Lonely heartland

Wikipedia reports the following facts about the town of St. Charles, Virginia:

"St. Charles is located at 36°48′14″N 83°3′26″W / 36.80389°N 83.05722°W / 36.80389; -83.05722 (36.803858, -83.057208).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 0.2 square miles (0.4 km²), all of it land. [...]

As of the census of 2000, there were 159 people, 61 households, and 43 families residing in the town. The population density was 962.3 people per square mile (361.1/km²). There were 72 housing units at an average density of 435.8/sq mi (163.5/km²).

The racial makeup of the town was 99.37% White and 0.63% Asian."

On top of this, an extended use of Oxycontin is reported, the heroin surrogate also known as Hillbilly Heroin.


Swedish photographer Hanna Modigh spent two months in St Charles and photographed the lives inhabiting this bitter corner of rural America. Her work Hillbilly Heroin Honey adds indeed a touch of sweetness to their stories and their faces, bathing almost everything and everybody in a soft and gentle light in which the eyes of those people still shine, and it feels like they can still smile, and maybe they can still love.


All images taken from Hillbilly Heroin Honey © Hanna Modigh