Pictured is Barker Common in the village of Fredonia.

“We are living in a world in which nobody is free, in which hardly anybody is secure, in which it is almost impossible to be honest and remain alive.” – George Orwell (The Road to Wigan Pier-1936)

The autumn leaves crunch beneath my feet and the massive branches from which they hung just a month ago creak and moan as I walk into Barker Commons Park in the historic Village of Fredonia, located in Chautauqua County. Looking around at the massive golden water fountains, and serene and lonely walkways filled with park benches, I am standing in the central core of Fredonia, surrounded by its civic buildings, impressive churches, various commercial businesses, and quaint restaurants.

Fredonia is a small college town, with a population of approximately 9,871 as of the 2020 U.S. Census, a number that has dwindled from the 2010 U.S. Census count of 11,230. The resident population count includes all people, citizens and non-citizens, university students, and non-students, who are living in the area for the majority of the year.

The enrollment numbers of students attending the State University of New York at Fredonia fell from 5,700 in 2010 to approximately 3,200 in 2022. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic that began in 2020 greatly impacted statistics for the community’s primary employers as well as the university.

SUNY Fredonia is a public, four-year higher education institution that is a major player in the economy of Western New York’s Southern Tier. The university, which employed nearly 2,000 employees in 2015, generated $140 million in revenue for the area, according to a report compiled by the Office of Engagement and Economic Development, a state agency that develops a baseline of key economic impact indicators, A report conducted by the regional research center UB Regional Institute showed that students spent an off-campus total of $47.7 million at local Fredonia businesses on things such as rental housing, food, gasoline, car repairs, books, household supplies, entertainment, and electronics.

The institute’s report also revealed that the amount of money invested into the area by outside visitors of the campus for various reasons was $4.39 million. Employment-wise the Fredonia-Dunkirk area plays an integral part in maintaining economic stability for the residents of the region. In addition to the university, the other nine employers that made the top 10 employers mentioned in the report were Refresco, Brooks Memorial Hospital, Wells Enterprises, Dunkirk City School System, Chautauqua Nursing & Rehabilitation Center, Nestle Purina, Tops Friendly Markets, Walmart Supercenter, and BOCES.

Barack Obama was still POTUS in 2015, the unemployment rate was low, gasoline was at the lowest annual average price per gallon cost since 2009, and $50 still bought a person at least a bag full of groceries.

With these statistical thoughts swirling inside of my brain, I sit down for a minute on one of the worn park benches. The few other humans who have begun appearing are clearly each on their definitive missions. Heads down, shoulders slouched, no one greets anyone else with a “Hello,” or “Nice day!” any longer. Even the dogs being walked seem to want to squat quickly and then get back to their homes.

Strange. When I was younger, a person went to the “big city” when they wanted to live an independent life, free of constraint and neighbors’ haughty judgment. If you felt homesick from the steely coldness of an urban lifestyle, you always knew that a visit back to your small hometown would include warm ‘welcome homes’ from cheery shopkeepers and sincere pats on the back from the waitresses at the village’s local restaurants that made you feel like your cup was always half-full, not half-empty.

Now it is the year 2023. So much has changed. Smiles have been erased. The warm and happy, small-town faces are all pale strangers now. Our world is currently in chaos. Whether the discussions one has turn to war, the economy, race, gender, gun control, or even personal interactions, few have much good to say about the state of our society today. Most famous for his novel 1984, author George Orwell was a self-described socialist who believed in an active government but understood the dangers of excessive official power. The Road to Wigan Pier (1936) is Orwell’s account of the class system in Greater Manchester, England just before World War II, where numerous citizens experienced harsh working conditions, low wages, and meager governmental support.

While the title of the novel ironically evokes visions of a pleasant seaside village, much like how Fredonia is touted as being “3 minutes away from gorgeous Lake Erie”, in actuality Wigan was an inland area where mining was the major industry, conditions were bleak, and housing for the miners even bleaker. The population in that town at the time was approximately 85,000. Much larger than Fredonia’s, but its story is still eerily relatable. No one residing in Wigan felt as if they were free, or secure due to increased poverty levels and a state of totalitarianism in which the government wanted to control every aspect of the residents’ lives. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the average age in Fredonia is 36.3 years. The average number of people per household is 2.2. Sixteen percent of the population(1,579 out of 9,871 residents) lives below the poverty line, a number that is higher than the national average of 12.6%. The largest demographic living in poverty are males 18-24, followed by females 18-24 and then females 45-54. Demographic shifts are reshaping America and rural areas are not at the leading edge of racial and ethnic change in the same way that urban developments are. In terms of diversity, 79.25 of Fredonia’s population is White, 9% is Hispanic, 4.78% is Black, 3.5% is Multiracial, and 2.8% is Asian. Fifty-one percent identify as male, and forty-nine percent identify as female. Rural areas may also lack diversity in religion, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, socioeconomic status, physical ability, or other socially significant identifiers. This can mean that many diverse residents may be relatively invisible

or go unnoticed, often to avoid drawing attention to themselves as a defense to avoid rejection by the majority.

Traditionally, small towns have been established to support surrounding agricultural production, forestry operations, and local mining operations, and to facilitate trading. Extremely critical in the establishment of this country, small towns gave weary travelers of all kinds a place to set roots and create traditions that were authentic and honest. They were places to work hard and raise children, without concern for one’s safety. They helped people strive toward the American Dream.

The Village of Fredonia was incorporated in 1829. The area’s original name was Canadaway (from the Seneca word Ganadawao, meaning “among the hemlocks”). The name “Fredonia” was coined by physician and university lecturer Samuel Latham Mitchill, coupling the English word “freedom” with a Latin ending. The Fredonia Gas Light and Water Works company was incorporated in 1857 to collect natural or hydrogen gas, and supply the village with the same, and also with pure and wholesome water. What followed was the development of springs of pure cold water in a volume sufficient to supply the citizens of Fredonia three times over.

Today, some of the very same water mains being used in the village are well over 125 years old. Approximately 75% of these mains that deliver water to homes, businesses, and the SUNY Fredonia campus are all made of cast iron and were installed in the 1940s. What was once cutting-edge technology and sustainable infrastructures are now aging systems that consistently break down and corrupt the village drinking supply. There is an estimated 5 feet of sediment sitting on the bottom, which is the result of years of buildup.

Projects scheduled to dredge the reservoir in 1965, 1972, 1999, and 2001 were never followed through with. The estimated cost for total repair to the Fredonia water system is approximately $30,000,000. What is the cost of running the village government for a year? $11,000,000. The principle idea of having access to clean water, which the first Fredonian settlers strived for to create a healthy community, has not been abided by the village’s current administration.

We are living in a time when small towns are facing a crisis. With energy, gas, and grocery prices skyrocketing, many find it difficult to maintain an average way of life. Residents are facing economic decline, overwhelming drug addiction, depression, despair, and economists telling them to pull up their roots, leave their homes, and go elsewhere in search of a better way of living. The small-town optimism that once pervaded from household to household has gradually hidden itself within locked doors and behind closed curtains. Lack of support from both national and local government officials has led to a feeling of fear and insecurity. Freedom has somehow become a luxury for today’s average small-town residents, and it shows on the faces of both the young and the old. Addressing these various issues in a 2017 article for The Atlantic, author Arthur E. Morgan writes: “The social good of such places is being dissolved, diluted, and submerged by

modern technology, commercialism, mass production, propaganda, and centralized government. The roots of civilization are elemental traits–good will, neighborliness, fair play, courage, tolerance, open-minded inquiry, and patience. To erode small-town culture is to erode the culture of our nation.”

As I sit pondering Morgan’s piece, local history, and the statistics that are scribbled down in my journal, I can’t help but wonder what other residents of Fredonia are feeling about a town that continues to squander its resources. The wind is picking up speed and it has gotten brisk. I pull up my jacket collar as a meek, yet lyrical voice from the other end of the bench inquires, “Are you a writer, young man?”

“I used to keep a journal just like that when I used to write. Poetry mostly.” Her hair is a luxurious gray, and her eyes are ice blue. Her aubergine, woolen coat is slightly worn, but I can tell that it had been purchased in a high-end store. She is clutching a coffee cup in both hands that has an Upper Crust logo on it, a local coffee and sandwich shop. “I am,” I reply, and our impromptu interview begins. She prefers that I refer to her in this piece with her first name only, Louise.

Jeffrey: Are you a resident of Fredonia, Louise?

Louise: Oh yes, for the majority of my years. I moved here from Michigan to be with the love of my life. He passed away in 2021. Folks might argue over their eyeteeth that Covid wasn’t real, but it was real to me. We were together for 57 years, and then he was gone. Lungs closed up and there wasn’t even clean, decent water available due to a water main break on Lake Shore–the worst day of my life.

Jeffrey: I’m so very sorry, Louise. That is just horrifying.

Louise: Well, life has a whole lot of both happy and horrifying, young man. Or else writers wouldn’t have anything to write about! I was very blessed. Three children and a wonderful home. My husband worked at the White Inn for many years, and I was a salesgirl at Sidey’s. We didn’t have a lot, but we always had enough. All our kids graduated from the university and then moved off to live their own lives. I have seen so many people leave Fredonia over the years, for a variety of reasons. Mostly to take available jobs elsewhere.

Jeffrey: Have you considered moving away, Louise, maybe to be closer to your children?

Louise: Oh never, dear! I’ve always believed that you never leave the place that has given you so much and taken so much away. I love my daily routine. Every corner and every street reminds me of the time I spent with my husband here. How we enjoyed seeing the college kids arrive each year. The ups and the downs. Luck and fashion have a way of always coming back around again. So always hold fast to your hopes AND your jeans! (she chuckles)

We hug each other heartily as I thank her for her time, and I walk home alone, smiling. Perhaps life is not as bleak as it is reported to be after all.

Jeffrey Gardner is a returning adult education student and hopes to become a constructive contributor to the local writing community after graduation.