From the Holler!

I’ve done it. This is the name I will give my small updates, or as Andy Hall puts it, “Small items that don’t warrant full posts of their own.” Holler is an Appalachian term for a small valley in the mountains. This fits in nicely with my Appalachian background as well as my passion for Appalachian

Connecting Communities through Seeds

AppalachianHistory.net recently featured a post from a good friend of mine, Jonathan Winskie. For those of you unaware, Joanthan is the red headed menace on the About Me page. His post focuses on heirloom seeds and their ability to forge “metaphoric ‘bridges’” by serving as “vessels to facilitate deep and powerful connections between community members,

Headed Back to the ASA

About two months ago, Jonathan Winskie and I began planning a session for the 37th annual Appalachian Studies Association (ASA) Conference.  We decided to go with the format of three presenters and one commentator. Unable to find a third presenter locally, Jonathan put out a call on H-Net and various other networking sites. He received

Designing An Appalachian Film Class Update

As previously noted, this semester I am creating a class that analyzes Appalachia’s role in film. This has been quite an interesting process which has brought me much joy. I finished compiling the sixteen week schedule with each week focusing on a theme and historical context. Each week’s film will also have corresponding readings from

Appalachia and the War on Poverty

I thought some of you might find this video to be interesting. Finding quality material about Appalachian History on the internet can often be like stumbling around in the dark. Sometimes, you find a little light. I think this video is wonderfully done. It helps to capture aspects of poverty in Appalachia during the “Age

The Countdown to the 36th ASA

This time Friday I will be at the 36th annual Appalachian Studies Association Conference. I cannot begin to explain the excitement my cohorts and I are experiencing. Several months of scholarship paid dividends as numerous University of North Georgia students begin their trek towards Boone, N.C. on March 22nd. I have to say that I

Originally posted on Archives of Appalachia at East Tennessee State University:
In 1873, Congress established the Committee on War Claims. This committee expanded on the former Committee on Revolutionary Claims to include “claims arising from any war in which the United States has been engaged.” The Committee on War Claims provided an avenue for individuals…

Looks Like Appalachia is Getting “Buckwild”

Recently MTV released it’s new series “Buckwild.” With the era of Jersey Shore coming to a close, MTV execs. sought out a new money maker. Obviously they needed a show that portrayed “ignorant,” “illiterate” people acting wild. I guess they found it.

Bill O’Reilly’s Take on Appalachia

UPDATE: Food for thought. I wonder if certain sections of Europe have a view of the mountain inhabitants of the Carpathians that mirror many American views of Appalachia.  Anyone care to comment? —————————————————————————————————————————————————————– Surely some of you have some thoughts on this.

Appalachia in Film Class: Creating A Movie List

I am currently working on compiling a Filmography for the class I am creating for my Appalachian Studies Professor. For future reference, I am going to start referring to this class as Appalachia in Film. This likely will be the name of the class I choose but I digress. J.W. Williamson already composed a wonderful