodation. Build an open air lido, and start a music scene.
If I had a billion dollars I'd be straight over with my cheque book.
Those are all great ideas.
@@JoeandNicsRoadTrip thanks, I was cheating a little bit, as I am a qualified architect (since 1981) so not especially difficult to come up with such a list. I notice you talk a lot about architecture, do you have any training, you seem to know your stuff.
@@roybrewer6583 No training, I just love structures like skyscrapers, older homes, bridges, that kind of thing. That’s why I always go into the downtowns of cities, because that’s usually where the most interesting buildings are, and the neighborhoods surrounding downtowns, because that’s usually where the older, more interesting homes are. I like older stuff most of the time as well, another reason I go to city centers. 😀
@@JoeandNicsRoadTrip cool, me too, I have been to a number of US major cities, but I just walk or bus and train everywhere. A nice hobby to have and cheap if you don't go into every museum.
That would be a good idea if Artists and Artisans had any desire to live there. I don’t think Paris, TX is where you go as a struggling artist. You would just be struggling
Gene Stallings National Championship football coach is a resident of Paris Texas.
💔I lived there for 5 months in 1967 and loved it. We were with JTF-2. The military was testing to see how fast and how low all kinds of aircraft could go and accurately spot ground targets!
Another great tour ! From reading the comments, the people are correct. A lot of smaller towns are dying out. God bless them.
Surprised that you were surprised at the condition of Paris. You'll find similar neglect in most small towns that are far away from the urban sprawl. The further out, the more pronounced the neglect.
The decline of the small town began decades ago with urbanization (jobs), corporate farming, Walmart, AutoZone, Home Depot... etc. etc. etc. In days past, you were "on the map" if the main line or a spur (railroad) blessed your community. In the "hay day" of the American "small town," we were largely an agrarian nation. I can't remember the exact number, but something like 80% of our population made their living from the land or servicing those who did so. That all changed as the nation's interstate system was unrolled across the landscape, corporate farming took root, federal government expanded and meddled. And it wasn't long before Paris (and other small towns like it)... were no longer "on the map" so-to-speak.
Nothing personal, but making critical observations about Paris... with McKinney, Texas as your base of reference... "offended" would be a big overstatement and "surprised" an understatement. I guess the relevant cliche would apply that... you were knowingly comparing apples to oranges.
My base of reference... we moved to Frisco when it had a smallish Ford dealership, a Brookshires, the Snap Jack (gas station), 1 school, 2 subdivisions and 3 brothels...
THANK YOU for such an eloquent defense of Paris and many small towns across America. 💙
What is living in India like?
Nature Supply Company: The year 1800- 50% of Americans farmed land. In 1945- Americans grew nearly 50% of their food in their own backyard gardens. In 2020, just 1/10 of one-percent grew their food in their own backyard. 😳🤨
The federal interstate system was meant to be a bypass. So the interstate bypassed a town too far from the center, then eventually it's over.
Since u r locally visited/lived in so many cities, I was wondering if buying a rental home as a landlord in Sherman is a good idea/investment since the news said TI or tech co. invest heavily in Sherman build semiconductor fabs. Will Sherman become the next Frisco/McKinney? If it brings tons of tech jobs, it sounds good to invest R.E. there, pls share your (local) inside since I've never visited TX. I just plan to move to TX for R.E. to invest and start a family and have a hard time deciding which city to invest in for both rental or own use - probably best to build a duplex to a 4-plex, live in one then rent out the other units to good workers who have good paying (tech) jobs - pick from the cities DFW, Houston, S.A, Austin, nearby metro-cities or future boom cities: Plano/Frisco/McKinney, Sherman, etc, just any TX city provides future job growth. I saw many decaying TX rural cities, it's so quiet, hardly can see any people walk on the street (and how can business flourish?), it's boring and saddens viewers or go-getter R.E. investors/businesses go invest in TX like Elon Musk/etc. I mean I'm looking for a future job boom city with vital energy and still affordable or lo price enough so the return on investment makes sense. Thank everyone for your local valuable insights that outsiders never visited and lived there thus never know (though many deals look attractive only on paper) the good/bad/ugly spot of a local city. I see many Texians are very helpful and friendly, thank you in advance:)!
WOW that was sad seeing the town like that. Was nice seeing a father & daughter go exploring. Thanks for the videos and I am slowly watching your road trip to all the states
Thank you for the kind words. :)
@@JoeandNicsRoadTrip can you do Longview Texas
First off there are 36000 people. The building that has a small fence has only been closed for 10 years maybe. Also your path to down town was through the worst part of town. The places you showed where they are supposed to demolish, all burned down around 8 years ago.
Paris used to be a dry town. It went wet around 10 years ago.
The newest parts are north and east side of town. The reason a lot of the town which you driven through is in such bad shape is because of a tornado back in the early 80's. You have managed to miss all the nicest parts of town.
Per 2020 US Census, Paris population is 24,900. I specifically went to downtown Paris, expecting to see the vibrant downtown that was advertised. It was not. I don’t visit suburban type areas in my videos. They look the same everywhere, and are uninteresting to RUclips viewers. I don’t “manage” to miss anyplace. In my videos I go to these specific areas of cities - downtown and the areas immediately surrounding downtown. For most cities, that is it’s heart and pulse (as it should be) and is where the interesting architecture (old buildings and homes) is located.
@@JoeandNicsRoadTrip down town is crap. Everything is on the north east side of town. But you seriously went through the worst part of town and the census is not correct unless those extra 10000 moved to the country outside of town.
@@jeneanezant all the data I can find agrees with Lord Spoda's figures, even going back to 2010 the city's population was no more than 25,200.
@@jeneanezant Fix your city if your downtown is so "crap". Nobody wants to see the walmart.
WENT WET OVER 20 YEARS AGO..BUT OUR LEADERSHIP IS THE POOREST IN MY DAYS OF WATCHING CITY HALL, AND WE ARE SCARED TO ATTACK OWNERS LIKE THAT OF THE BELFORD APTS. THAT FOLKS FIRST SEE.
I Love Paris Texas my Family Lives there I Come there often ❤️
Not mentioning the classic Wim Wenders' movie 'Paris, Texas' is like visiting Graceland without even mentioning that Elvis lived there.
On Sunday in most small towns in the rural areas, people attend Church and then they either go home to eat, or go to a restaurant. You will not see traffic out until later in the day and it will be reduced even then on Sunday. Sunday for many is considered a day of rest.
I saw gas stations CLOSED on Sundays. They had to call over so we could get some gas. That wasn't here and it was in the 90s.
This has reminded me to dig out my DVD “ Paris Texas” a brilliant movie from 1984. A great cast featuring Harry Dean Stanton, Dean Stockwell and Nastassja Kinski. It was filmed in various Texas locations, unfortunately none of them in Paris Texas.
I'm surprised this whole comment section isn't about the movie... As a European, this is the only reason I know this place.
@@tomasviane3844 Same thing. Hadn't heard about this town before I saw the movie. The film is one of the best films I think humankind has ever made. Strongly recommend (not to you as you obviously have seen it :).
Probably even Arizona?
Thanks for the tour of Paris... it exhibits the same theme we see in so many other "smaller" towns in rural America. People leaving for greener pastures leaving the rural beauty to slowly decay and disappear. This is so sad but it is still interesting to see these towns as they try to survive. An antique hunter of old signs would have a field day touring these towns. Thanks LS for another interesting tour!
Yeah, like that CocaCola sign that LS was surprised nobody stole already!
The city is growing in leaps and bounds. This a cherry picking of the worst possible area's
I see how people minds are changing towards modernisation and urbanization. Your way of expression is the actual fact of these many viewers. Your doing good job 👍🏻 🎉 keep it up. Support from India 😊
The cemetery is Beautiful and is still active.
I live 3 blocks away from it. Lot's of War hero's and People that lost their lives fighting for our country.
Walking through there it is absolutely beautiful !
I love small downtowns like that. Still interesting even though it is in disrepair. The town where I grew up, Gainesville GA has a square. Much better shape than Paris, and it's growing fast right now.
I lived in Wichita Falls over 20 years ago and I go back there occasionally. I have to say that this video reminds me a lot of downtown Wichita Falls.
You should see the square now, all of those huge trees around the fountain are strung from top to bottom with White lights and is so pretty.
Christmas time is Amazing here.
The square is absolutely beautiful with Santa's workshop, Raindeer , sleigh and One Giant tree they put up with beautiful decorations and lights.
All the store windows are decorated with Christmas scenery and lights, there is a huge parade and games and stay open late.
We still have Christmas carolers they go from house to house.
We do have a whole bunch of historical houses .
If you would have went on the Loop you would have found tons of restaurants and some stores there open.
tons? Does that mean like two?
@@ADG-pl7ur , Only a few at the downtown Square but out on the Loop yes ...we have a ton of restaurants 👍
@@ADG-pl7ur I know of 6 high quality restaurants around the square
It is sad to see our smaller towns drying up and dying in front of our own eyes.
Not one single cat, dog, or rooster sighting. Oh well, maybe next time. What a beautiful town square, such nice business buildings. The " Sky Cheif " painted on the wall was classic, haven't seen one that well preserved in a while. How nice it probably was in that town when it was painted, probably a vibrant small town. All those abandoned buildings bustling with businesses, sad to see that part of America gone. You can't just ride by an old theater and not check it out. You just can't. Joe. Dude. Bro. I remember when I could see across the street and read a small sign in a door. Our children sure make us appreciate what is was like to be young. They are our greatest blessing and you are blessed Joe. Thanks guys, much love as always.
I was so pleased to see your daughter. Great voices must be hereditary and she is pretty too. I was a little disappointed this Paris was so run down however I would much prefer this one as the one in France. That Paris is going through alot of upheaval. I pray this Paris flourishes. Thank again for a very informative video.i have noticed you don't give many stats on the cities anymore which I enjoyed. No matter I will continue on our wonderful trip together.
Enjoyable! Many years ago, an acquaintance (he inspected commercial fire sprinkler systems) told me of the JC Penney store in Paris. Apparently Penneys leased the store space. While it was one store, the building had two separate owners. One owner had one side of the store, the second owner owned the other side so there were two separate sprinkler systems. Who knows, maybe that old Penney store was one of the burned-out stores in your video!
My grandfather helped remodel the fountain about 12 years ago give or take
At the 16.03 minute mark is the best Mexican restaurant its the white building with a pickup in front. It has a 4.9 stars rating. It's called tacos queretaro. We're from the Dallas area and did a walking tour also. We will definitely be stopping at that restaurant and probably try others as well.
My mother was born in Roxton, Texas, about 12 miles southwest of Paris. She attended Paris Junior College in the early 40's, before she migrated to California. She is now buried in a Roxton cemetery. During one visit to Paris and Roxton in 2015, I was shocked at the condition of so many houses and buildings, the disrepair which occurred between 2012 (the funeral) and 2015. One business woman told us it was due to all of the drugs and drug culture of so many of the younger people now. She said "if you're looking to buy a house, they have some really inexpensive ones for sale." I was shocked, as you are, that a house in total disrepair is next to a well-kept house. I agree the population has been aging for many, many years and the younger people are going to the cities or larger suburbs for jobs. In Roxton, the decline really started after the railroad stopped going there, as I was told by a relative who still lived there in 2012. They have since passed away, too. In my opinion, the cities don't have the money/tax base to enforce laws for improvement. Even if they did, who is going to buy things? I live in Arlington, Texas now and love it!
Last time I was in Paris Tx. picking up a load of Campbell Soup at a factory there about 20 years ago it was a very nice busy city...
I love that tranquility, without so much noise and conflicting and crazy people driving through the streets full of traffic. If this is how quiet Paris TX is, I want to move to that calm. I thought it was in the center of Atlanta, apparently all cities, no matter how large and important they are, have some area in decline, so I don't think Paris Tx is the only city that has abandoned areas.
Detroit is kind of like this. You see all kinds of houses in neighborhood after neighborhood just falling apart at the seams and then you travel a couple of miles down the road and you see big, beautiful gorgeous, well maintained houses all over the place.
As I was searching your videos I found this with your daughter, her voice sounds so much like her mother, for a moment I thought it was your wifey....😅 Till you stated she's your daughter .. nice videos Joe
My mothers father born not in Paris but right outside in 1874. First child born in Ida Bell, Okla. Thank y'all so much.
We had a little farm east of Bogota (about twenty miles away from Paris) and there used to be a lot of cotton to be picked towards Paris. My first day of school was in 1949 or 1950. After school a lot of kids took the school bus that would drop them off in the fields to finish the day picking cotton. At dark everyone would ride home in the old trucks or the vehicles some families had. After school my first day, I got on the wrong bus and was totally afraid and lost. Before getting lost I was already thinking doom was befalling me, as two twin redheaded girls in my room had been crying for their mother all day. The school bus driver finally came back and took me back to Bogota and the principal drove me out to where the parents were working. Many kids did work after school. We worked full days on Saturday and on Saturday evening we got our weeks pay, which was a five cent cola or a single dip of ice cream. We all were the same, so okay with it. There weren't many cars back then as production stopped after 1941 and only vehicles for world war 2 were manufactured. In late 1945 they started making cars again but no one had any money. Also it was still hard to obtain batteries and etc.
Lived there for 2 years while going to the jewelry program at PJC. Nice little town. I actually miss it there and would move back in a second.
Went to Paris College in the late 70’s. My wife and I had been there for a couple weeks when she said,”Let’s go buy some beer”. We were not big drinkers so we’re very surprised to discover that Paris was “dry”. We really enjoyed Paris and when asked where I learned my trade I always respond…Paris! The Texas part can always wait a bit.
It is disappointing to see how things are going now. The heartland of our country is in decline. When I was there it was vibrant and growing.
Thanks for your videos.
My Dad was born in Paris TX in 1937..only been there twice..
i live in Paris, and the city government is corrupt, and lots of under table handouts, there are prosecutions in process, and hopefully we can get Pais back to its hay days. FYI, the first grave in Evergreen cemetery is from 1834
Haven't been there in 2 decades at least, but visited my grandparents at least once a year when I was a kid. Used to walk 14 blocks or so to the library, stop in that comic shop...sad nostalgia.
I really enjoyed the input from your daughter.
I've never been there, but I'm glad that your daughter got to travel with you and experience a lot of things 😮🥰🤩
I came to Texas 4 years ago but got very sick...now I am looking for properties...I love those old buildings...Thanks for posting this!
One reason for the decline of Paris Texas is the lack of an interstate serving this town almost all growing towns are located on or near an interstate highway
Yes. I understand Paris used to be quite a railroad hub. Semis and interstates killed it.
@@fredogden936 There wasn't much going on in Paris when the interstate came thru from Texarkana to DFW.
@@billwilson3609 Yes, I got off the subject. To be clear, Hochatown is a happening place. A lot of Texas Parisians go to Hochatown 'cause there's not much going on in Paris.
I used to tavel through Paris every three weeks with my job back in the late 70's. Sad to see this, but hopefully there is still enough people to bring it back.
I've noticed that unless a house iscompletely original which contractors like then houses are rehabbed until new owners take over, this raises the cost and some communities do not allow flippers to price out people who pay taxes.
You would have seen more downtown action on a Saturday. They have three antique stores, and there is a DVD-book store on West Bonham Street.
Sunday, 1PM, 100+F = Everyone at home under the AC!
I see fountains everywhere with clear water, I see efforts at building integrity, and I do NOT see trash all over the place. What's not to like? Greetings from Canada (Tulsa, grade six in 1961) Wichita, 1962. !!
I submit that most of those houses were built in the early 1900s, rather than the 1950s, as you stated.
One of the major problems with the decay of older communities is our country uses stick framing in wood to build houses. Those houses unless their constantly maintained and well maintained deteriorate because the moist climate that they're built in. Anywhere you go where the houses are built of masonry or we're on Good Foundations they will last and they're worth maintaining and worth living in. No young couple wants to invest in a home that is going to rot away. So the owners are left wondering what to do with it and there they sit. No one wants to put in new windows or redo a roof or try to take care of termite damage.
Took the hwy through Paris on my way to Dallas about 15 years ago, and could sense that there was no big money in the area. And the boarded-up buildings don't have much, if any, graffitti. In a way it might be peaceful living there.
Nothing peaceful about Paris.
Peaceful and boring
@@Angela-nk8gk hi! Do you live there? We would like to move here. With all due respect , is this town a safe place to live?
@@bram5274 I do live here although I live in the rural part of the county. I have all of my 50+ years. Yes, it is a nice safe place to live providing you know the neighborhoods. There are some not so nice areas of town but by enlarge mostly decent quiet neighborhoods. Contrary to the impression given by this video, we actually DO have a bustling downtown with several restaurants and shops AND with much support from our local chamber, the growth downtown and out around "the loop" continues. We are just down to earth, genuinely nice folks.
The Eiffel Tower attracted my interest.
The Red River Valley Veterans Memorial made me glad I made the trip.
beatiful daughter.
Love your videos but one thing I notice I never see many people in any of these towns. I’m hooked on your sharing with us
Make sure you check out the Statue Of Liberty replica Orlando, Florida when you swing by next time.
Of course i will!
On the subject of replicas, check out the leaning tower of Niles if you're ever in the Chicago area. It's no destination mind you, but worth seeing if you're in the area.
We take pics there! Where it says Paris
Many Oklahomans go to Paris to shop & Hospital care. Paris in Texas, but it's a regional community! Many memories there!
I can imagine Charlton Heston stumbling across the decayed ruins of the Eifel Tower (Paris, Texas) a few thousand years into the future."You maniacs! You blew it up! Damn you!"
The Eiffel Tower in Romania from Slobozia is part of the Hermes Holiday Park project, where there is also a copy of the Dallas farm. The actor Larry Hagman alias J.R himself visited the farm. So the one in Texas is 3rd. The tower is 492 feet in height
congratulations! your videos show an America different from the postcards, I personally love your approach,
Sir you have a sweet Daughter.thank you for your traveling ,an channel as well,stay safe an God bless
They had a tornado in 82 also. That was pretty destructive
100f - 38C is a tad hot! Surprised you lasted as long out -as a Brit I'd be looking for the aircon! 😃👍
I remember when I was young someone told me that "All thing's that live will some day die". I though it only meant people, this town was alive and now it's not doing so well. Like Jolly John said "it's sad".
I have Ben to Paris Tx. once only. I attended a hearing in that courthouse. Lol, no it wasn't for me,but for someone I knew. That fire took a big toll on that downtown , wow
My thoughts are, business moved out when the loop highway was built avoiding downtown Then add WalMart,dollar stores and franchise gas stations, destroyed small business
That's a pretty good analysis.
My hometown,living in Tucson now I love Paris ❤️
I still have 4 sisters in Paris and a bunch of Cousins nieces and Nephews
I can remember Oaris as a busy alive town sad to see its indecline but so is my hometown too
It's hard to imagine that such shocking decay would be so close to the fountain which looks rather nice. Once again, a great place to ride a bicycle. 🚴♂️👍🤔
So i have lived in Paris for over 30 years and u sure went a long way around to get to the square
I only visit city downtowns on this channel.
So nice that you are taking your daughter along. Jesus with cowboys is a definite must see!
I enjoy your videos. If you ever wonder about comments or lack thereof ... seems RUclips stops working when it feels like it. ... it took 2 posts to get this on comments ... seeing it occur more regularly ... (yep ... for the geek squads ... all app versions, memory, cash/data, speed ... yadda yadda ... checked) ...
Looks like a big movie set doesn't it.... green day, good taste your daughter got, me fella liked then when younger, the dookie album 👌 1994 was it..
Could it be that your outlook is in a state of decay? In your defense, i guess if you drive by the square on a Sunday at 1pm when everything is closed it may look desolate. Your curiosity obviosuly brought you here, and thats commendable. Most of those store fronts are over a 100 years old and are full of local business with local patrons. Come back on a Saturday evening and you'll see all the locals sharing meals, having drinks, playing music and smoking cigars and enjoying each other company all provided by those local busniess owners and artists. If you do, i bet you make some friends. That's what makes Paris, Tx awesome. THE PEOPLE.
There are so many towns in Texas that have a square like that.
I remember the 1960's early 70's everything was closed except hospital and police. On Sundays. Everyone stayed home after church to spend time with the family. We always went to my mom's parents home for sun lunch. I miss those days.
Heard there were Big Foot sightings near here! This is sad looking. I hope things change for Paris. Living in Dallas. Filling up like crazy. People are moving north to Anna and such. Maybe they will expand. 👍🙏🖖✨😁
When you were driving by those few well-maintained houses I was thinking that, seeing the ramp that replaced the stairs on one of them, they're probably owned by an aging population. Just as I was thinking this, your daughter verbalized, albeit a lot more eloquently than I could ever say it, the same idea. She sounds very smart.
Thank you, Joyce. Yes, she's very smart.
As a Paris native the place isn’t all that to look at. It does have its beauties but there’s a lot of rot. I love a minute away from the square where y’all were and the further east you go the better the town gets.
There are a few towns around here that pull up shop on Sunday
I live in the Paris area and the reason Paris is falling apart is the taxes are very very high and keep on going up each year .
The square usually has cars everywhere