Wayne Hitt and the golden years of the Camera Center
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Bill Poteat
Editor Emeritus
From the time its doors swung open in 1961 until it relocated to Burkemont Avenue in 1990, the Camera Center was a staple of downtown Morganton.
Even more of a staple was the Camera Center’s owner, Wayne Weaver Hitt – businessman, photographer, teacher, civic leader, friend, and mentor to many aspiring photographers.
Wayne died on July 18, and at his funeral just over a week later, those attending were presented with a “playbill” as the program – a playbill which proclaimed, “Wayne Weaver Hitt: A Class Act.”
A story published in The News Herald soon after the opening of the store factually stated, “There are cameras for every amateur and professional need with all accessories and supplies.”
A couple of Wayne’s friends – longtime business partner Phillip Burgess and fellow history museum docent Jane Tate – dropped by The Paper’s offices last week to talk about Wayne and his legacy.
“In order to work with Wayne, you had to appreciate his wit and be able to answer in kind,” said Phillip, who began clerking in the Camera Center after his 1974 graduation from Freedom High.
By 1978, Phillip was managing the newly installed development lab at the Camera Center, and he and Wayne later became partners, with Phillip building the new store on Burkemont Avenue.
“Wayne had a very dry sense of humor,” Phillip said, “and he absolutely loved stage shows. He loved to go to New York and take in Broadway productions and he loved to visit London’s theater district.”
The Camera Center also served, Phillip said, as “a wonderful safe place for young men who were interested in photography. It was a downtown hangout for aspiring photographers like John Payne.”
In a column in The News Herald, published in 2000, Dr. Mark Sanderford, who grew up in Morganton, reflected on those years:
“I was in high school during the early years, when the Camera Center was on Sterling Street. Right off the town square. It became, for some of us, a place to meet, discuss and argue about photography, and show our work to Wayne and our friends.
“We learned to develop film, make prints, experiment with developers and photographic techniques. From the comments of our friends, and the trenchant comments of Wayne, we learned the craft – a sort of Wayne Hitt School of Photography.”
In addition to being a mentor to young photographers, Wayne was also, Phillip recalled, a shrewd businessman who made the Camera Center quite profitable. The store was hampered, however, by the lack of parking in downtown Morganton and the difficulty large trucks faced when attempting to make deliveries.
“Parking was the primary reason for the move out to the new store on Burkemont Avenue,” Phillip remembered. “That, and the fact that we were able to have a drive-thru window there.”
The new store opened in 1990.
For a time, the new location was even more profitable than the downtown site had been, but soon dramatic waves of change were sweeping across the photographic industry.
More rapidly than anyone might have imagined, digital replaced film, making film and darkroom equipment and supplies nearly obsolete. In addition, drug stores and supermarkets started offering discount printing of photos, at prices the Camera Center simply could not match.
Faced with a declining customer base and an ever-thinner profit margin, Wayne and Phillip decided to close the store in the late autumn of 2000. An era in Morganton had ended.
Only 65 years old, Wayne began crafting a new identity as a tireless volunteer and servant to the community.
One of his passions was the History Museum of Burke County where he served as a docent for many years, delighting visitors with his encyclopedic knowledge of the building and history of Lake James.
“His family had one of the first houses on the lake,” said Jane, “and he loved to share that history. The museum was a godsend to him. It gave him a place to go where he felt needed and wanted and appreciated.”
“Wayne,” Jane continued, “was truly a gentleman. He was truly generous with his time and his talents. He was a wealth of information about the county’s history and he was happy to share that information.”
Wayne also had a soft spot in his heart for South Mountain Children’s Home, located near his beloved Lake James, and he supported it financially and through volunteer efforts.
The final hymn at Wayne’s funeral was the old Baptist classic, “Blessed Be The Tie That Binds.” An appropriate choice, for Wayne was truly one of the ties that helped bind this community together for many years.
And he is indeed a tie that will be missed.
Bill Poteat is editor emeritus. He may be reached at 828-445-8595 or bill@thepaper.media.
