We remember the one and only Dolly Parton. 

Dolly used her musical success to help others. She started the Imagination Library, a free book program for children that included some of her favorites, like the Little Engine that Could. 

And, Dolly’s kindness touched people from all walks of life.  

Today, we’re honoring Dolly Parton, Inside Appalachia.

In This Episode:

Since her estate made the announcement of her passing on Aug. 25, grieving fans have written tributes and fond remembrances. Mountain Stage host and fellow country music star Kathy Mattea, who has spent a little time with Dolly, shared a few memories with Host Mason Adams. 

Blue Ridge Public Radio’s Katie Myers lives in east Tennessee. And she was in Sevier County, Tennessee on assignment the day it was announced Dolly had died. While in the area, Myers visited Dolly’s statue in Sevierville and brought us this story.

Dolly Parton recorded more than 1,000 songs. But — crucially — she was also a song writer, who wrote more than 3,000 songs, including tracks that were recorded by many, many others. 

Lydia Hamessley is a professor of music at Hamilton College, in New York, and the author of Unlikely Angel: The Songs of Dolly Parton. She spent nearly a decade researching Dolly’s music catalog. 

Associate Producer Abby Neff talked with Hamessley. 

For all of her musical success, a lot of people have spent the time since her death talking about her community work. A huge part of that, was Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, an early childhood literacy program she started in 1995. The program mails free, high-quality books to children from birth to age five, no matter their family’s income.

In 2022, Dolly visited West Virginia, to celebrate the moment when all 55 of the state’s counties became part of the Imagination Library. 

WVPB's then Executive Producer Suzanne Higgins met Dolly at the Clay Center in Charleston and spoke with her about the origins of the program and why it was so dear to her.  

Dolly also meant a lot to educator, author and poet Willie Carver Jr. from east Kentucky. He wrote a piece for MSNOW memorializing her life and death.

Producer Bill Lynch spoke with Carver about the loss of Dolly Parton. 

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Our theme music is by Matt Jackfert. Other music this week was provided by Blue Dot Sessions, Mountain Stage with a recorded live performance by Kathy Mattea. Additional music from Ron Mullennex and Dolly Parton.  

Bill Lynch is our producer. Abby Neff is our associate producer. Our executive producer is Eric Douglas. Irina Zhorov is our editor. Our audio mixer is Patrick Stephens.  

You can send us an email: [email protected].

You can find us on Instagram, Threads or here on Facebook.

Inside Appalachia is a production of West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

We reflect on Dolly Parton’s passing and her legacy in the region.

Also, the Adaptive Climbers Festival at Kentucky’s Red River Gorge feels like home for climbers with disabilities from around the world. 

And, a new book spotlights Appalachian plants and encourages readers to get in touch with nature.  

You'll hear these stories and more this week, Inside Appalachia.

In This Episode:

Appalachia, and the entire world, really, is shook by the passing of Dolly Parton this week. Dolly — everyone called her Dolly — was a Tennessee native, country and pop music singer, and philanthropist who invested heavily in people – especially here in Appalachia. And in children’s literacy through her Imagination Library, which provides free books to young kids. To a lot of people, she was Appalachia. To mark her passing, we spoke with Ted Olson, a country music historian at East Tennessee State University’s Department for Appalachian Studies. 

In October, hundreds of rock climbers will gather in Kentucky’s Red River Gorge for the fifth annual Adaptive Climbers Festival.  For three days, they’ll camp, hike, climb, and share meals at the mom-and-pop campground that hosts them. The event is organized by and for athletes with disabilities. 

In 2023, Folkways Reporter Emily Chen-Newton covered the event for Inside Appalachia. Since then, the Adaptive Climbers Festival has grown. Organizers say they’re nearly at capacity, with 300 climbers, caregivers, and volunteers. Ahead of the festival, the campground has made accessibility improvements. Volunteers with the ACF have been sprucing up the trails too.

Appalachians have always made use of the region’s wide variety of plants.  A new book, called Appalachian Plants: In the Garden, In the Yard, and In the Wild, explores some of the history and lore of regional staples. It’s written by Linda Hager Pack and illustrated by Pat Banks.

The two Kentucky residents previously teamed up on two children’s books: A Is for Appalachia and Appalachian Toys and Games from A to Z.  As Linda Hager Pack explains, the beginning of the new book explores a historical medical theory called the "Doctrine of Signatures." Host Mason Adams spoke with the author.

One of North Carolina’s oldest rodeos is back in action after a storm-induced-hiatus. After Hurricane Helene, the rodeo fairgrounds closed down to serve as a hub for disaster response.

Blue Ridge Public Radio’s Laura Hackett was in the stands for the rodeo’s comeback this July and brings us this. 

Countries like the U.S. and Japan have a shortage of caregivers for senior citizens. That’s an acute problem in Appalachia too.  Some places are turning to robots as a potential solution. WESA’s Kiley Koscinski reports the latest in her series Designing Dignity.  

Steve Scafidi has spent nearly 40 years dividing his time between writing poems and restoring old furniture. The West Virginia poet and cabinetmaker is the author of five collections of poetry, including his latest, The Appalachian Sea.

Producer Bill Lynch caught up with Scafidi to talk poetry and working with his hands.

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Our theme music is by Matt Jackfert. Other music this week was provided by Hello June, Dolly Parton, Ted Olson and Blue Dot Sessions.  

Bill Lynch is our producer. Abby Neff is our associate producer. Our executive producer is Eric Douglas. Irina Zhorov is our editor. Our audio mixer is Patrick Stephens. We had help this week from Folkways Editors Chris Julin and Ibby Caputo.

You can send us an email: [email protected].

You can find us on Instagram, Threads or here on Facebook.

Inside Appalachia is a production of West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

A new report finds the number of black lung cases is at its highest since the 1970s. The human cost is high.

Also, the author of a new book says reintroducing nearly extinct animals back into the wild can boost damaged ecosystems, but they can't repair them. 

And, roadside attractions pay tribute to our enduring fascination with weird.

You'll hear these stories and more this week, Inside Appalachia.

In This Episode:

A new report from the Centers for Disease Control finds that black lung rates are the highest they’ve been since the 1970s. The disease can be debilitating, even for young miners. For the Appalachia + Mid-South Newsroom, Justin Hicks reports with Howard Berkes, a longtime investigative reporter who’s focused on black lung for years, on why this is happening. 

There’s still time to squeeze in a road trip in the waning days of summer. If you’re on the road, keep an eye out for classic roadside attractions. 

Folkways Reporter Andrea “River” Peterson explored how “Gravity House” attractions keep luring new fans with vintage kitsch.  

Europeans decimated native animals when they settled the U.S. By the 1800s, some species had disappeared from entire regions of the country, among them, the elk. States east of the Rocky Mountains have been reintroducing elk. But does bringing back wild animals bring back wilderness?

Inside Appalachia Editor Irina Zhorov found that it’s complicated.

Wildlife advocates are pushing to bring large species back across the East. It has worked with some species, like elk and not so much with others. A new book looks at the process. It’s called The Beasts of the East: The Fall and Rise of America’s Eastern Wilderness.

Host Mason Adams spoke with author and Pittsburgh journalist Andrew Moore.

The pandemic supercharged remote working. Several states raced to take advantage with programs to attract remote workers and digital nomads. West Virginia has the Ascend program. It pays people $12,000 over two years to move to West Virginia, as well as providing other incentives.  

NPR recently reported that the program has been successful, although the numbers are still pretty small, about 668 direct participants. WVPB News Director Eric Douglas talked with NPR Reporter Scott Neuman, who reported the piece. 

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Our theme music is by Matt Jackfert. Other music this week was provided by Erik Vincent Huey, Hello June, Joe Dobbs and the 1937 Flood, Paul Loomis and the Blue Dot Sessions.

Bill Lynch is our producer. Abby Neff is our associate producer. Our executive producer is Eric Douglas. Irina Zhorov is our editor. Our audio mixer is Patrick Stephens. We had help this week from Folkways Editor Allison Silverstein.

You can send us an email: [email protected].

You can find us on Instagram, Threads or here on Facebook.

Inside Appalachia is a production of West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

A Japanese Shinto Garden took root in southwestern Virginia because of family connections spanning geography and generations. 

Also, in Whitesburg, Kentucky, a new mosaic uses recovered objects to honor the town’s people after the flood of 2022. 

And, the young adult novel Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire mixes historical fact with spooky Appalachian folklore.

You'll hear these stories and more this week, Inside Appalachia.

In This Episode:

Elk Creek, Virginia, is a small, unincorporated community located in Grayson County, about a half hour from the North Carolina border. Many people in Elk Creek have deep ties to their land, and for one family taking care of their land and honoring their ancestors meant creating a traditional Japanese Shinto Garden.

From Elk Creek, Folkways Reporter Wendy Welch brings us the story. 

Letcher County, Kentucky, artist Lacy Hale is known across Appalachia for her enduring screen print that reads, “No Hate in My Holler.” But Lacy does a lot of public art projects.

And so, four years after the devastating Kentucky floods, she was hired to make a public mosaic that incorporates material contributions from community members. The artwork protects memories, shares stories and helps the community to heal.

The Whitesburg mosaic was completed and unveiled at the end of July. This story was produced by Nicole Musgrave and was a collaboration between Mimi Pickering of Appalshop and Teresa Collins of the Center for Rural Strategies and originally aired on the Rural Remix podcast.

WESA’s Designing Dignity series is exploring possible solutions for healthcare challenges created by Pennsylvania’s —and Appalachia’s — aging population. Some of these ideas come from Japan, where one-third of the population is 65 or older. 

Japan has implemented a program to keep medical costs down through a taxpayer-funded insurance program specifically for long-term care. Several U.S. states are exploring their own version of universal long-term care insurance. 

WESA’s Kiley Koscinski reports. 

One of Virginia’s rarest plants, the Peters Mountain Mallow, lives on only one mountainside in the world, in the New River Valley along the West Virginia line. Last year, scientists counted just five plants that are still alive, and the ongoing drought means protecting it from extinction is getting tougher.

Radio IQ’s Roxy Todd reports. 

Tori Mather is the author of Scenic Natural Wonders of Pennsylvania, a new book that introduces readers to some of the state’s treasures.

The Alleghany Front’s Savannah Colberg met up with Mather in Pittsburgh’s Frick Park to learn more.  

In July, Roanoke, Virginia, hosted USA Cycling's Endurance Mountain Bike National Championships. For local mountain bikers, it was just the latest summit in a decades-long, uphill grind for respectability.

Host Mason Adams reports from Roanoke.

The young adult novel Verity Vox and the Curse of Foxfire tells the story of a witch-in-training who uses her magic to help a forgotten mountain coal town. The book blends fantasy and Appalachian social history, with a touch of queer romance. It’s the debut novel by Don Martin, and it was an instant New York Times bestseller.

Producer Bill Lynch spoke with Martin about the book and his podcast Head on Fire.

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Our theme music is by Matt Jackfert. Other music this week was provided by Blue Dot Sessions, Jeff Ellis, Dinosaur Burps, and Hello June. 

Bill Lynch is our producer. Abby Neff is our associate producer. Our executive producer is Eric Douglas. Irina Zhorov is our editor. Our audio mixer is Patrick Stephens. We had help this week from Folkways Editor Allison Silverstein. 

You can send us an email: [email protected].

You can find us on Instagram, Threads or here on Facebook.

Inside Appalachia is a production of West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

Having a very specific talent can lead to a dream job. It’s how cartoonist John Rose got his foot in the door to draw the comic strip "Snuffy Smith."

Also, there are dos and don’ts for treating poison ivy. 

And, a young, old-time musician wants to save her family’s lost ballads. 

You'll hear these stories and more this week, Inside Appalachia.

In This Episode:

Like it or not, the hillbilly stereotype still permeates American pop culture. It’s been used to degrade and shame folks in the mountains, but there are gentler versions. Like "Snuffy Smith," the long-running comic strip character who still appears in newspapers. Although these days, it’s easier to find Snuffy online. 

He originally started out as a supporting character in his comic strip, which first launched in 1919 when Billy DeBeck created "Barney Google." Artist Fred Lasswell was brought in during the ‘30s to create Snuffy Smith and his friends. And now the strip is written and drawn by John Rose, who lives in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley. 

Host Mason Adams spoke with Rose.

With warmer weather, more folks are spending time in the woods or yards, and it’s just a matter of time before some will get into a patch of poison ivy.  

You can find ways to treat the itchy rash that comes from poison ivy at the pharmacy, but there are plenty of people who still use folk remedies.  

Folkways Reporter Wendy Welch explored the intersection of folk cures and mainstream medicine. 

When we think of livestock, we might think of animals like cattle and sheep. But, what about honeybees? Both honeybees and native bee species face challenges some in common, and some not. 

WMRA’s Ayse Pirge reports. 

The Tennessee River runs like an artery through Knoxville, Tennesee. It feeds the recreation and tourism business and also a rich ecosystem. And some of the river’s biggest protectors are really very small: freshwater mussels. They live on the riverbed and clean up the river. But their numbers have been declining for generations.

WUOT’s Heather Haley spoke to a group working to protect these creatures.

North Carolina musician Murphy Campbell is trying to preserve old ballads from Yancey and Mitchell counties. And some of them come from her family. Blue Ridge Public Radio’s Gerard Albert III has more. 

Campbell’s performance in the BPR studios can be found here.   

Railroad writer Charlie Castner died in February at the age of 97. Castner worked for the public relations department at the Louisville & Nashville railroad and authored several railroad books. In 2024, he co-wrote Big Emma: The Story of Louisville & Nashville’s M1 2-8-4s. The powerful engine hauled passengers, freight and coal in eastern Kentucky.

WEKU’s Curtis Tate spoke with one of Castner’s co-authors, Ron Flanary, about the book that was 50 years in the making. 

In 2022, artist Rosalie Haizlett set out on a trip to illustrate parts of the Appalachian Mountains that often get overlooked – that is, the tiny birds, reptiles and other critters hiding beneath leaves or up in the trees.

Her illustrations came together as Tiny Worlds of the Appalachian Mountains, an Artist’s Journey. It’s a stunning book, full of colorful images and thoughts Haizlett recorded as she spent hours exploring the mountains.

In 2024, Producer Bill Lynch spoke with Haizlett about the book.  

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Our theme music is by Matt Jackfert. Other music this week was provided by Tim Bing, Dave Odell and Dave Bing, John Blissard, John Inghram, Larry Rader and Blue Dot Sessions. 

Bill Lynch is our producer. Abby Neff is our associate producer. Our executive producer is Eric Douglas. Our audio mixer is Patrick Stephens.

You can send us an email: [email protected].

Sign-up for the Inside Appalachia Newsletter!

You can find us on Instagram, Threads and Facebook.

Inside Appalachia is a production of West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

A new memoir explores the struggle to stay in Appalachia and the struggle to leave.

Also, an exhibit in Kings Mountain, North Carolina, documents the contributions of the Catawba Nation to the American Revolutionary War.

And, grab some sunscreen as we make a visit to the Nelsonville Music Festival in Ohio.

You'll hear these stories and more this week, Inside Appalachia.

In This Episode:

Virginia writer Emilee Hackney has a complicated relationship with her home. She loves the place where she’s from, in Tazewell County — her friends, family, the swimming holes and mountains and wild places — but she also felt stifled. Her new memoir All That’s Unseen: An Appalachian Memoir explores this tension and her experience when she did leave.

Host Mason Adams spoke with Hackney about the book.

Appalachia loves its hotdogs. You can sometimes even clock where someone is from, based on how they eat their dogs — whether they get them with sauce, chili or coleslaw. Sometimes even how they’re cooked.  

In 2021, Folkways Reporter and noted hotdog afficionado Zack Harold filed this story about Yann’s hotdogs in Fairmont, West Virginia, following the passing of its owner, Russell Yann. 

This year, the Eastern Hellbender became Kentucky’s first-ever state amphibian. The mammoth salamander was once abundant along Appalachia’s waterways, but it’s struggled to maintain healthy populations amid climate change and human activity. In 2024, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service proposed listing the animal as endangered under the Endangered Species Act. 

WKYU's Hope Heffley has more on conservationists’ efforts to preserve the hellbender. 

With the nation’s 250th birthday, there’s been a lot of remembrance of the War for Independence. Including the battles that took place in the South, in multiple states that make up Appalachia. In Kings Mountain, North Carolina, an exhibit highlights the role of the Catawba Nation in the Revolutionary War. The tribal group lived in the Charlotte area and supported the colonial army at almost every major battle and skirmish that took place in the South.

WFAE’s Marshall Terry reports.

As with other Appalachian states, Pennsylvania’s population is getting older. This will likely create new healthcare challenges. In the series "Designing Dignity," WESA’s Kiley Koscinski visited Japan, a country with an aging population, to learn how it’s preparing. 

This week, Koscinski explores chronic care, a major driver of healthcare spending. Japan has tried to reduce hospitalizations by providing care in the patient’s home, but a workforce shortage could threaten the program’s success. 

With its distinctive Dalmatian pattern and splash of red, the spotted lanternfly stands out as a threat to dozens of plants. The insect is well on its way to becoming one of the worst pests American agriculture has ever seen, with the potential to cause millions, perhaps billions of dollars in losses to crops. 

WVPB’s Chris Schulz spoke with WVU Extension entomologist Carlos Quesada to learn more about the insect and how to stop its spread. 

For more than 50 years, east Tennessee’s Connie Jordan Green has written everything from young adult novels to a long running newspaper column about gardening. Her poetry explores the natural world, living on a farm and growing up in a secret Tennessee city built during World War II. 

Producer Bill Lynch spoke with Green about her childhood and her latest collection of poetry, Nameless as the Minnows.

This summer, the Nelsonville Music Festival in Southeast Ohio celebrated its 20th anniversary. The festival has functioned as a showcase, especially for bands from Ohio, the Ohio River Valley and greater Appalachia. This year’s lineup included performances from Wednesday, Geese, S.G. Goodman and others.

Associate Producer Abby Neff went to the festival. 

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Our theme music is by Matt Jackfert. Other music this week was provided by Blue Dot Sessions, Flatt and Scruggs, Tim Bing, Paul Loomis, John Inghram and Mary Hott and Hello June. 

Bill Lynch is our producer. Abby Neff is our associate producer. Our executive producer is Eric Douglas. Irina Zhorov is our editor. Our audio mixer is Patrick Stephens. We had help this week from Folkways Editor Chris Julin.

You can send us an email: [email protected].

You can find us on Instagram, Threads or here on Facebook.

Inside Appalachia is a production of West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

After a disaster, can comics help set the record straight? 

Also, sifting through Hurricane Helene’s debris, one group tries to reunite keepsakes with their owners, including love letters.

And, a cafe in Virginia feeds the hungry and tries to destigmatize homelessness. For its outreach manager, whose brother lived on the streets for years, it’s personal.  

You'll hear these stories and more this week, Inside Appalachia.

In This Episode:

Last year, we reported on the Appalachia Comics Project, which was raising money to produce a graphic novel featuring stories told by Hurricane Helene survivors and illustrated and produced by comics professionals. 

Now, nearly two years after the storm, the book is out. It’s called Islands in the Sky: A People’s History of Hurricane Helene. We revisit host Mason Adams' interview with Andrew Aydin, who conceived the project. He’d previously served as an aide to Congressman John Lewis and co-authored the comic trilogy March about Lewis’ role in the civil rights movement. That work informed his view on the power of comics as he got to work after Helene.  

Hurricane Helene left behind millions of cubic yards of debris in western North Carolina. Most of that is trash, but every so often, clean-up crews find something personal: a stuffed animal, a coffee mug or a love letter.

Blue Ridge Public Radio’s Laura Hackett reports on one group’s efforts to return some of those treasured keepsakes to the people who lost them.  

Appalachians sure love their gardens. And it’s not just homeowners who grow them. At Open Door Café in Wytheville, Virginia, gardening is a way to feed the hungry while breaking down the stigma of homelessness.

Folkways Reporter Wendy Welch brings us the story about digging into the roots and connecting to more than just the land. 

This month marked the United States’ 250th anniversary. Around the nation, there was a lot of remembrance of our history. But also consideration about its future. That will ultimately be shaped by younger generations. 

WVPB’s Chris Schulz spoke with 100 Days in Appalachia Director of Video Nick Curran and Editor-in-Chief Jesse Wright about a project to amplify their voices. 

Many Appalachians can’t access affordable dental care. The problem is especially acute in West Virginia. State data shows by third grade, more than half of kids show signs of tooth decay. And more than 10% of older adults have had all their teeth extracted. 

In the latest episode of Us & Them, host Trey Kay visits a mobile dental clinic with public health hygienist Bobbi Muto.

A lot of people are afraid of bats, but they’re an important part of the ecosystem and beneficial to our agriculture. But due to climate change and disease, bat populations are declining.

WVPB’s Eric Douglas reports for the Appalachia + Mid-South Newsroom. 

As baby boomers continue to age, more Gen X and Millennial adults are finding themselves becoming caregivers for their parents. In Pittsburgh, the city’s major health systems are partnering with federal agencies to design a new program aimed at keeping seniors at home for as long as possible. 

It’s a strategy Japan has had in place for more than two decades. 

In this installment of the "Designing Dignity" series, WESA’s Kiley Koscinski looks at how Japan’s care managers bridge medical and social support. 

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Our theme music is by Matt Jackfert. Other music this week was provided by Jeff Ellis, Mary Hott, Hello June, Paul Loomis and Ron Mullennex. 

Bill Lynch is our producer. Abby Neff is our associate producer. Our executive producer is Eric Douglas. Irina Zhorov is our editor. Our audio mixer is Patrick Stephens. We had help this week from Folkways Editor Ibby Caputo. 

You can send us an email: [email protected].

You can find us on Instagram, Threads or here on Facebook.

Inside Appalachia is a production of West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

We’re traveling to summer attractions across Appalachia. Like a bus that sits on a rock at the West Virginia confluence of the New and Gauley rivers.

Also, one person’s weedy nuisance is another’s “golden” treasure. So says a North Carolina fiber artist.   

And, we spill the tea on a classic roadside attraction.

You'll hear these stories and more this week, Inside Appalachia.

In This Episode:

Spend enough time on any river, and you’ll see a lot of unexpected things. Like at the confluence of the New and Gauley rivers in West Virginia, where a school bus sits on a rock out in the middle of the water. 

In 2005, Anna Sale was a reporter for West Virginia Public Broadcasting. She’s since gone on to become the host of the popular podcast Death Sex and Money. But back then, she was curious about the old bus that sits in the rivers near the town of Gauley Bridge. Anna traveled by boat to learn more about the man behind it.   

In 2023, Inside Appalachia’s Associate Producer Zander Aloi took a trip to Chester, West Virginia, to learn the story behind a classic roadside attraction there – a souvenir stand known as the World’s Largest Teapot.

Every year, millions of kids head off to summer camp. It can be a life-changing experience. Camp Cranium in central Pennsylvania is a camp for children with traumatic brain injuries. Every June, the week-long camp provides community, encourages independence and builds kids’ confidence.

WVIA’s Lydia McFarlane reports from the campground in Columbia County. 

A lot of people spend their summers fighting weeds. Whether in gardens or yards, nobody loves them. Well, almost nobody.  

Dede Styles is passionate about weeds. Using common roadside plants, Styles makes natural dyes for fabrics and teaches others to do the same. And it’s part of a mission much bigger than brightly colored yarn. 

In 2024, Folkways Reporter Rebecca Williams brought us this story from Swannanoa, North Carolina. 

Certain kinds of invasive bamboo, like Golden or fishpole bamboo, can be a nuisance.  If it gets on your property, you might find yourself spending a lot of time trying to keep it from taking over. 

But there are more than 1400 different plants in the bamboo family. Ranging from tiny, scrub-like plants only a few inches tall, to others that top out around 130 feet. 

North America has a native species of bamboo, too. It was once commonly found in Appalachia near rivers and streams but was nearly wiped out. 

In 2024, Radio IQ’s Roxy Todd reported on efforts to restore the plant in southwestern Virginia. 

To make pottery, one needs clay. Most professional and hobby potters rely on store-bought clay for their projects, but not everybody. In western North Carolina, some folks prefer to work with wild clay – that is, clay that’s dug right out of the ground. They say using this traditional material gives the pieces particular character.  

Anya Petrone Slepyan from the Rural Remix Podcast has this story.  

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Our theme music is by Matt Jackfert. Other music this week was provided by Blue Dot Sessions, Hello June and Harvey & Copeland. 

Bill Lynch is our producer. Abby Neff is our associate producer. Our executive producer is Eric Douglas. Irina Zhorov is our editor. Our audio mixer is Patrick Stephens. We had help this week from Folkways Editor Nicole Musgrave.

You can send us an email: [email protected].

You can find us on Instagram, Threads or here on Facebook.

Inside Appalachia is a production of West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

Before emancipation, Appalachia provided pathways to freedom for enslaved people trying to escape bondage. A new project identifies more than two dozen previously unknown underground railroad sites. 

Also, the Fly Around Music & Arts Festival in North Carolina was inspired by the hard work that followed Hurricane Helene. 

And, a ballad about floods recorded a generation ago still provides solace for people today.

You'll hear these stories and more, Inside Appalachia.

In This Episode:

Before the Civil War, enslaved people in the South escaped through Appalachia to seek new lives in the north. Cicero Fain is a historian at Marshall University in Huntington, West Virginia, who has documented the region’s Black history. His latest undertaking is called the Appalachian Freedom Heritage Initiative. The project identified and documented more than two dozen previously unknown underground railroad sites throughout eastern Kentucky, southern Ohio and West Virginia. 

Host Mason Adams spoke with Fain about the project.

Across rural parts of Virginia, many women travel long distances to give birth. As more hospitals face increasing economic challenges, in part because of changes to Medicaid passed by Congress last year, those distances could grow longer. Radio IQ’s Roxy Todd reports that one of the last remaining birthing facilities in Southwestern Virginia sees patients from a 200-mile radius.

People in Appalachia are getting older. The region has a higher percentage of people over 65 than the national average.

In West Virginia, more than 19% of the population is over the age of 65. In Pennsylvania, it’s nearly 18%. Kentucky and Tennessee are at 16%. Health experts warn those aging trends will mean a rise in dementia cases.

WESA in Pittsburgh is asking whether Pennsylvania can learn from other countries where older populations are thriving. Reporter Kiley Koscinski went to Japan to find out.  

Last summer, the small town of Lansing, in western North Carolina, hosted the inaugural Fly Around Music and Arts Festival. It was a benefit to raise money for those affected by Hurricane Helene.

The festival takes its name from “Fly Around my Pretty Little Miss,” a traditional song recorded by two giants in the old-time music world --Frank Blevins, and Ola Belle Reed. Both came from the Lansing area. With a nod to the area’s musical roots, the festival celebrated the community. Phillip Norman reported this story for Rural Remix, a podcast from the Center for Rural Strategies

Music has long been a source of healing for people affected by floods in Appalachia. Last month marked the 10th anniversary of the 2016 flooding that killed 23 people in West Virginia. People recovering from those floods had one song playing on repeat: Alan Cathead Johnston’s “Muddy Water,” a song about two horrific, hundred-year floods that tore through McDowell County, West Virginia in 2001 and 2002.

Folkways Reporter Connie Kitts found people were still drawing strength and comfort from this ballad a generation on. 

Freshwater mussels are scattered throughout waterways in southern Appalachia. They play a vital role in maintaining healthy ecosystems. WKYU’s Hope Heffley explains why those populations have dwindled over the years.

Scientists at the Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute in Front Royal, Virginia work to conserve ecosystems and threatened wildlife species.  They’ve been studying a population of wood turtles in northern Appalachia for over 20 years. As WMRA's Randi B. Hagi reports, that can take time and some detective skills.

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Our theme music is by Matt Jackfert. Other music this week was provided by Alan Cathead Johnston, Company Stores, Hello June, Ron Mullennex and Gary Milnes and Larry Rader. 

Bill Lynch is our producer. Abby Neff is our associate producer. Our executive producer is Eric Douglas. Irina Zhorov is our editor. Our audio mixer is Patrick Stephens. We had help this week from Folkways Editor Chris Julin. 

You can send us an email: [email protected].

You can find us on Instagram, Threads or here on Facebook.

Inside Appalachia is a production of West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

In the 1920s, Oscar Micheaux was an entrepreneur filmmaker in western Virginia. He became a world-renowned director and producer.

Also, Kentucky’s poet laureate lives down the road from what has been called the country’s most lethal cryptid. Attempts to spot it have led to deaths. 

And, we talk soul food with Xavier Oglesby, who's passing on generations of kitchen wisdom to his niece.

You'll hear these stories and more this week, Inside Appalachia.

In This Episode:

One of America’s pioneering filmmakers had nothing to do with Hollywood but nevertheless left his mark on the emerging industry. Oscar Micheaux was a homesteader, who then turned his attention to making movies in the early 1900s. He was a Black man who made movies for Black audiences at a time when they weren't allowed into mainstream, white-only theaters. And for several pivotal years in the 1920s, he operated out of Roanoke, Virginia.

Host Mason Adams brings us this story.

Acclaimed playwright August Wilson was deeply influenced by his hometown of Pittsburgh. Wilson was the author of 10 plays collectively known as The Pittsburgh Cycle. They include the Pulitzer Prize winning plays Fences and The Piano Lesson. Now there’s a new book about him, titled August Wilson’s American Century, by University of Pittsburgh professor Lawrence Glasco, and it explores that deep influence with his hometown.

WESA’s Bill Driscoll spoke with Glasco.

In 2023, Folkways Reporter Zack Harold took us to Angelo’s Old World Italian Sausage. Angelo’s makes a craft sausage distributed throughout West Virginia, as well in southern Ohio and eastern Kentucky. The recipe comes from the Calabria region of Italy, and it’s made in West Virginia. 

Kentucky’s governor appoints a new poet laureate every two years. Last year, Gov. Andy Beshear named award-winning poet, essayist and teacher Kathleen Driskell to the post. Driskell’s poems have appeared in The New Yorker, Rattle and Appalachian Review, among others. She’s authored six poetry collections. Her most recent is Goat-Footed Gods.

Producer Bill Lynch spoke with Driskell about living next to the dead, and America’s most lethal cryptid.

The Wildlife Center of Virginia in Waynesboro treats hundreds of injured animals every year, from possums, to eagles, to bear cubs. And even a fledgling barn owl that fell from its nest in a grain silo in Augusta County.

WMRA's Meredith McCool has more.

Soul food like cornbread, extra-cheesy mac-n-cheese and collard greens plays an important role in Black communities across Appalachia. In 2023, Folkways Fellow Vanessa Peña spoke with Xavier Oglesby, a master artist in soul food cooking from Beckley, West Virginia.

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Our theme music is by Matt Jackfert. Other music this week was provided by John Blissard, Bennie Moten Kater, Tim Bing, Paul Loomis, John Inghram and Blue Dot Sessions.

Bill Lynch is our producer. Abby Neff is our associate producer. Our executive producer is Eric Douglas. Kelley Libby is our editor. Our audio mixer is Patrick Stephens. We had help this week from Folkways Editors Nicole Musgrave and Chris Julin.

You can send us an email: [email protected].

You can find us on Instagram, Threads or here on Facebook.

Inside Appalachia is a production of West Virginia Public Broadcasting.