Stories-a History Of Appalachia, One Story At A Time

During the Great Depression, a man lived in West Virginia much as he imagined his literary hero Tarzan would have lived, had Tarzan been in the wilds of Appalachia instead of the jungles of Africa. Today, Rod and Steve tell the story of the original “hippie,” Orval Elijah Brown of Clay County, long hair, beard, […]

On this episode of the podcast, we tell the story of the formation and admission during the Civil War of the only state that lies completely within Appalachia. You can subscribe to the podcast at iTunes or Google Play or on your favorite podcast app. We’re also on Twitter @storyappalachia. Thanks for your ears!

In the early part of the 19th century, gold fever struck the North Georgia mountains. Before that fever went elsewhere, a great Indian nation was literally picked up and forced west of the Mississippi River at the command of President Andrew Jackson. This week, Steve and Rod tell the story of Nu-No-Du-Na-Tlo-Hi-Lu, or the Trail […]

Before the release of the Salk polio vaccine, polio epidemics were commonplace in the United States. In 1950 one such epidemic hit the Commonwealth of Virginia, with the Appalachian town of Wytheville being so badly hit that it made national news. On this episode of Stories, Rod and Steve tell the story of the 1950 […]

In 1775, Appalachia WAS the West, and people were pouring into the region and beyond. With the purchase of millions of acres of Kentucky land by the Transylvania Company, a way was needed to get settlers over the mountains to that land. And that’s where Daniel Boone came in. Boone and a company of ax-men […]

There is little else worse than a flood in the Appalachian Mountains, due to the water being funneled down deep river valleys straight into towns and cities. What is worse is when that flood could have been prevented. On this episode of Stories, Rod and Steve tell the story of the Johnstown Flood of 1889, […]

By Source (WP:NFCC#4), Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=42629998 The 1930s saw the Great Depression come over America, and probably no place was harder hit than the coalfields of Eastern Kentucky. During that decade, Harlan County was the epicenter of a great struggle to establish the union, and it was a bloody one. Today, we tell the story […]

There are tales of strange creatures seen in the mines and caves of Appalachia. On this episode, Rod and Steve tell the story of the giants in the earth, on Stories. You can subscribe at iTunes, the iPhone podcast app, Google Play or on your favorite Android or Windows phone podcast app. We’re on Facebook […]

Moonshining has long been associated with Appalachia. Probably the most well-known and well-marketed moonshiner was Marvin “Popcorn” Sutton of Cocke County, Tennessee. Popcorn dressed the part, at least the way he believed everybody outside the area thought a moonshiner should look like. And he made sure everybody knew who he was, appearing on television, in […]

In the hills of North Georgia in the 19th century lived a farmer named Micajah Clark Dyer. Dyer wasn’t just a Georgia farmer, though. He was a self-taught inventor and tinkerer whose passion was flight. Clark Dyer devised a very detailed flying machine that not only received a patent from the U.S. Patent office, but […]

In 1780, the Patriot cause was suffering from losses across the colonies. Then, a British commander threatened to cross the Appalachians and lay waste to the settlements established in what is now East Tennessee, and that changed everything. Around 1400 militia were mustered from Southwest Virginia, present-day East Tennessee and Western North Carolina and set […]

In the spring of 1891, wealthy Pikeville, Kentucky, businessman James Hatcher buried his young wife, Octavia, after she apparently died while giving birth to their baby boy, who also died. Unfortunately, there was a bout of African sleeping sickness going around the coalfields at about this same time, with the symptoms mimicking death. On this […]

In 1903, the Wentz family of Philadelphia was in control of the Virginia Coal and Iron Company and Stonega Coal and Coke. In that year, young Edward Wentz came to the coalfields of Wise County, Virginia, to help manage the corporate property. In fact, Edward took a personal hand in patrolling the property, throwing out […]

Starting in the mid-19th century, just before the Civil War, there were several Tennessee court cases that helped define the role of the mysterious people known as “Melungeons” in Appalachian society. On this episode, Rod and Steve tell the story of those cases as well as the history, as best it can be determined, of […]

There is a Cherokee legend about a war with a fair-skinned people with blue eyes and beards, who were extremely sensitive to light. One version of this legend has them responsible for pre-Columbian stone fortifications located in Georgia, pictured above. This week on Stories, Rod and Steve tell the story of the Moon-eyed people of […]

In the fall of 1902, a sickly Englishman arrived in Asheville, North Carolina, from parts unknown. He passed away shortly thereafter and, over the next seven years, became a part of the fabric of the mountain town, until he left just as mysteriously as he came. It’s the story of the Duke of Asheville, on […]

On this week’s episode of Stories, Rod and Steve tell you the story of the Harpes, two men who, at the turn of the 19th century, led authorities on a horrific crime spree from North Carolina to Illinois and back again, leaving numerous murder victims in their wake.

In 1929 a series of textile mill strikes hit the southeastern United States, starting in Elizabethton, Tennessee. On this episode, Rod and Steve tell the story of what happened in Elizabethton when workers went on strike against the rayon plants there. Thanks for listening to the podcast!

Sometimes love just isn’t enough. At least it wasn’t for Harry Powers of Quiet Dell, West Virginia. On today’s episode, we tell a story of murder in the singles ads in 1920’s West Virginia. You can subscribe to the podcast on your favorite podcast app. We’re also on Facebook, where we have even more stories […]

In 1873, there was a world-wide cholera epidemic. One of the worst hit places in the Appalachian region was the East Tennessee town of Greeneville, which saw 90 percent of its population either die or flee in absolute terror. The illness even struck a retired American president who lived in the town. On this episode […]