Inside Appalachia

07/22/2024

Our latest 🌄 podcast is now available. This week, members of a Ukrainian Catholic church in Wheeling, West Virginia, make pierogies every week. They’re popular with the community, but what makes them so good?

Also, Salem, Virginia’s Flat Five Studio got its first big break when the Dave Matthews Band was searching for a quiet place to record its first album. We hear the story of a big moment for a small studio.

And, a longtime Bigfoot hunter believes his first encounter with the mythical monster happened when he was a kid.

Click/tap the link below 👇 to listen to this episode now. 🎧

West Virginia Public Broadcasting

This week on Inside Appalachia, members of a Ukrainian Catholic church in Wheeling, West Virginia, make pierogies every week. Also, Salem, Virginia's Flat Five Studio got its first big break when the Dave Matthews Band was searching for a quiet place to record its first album. And, a longtime Bigfoo...

07/19/2024

This week on 🌄, members of a Ukrainian Catholic church in Wheeling, West Virginia, make pierogies every week. They’re popular with the community, but what makes them so good?

Also, Salem, Virginia’s Flat Five Studio got its first big break when the Dave Matthews Band was searching for a quiet place to record its first album. We hear the story of a big moment for a small studio.

And, a longtime Bigfoot hunter believes his first encounter with the mythical monster happened when he was a kid.

👉 Listen to Inside Appalachia SUNDAY at 7AM & 6PM on WVPB Radio. Tune in to your local WVPB radio station 📻, our live stream at wvpublic.org, with our WVPB app 📱, or ask your smart speaker to play West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

📷 Pictured:

1. A photo of two baking sheets with uncooked pierogies ready for backing. Making pierogies by hand is a long-time tradition in a small church in Wheeling, West Virginia. Photo Credit: Will Warren/West Virginia Public Broadcasting

2. A photo of Flat Five owner Byron Mack shows a trophy for an award won by one of his songs. Courtesy Photo

3. A photo of a woman at the Bigfoot Festival showing off her Bigfoot shirt. Visitors from all over the country visited the festival at the end of June in Sutton, West Virginia. Photo Credit: Briana Heaney/West Virginia Public Broadcasting

4. The Inside Appalachia logo is shown on a solid green background.

West Virginia Public Broadcasting

07/17/2024

Dede Styles in North Carolina uses common roadside plants to make natural dyes for fabrics. She teaches the craft, but it’s also part of a bigger mission for Styles.

Folkways Reporter Rebecca Williams brings us this story.

Dede Styles in North Carolina uses common roadside plants to make natural dyes for fabrics. She teaches the craft, but it’s also part of a bigger mission for Styles. Folkways Reporter Rebecca Williams brings us this story.

07/16/2024

Katherine Applegate’s book Wishtree was the book chosen by the county school division’s “One Division, One Book” community reading program. The schools distribute a copy of the same book to every family, with a schedule to read a few chapters each night.

Midway through the reading, however, the school system abruptly suspended the program. School officials sent an email to families in March, saying community members had raised concerns about certain material in the book.

The character in question? A 216-year-old red oak tree.

Katherine Applegate’s book Wishtree was the book chosen by the county school division’s “One Division, One Book” community reading program. The schools distribute a copy of the same book to every family, with a schedule to read a few chapters each night. Midway through the reading, however, ...

07/15/2024

Our latest 🌄 podcast is now available. This week, one person’s roadside w**d is another’s “golden” treasure. So says a North Carolina fiber artist. 🍇🌿

We also talk with a children’s book author 📚 about a school system that suspended its community reading program over concerns about the s*x of her book’s main character — an oak tree. 🌳

And, Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library program is now available in every Kentucky community. We revisit our 2022 interview with the American icon.

Click/tap the link below 👇 to listen to this episode now. 🎧

West Virginia Public Broadcasting

This week on Inside Appalachia, one person’s roadside w**d is another’s “golden” treasure. So says a North Carolina fiber artist. We also talk with a children's book author about a school system that suspended its community reading program over concerns about the s*x of her book's main chara...

07/12/2024

This week on 🌄, one person’s roadside w**d is another’s “golden” treasure. So says a North Carolina fiber artist.

We also talk with a children’s book author about a school system that suspended its community reading program over concerns about the s*x of her book’s main character — an oak tree. 🌳

And, Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library program is now available in every Kentucky community. 📚 We revisit our 2022 interview with the American icon.

👉 Listen to Inside Appalachia SUNDAY at 7AM & 6PM on WVPB Radio. Tune in to your local WVPB radio station 📻, our live stream at wvpublic.org, with our WVPB app 📱, or ask your smart speaker to play West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

📷 Pictured:

1. A photo of Dede Styles uses plants often thought of as w**ds to color yarn and fabrics. Photo Credit: Rebecca Williams/West Virginia Public Broadcasting

2. A photo Katherine Applegate signing a book at the Jessie Peterman Memorial Library in Floyd, Virginia. Photo Credit: Mary Crook

3. Former WVPB Executive Producer Suzanne Higgins (right) speaks with Dolly Parton during her visit to Charleston, West Virgin0ia on Aug. 9, 2022. Photo Credit: Butch Antolini/West Virginia Public Broadcasting

4. The Inside Appalachia logo is shown on a solid green background.

West Virginia Public Broadcasting

07/08/2024

Our latest 🌄 podcast is now available. This week, we visit with a West Virginia man who shows his love for fishing by building exquisite, handmade fly rods. 🎣 It’s a long process, but he shares his knowledge with others.

We also spill the tea on a classic roadside attraction in Chester, West Virginia. 🫖

And punk music photographer Chelse Warren takes us into the pit for stories and observations.

Click/tap the link below 👇 to listen now. 🎧

West Virginia Public Broadcasting

This week on Inside Appalachia, we visit with a West Virginia man who shows his love for fishing by building exquisite, handmade fly rods. It’s a long process, but he shares his knowledge with others. We also spill the tea on a classic roadside attraction in Chester, West Virginia.

07/05/2024

This week on 🌄, we visit with a West Virginia man who shows his love for fishing by building exquisite, handmade fly rods. 🎣 It’s a long process, but he shares his knowledge with others.

We also spill the tea on a classic roadside attraction in Chester, West Virginia. 🫖

And punk music photographer 📸 Chelse Warren takes us into the pit for stories and observations.

👉 Listen to Inside Appalachia SUNDAY at 7AM & 6PM on WVPB Radio. Tune in to your local WVPB radio station 📻, our live stream at wvpublic.org, with our WVPB app 📱, or ask your smart speaker to play West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

📷 Pictured:

1. A photo of Lee Orr fly fishing on the Elk River. Photo Credit: Zack Harold/West Virginia Public Broadcasting

2. A photo of the World’s Largest Teapot in Chester, West Virginia. It has been an attraction for generations. Photo Credit: Zander Aloi/West Virginia Public Broadcasting

3. A photograph taken by photographer Chelse Warren, who goes by Openhead Takes Photos online. The photo features Sam Moore during Terror’s set at the Flying Panther Skate Shop in Roanoke, Virginia. Photo Credit: Openhead Takes Photos

4. The Inside Appalachia logo is shown on a solid green background.

West Virginia Public Broadcasting

07/02/2024

Our latest 🌄 podcast is now available. This week, dinos fight Civil War soldiers at a theme park throwback — Dinosaur Kingdom II in Natural Bridge, Virginia.

Also, if you’re hungry for a pepperoni roll in West Virginia, you can find one at just about any gas station. So — how did they get so popular? We’ll hear one theory.

And we check out the backstory of a bus that sits at the confluence of the New and Gauley rivers — and the man who put it there.

Click/tap the link below 👇 to listen to this episode now. 🎧

West Virginia Public Broadcasting

This week on Inside Appalachia, we travel to Dinosaur Kingdom II in Natural Bridge, Virginia. Also, we learn a possible theory about why pepperoni rolls got so popular in West Virginia. And we check out the backstory of a bus that sits at the confluence of the New and Gauley rivers.

06/28/2024

This week on 🌄, dinos fight Civil War soldiers at a theme park throwback — Dinosaur Kingdom II in Natural Bridge, Virginia. 🦖🦕

Also, if you’re hungry for a pepperoni roll in West Virginia, you can find one at just about any gas station. So — how did they get so popular? We’ll hear one theory. 😋

And we check out the backstory of a bus 🚍 that sits at the confluence of the New and Gauley rivers — and the man who put it there.

👉 Listen to Inside Appalachia SUNDAY at 7AM & 6PM on WVPB Radio. Tune in to your local WVPB radio station 📻, our live stream at wvpublic.org, with our WVPB app 📱, or ask your smart speaker to play West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

📷 Pictured:

1. A photograph of a dinosaur-solider creation from Mark Cline’s roadside attraction Dino World in Natural Bridge, Virginia. Photo Credit: Pat Jarrett/Virginia Folklife Program

2. A photograph of freshly baked pepperoni rolls on trays. The story of the West Virginia pepperoni roll is more than its creation, but also how it spread. Photo Credit: Zack Harold/West Virginia Public Broadcasting

3. The Inside Appalachia logo is shown on a solid green background.

06/26/2024

When we talk about addiction, a lot of us think about opioids. But there’s another drug still circulating in communities — m**hamphetamine, or m**h.

The powerful stimulant could be manufactured in people’s homes, but after the US cracked down on the sale of m**h making ingredients, the ways people make m**h evolved. That history is the topic of a new podcast, called Home Cooked, produced by the Daily Yonder.

Mason Adams spoke with the show’s host and producer, Olivia Weeks.

**h

When we talk about addiction, a lot of us think about opioids. But there’s another drug still circulating in communities — m**hamphetamine, or m**h. The powerful stimulant could be manufactured in people’s homes, but after the US cracked down on the sale of m**h making ingredients, the ways pe...

06/25/2024

Human beings have used music to do everything from soothe children to sleep or to fire up crowds during football games, but there are other benefits, too.

Folkways Reporter Liz Pahl explored them during an old-time jam session in Athens, Ohio.

Human beings have used music to do everything from soothe children to sleep or to fire up crowds during football games, but there are other benefits, too. Folkways Reporter Liz Pahl explored them during an old-time jam session in Athens, Ohio.

06/24/2024

Our latest 🌄 podcast is now available. This week, old-time music jams aren’t just fun, they’re good for your mental health.

Also, the opioid epidemic has changed how we talk about addiction in Appalachia. But it’s not America’s only drug crisis.

And, every year, hundreds of people parachute off the 876-foot-tall New River Gorge Bridge for Bridge Day, but not just anyone can do it.

Click/tap the link below 👇 to listen to this episode now. 🎧

West Virginia Public Broadcasting

This week on Inside Appalachia, old-time music jams aren’t just fun, they’re good for your mental health. Also, the opioid epidemic has changed how we talk about addiction in Appalachia. But it’s not America’s only drug crisis. And, every year, hundreds of people parachute off the 876-foot-t...

06/21/2024

This week on 🌄, old-time music jams aren’t just fun, they’re good for your mental health.

Also, the opioid epidemic has changed how we talk about addiction in Appalachia. But it’s not America’s only drug crisis.

And, every year, hundreds of people parachute off the 876-foot-tall New River Gorge Bridge for Bridge Day 🌉, but not just anyone can do it.

👉 Listen to Inside Appalachia SUNDAY at 7AM & 6PM on WVPB Radio. Tune in to your local WVPB radio station 📻, our live stream at wvpublic.org, with our WVPB app 📱, or ask your smart speaker to play West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

📷 Pictured:

1. Pictures of musician family members and collected stringed instruments adorn the living room wall in the Burhans’ home. Photo Credit: Liz Pahl/West Virginia Public Broadcasting

2. A photo of Olivia Weeks who hosts “Home Cooked,” a podcast that looks at the continuing crisis of m**hamphetamines. Courtesy Photo

3. A photo of the New River Gorge Bridge. Photo Credit: E-WV

4. The Inside Appalachia logo is shown on a solid green background.

West Virginia Public Broadcasting

06/20/2024

Across the country, poor and largely Black neighborhoods were bulldozed and replaced with new highways and civic centers in the 20th century. That concept is known as urban renewal — and it tore communities apart. Now, one woman in Knoxville, Tennessee, is using food to try to heal generations of damage in a city neighborhood. Folkways Reporter Wendy Welch has more.

Across the country, poor and largely Black neighborhoods were bulldozed and replaced with new highways and civic centers in the 20th century. That concept is known as urban renewal — and it tore communities apart. Now, one woman in Knoxville, Tennessee, is using food to try to heal generations of ...

06/19/2024

Last year, communities celebrated the 50th anniversary of hip hop. Over the past half century, hip hop has gone from a marginalized art form to a mainstream powerhouse. It developed in major metropolitan centers like New York, Los Angeles and the South, but took root in Appalachia, too. Folkways Reporter Vanessa Peña reports on hip hop in West Virginia.

Last year, communities celebrated the 50th anniversary of hip hop. Over the past half century, hip hop has gone from a marginalized art form to a mainstream powerhouse. It developed in major metropolitan centers like New York, Los Angeles and the South, but took root in Appalachia, too. Folkways Rep...

06/18/2024

Our latest 🌄 podcast is now available. This week, hip hop started in New York and took root in places like West Virginia. We explore some of the history of the music and where it is today.

Also, food deserts are places where it’s hard to find nutritious food, but they’re found in more than just rural counties in Appalachia. Food deserts are also in disenfranchised neighborhoods, like in East Knoxville.

And, the Reverend George Mills Dickerson of Tazewell, Virginia, was born in the years after slavery ended. During Juneteenth, he’s remembered especially through his poetry.

Click/tap the link below 👇 to listen to this episode now. 🎧


West Virginia Public Broadcasting

This week on Inside Appalachia, hip hop started in New York and took root in places like West Virginia. We explore some of the history of the music and where it is today. Also, food deserts are places where it’s hard to find nutritious food, but they’re found in more than just rural counties in ...

06/14/2024

This week on 🌄, hip hop started in New York and took root in places like West Virginia. We explore some of the history of the music and where it is today. 🎵

Also, food deserts are places where it’s hard to find nutritious food 🥗, but they’re found in more than just rural counties in Appalachia. Food deserts are also in disenfranchised neighborhoods, like in East Knoxville.

And, the Reverend George Mills Dickerson of Tazewell, Virginia, was born in the years after slavery ended. During Juneteenth, he’s remembered especially through his poetry. 📖

👉 Listen to Inside Appalachia SUNDAY at 7AM & 6PM on WVPB Radio. Tune in to your local WVPB radio station 📻, our live stream at wvpublic.org, with our WVPB app 📱, or ask your smart speaker to play West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

📷 Pictured:

1. A photo of Charleston-based rapper Shelem. He leads West Virginia's current hip hop scene. Photo Credit: Vanessa Peña/West Virginia Public Broadcasting

2. Femeika Elliott uses food to heal her neighborhood. The photo features the outside of her restaurant, and the text reads, "Make change through food." Photo Credit: Wendy Welch/West Virginia Public Broadcasting

3. A photo of Ohio Poet Laureate Kari Gunter-Seymour’s latest book is Dirt Songs. Courtesy Photo

4. The Inside Appalachia logo is shown on a solid green background.

West Virginia Public Broadcasting

06/11/2024

The price of untanned, or green fur, has been dropping steadily as public opinion and markets have turned away from fur products. Animal welfare groups have advocated against trapping and wearing furs. Supply and demand is also impacted by pop culture and fashion trends. International politics, like the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine, interrupt trade routes and impact the ability to sell fur overseas.

Click/tap the link below 👇 to listen to this story now. 🎧 Or, you can hear in this story this week on Inside Appalachia.

The price of untanned, or green fur, has been dropping steadily as public opinion and markets have turned away from fur products. Animal welfare groups have advocated against trapping and wearing furs. Supply and demand is also impacted by pop culture and fashion trends. International politics, like...

06/10/2024

Our latest 🌄 podcast is now available. 🎧 This week, we visit with West Virginia trappers to learn about the fur trade in the 21st century.

We also meet a county fair champion who keeps racking up the blue ribbons and has released a cookbook of some of her favorites.

And we hear an update on the Mountain Valley Pipeline. Construction has begun again, but some people wonder if it’s even needed.

Click/tap the link below to listen now. 👇

West Virginia Public Broadcasting

This week on Inside Appalachia, we visit with West Virginia trappers to learn about the fur trade in the 21st century. We also meet a county fair champion who keeps racking up the blue ribbons and has released a cookbook of some of her favorites. And we hear an update on the Mountain Valley Pipeline...

06/07/2024

This week on 🌄, we have an encore of our episode featuring West Virginia trappers. We learn about the fur trade in the 21st century. 🦫

We also meet a county fair champion who keeps racking up the blue ribbons 🎖️ and has released a cookbook of some of her favorites.

And we hear an update on the Mountain Valley Pipeline. Construction has begun again, but some people wonder if it’s even needed.

👉 Listen to Inside Appalachia SUNDAY at 7AM & 6PM on WVPB Radio. Tune in to your local WVPB radio station 📻, our live stream at wvpublic.org, with our WVPB app 📱, or ask your smart speaker to play West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

📷 Pictured:

1. A photo of Mike Gray explaining his trap collection, which he has been building for decades. The collection includes antique pieces and international versions of footholds and snares. Credit: Lauren Griffin/West Virginia Public Broadcasting

2. The Inside Appalachia logo is shown on a solid green background.

06/03/2024

Our latest 🌄 podcast is now available. This week, we meet a West Virginia artist who designs stickers, t-shirts, patches and pins. She draws on classic Appalachian phrases her family has used for years. They’re not all radio-friendly.

Also, people who live near Indian Creek in southern West Virginia say som**hing is wrong with the water. Tests show contamination from a nearby mine. Now people and animals are getting sick.

And, lots of schools are seeing teacher shortages. But what happens when the band director quits?

Click/tap the link below 👇 to listen to this episode now. 🎧

West Virginia Public Broadcasting

This week on Inside Appalachia, we meet a West Virginia artist who designs stickers, t-shirts, patches and pins. She draws on classic Appalachian phrases her family has used for years. Also, people who live near Indian Creek in southern West Virginia say som**hing is wrong with the water. Tests show...

05/31/2024

This week on 🌄, we meet a West Virginia artist who designs stickers, t-shirts, patches and pins. She draws on classic Appalachian phrases her family has used for years. They’re not all radio-friendly.

Also, people who live near Indian Creek in southern West Virginia say som**hing is wrong with the water. Tests show contamination from a nearby mine. Now people and animals are getting sick.

And, lots of schools are seeing teacher shortages. But what happens when the band director quits?

👉 Listen to Inside Appalachia SUNDAY at 7AM & 6PM on WVPB Radio. Tune in to your local WVPB radio station 📻, our live stream at wvpublic.org, with our WVPB app 📱, or ask your smart speaker to play West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

📷 Pictured:

1. A photo of a sticker that says, "Raise Hell & Hug Trees." West Virginia artist Hippie's Daughter taps into Appalachian pop culture through her creations. Photo Credit: Maddie Miller/West Virginia Public Broadcasting

2. A photo of the cover of a book. The book cover reads, "Night Watch" by Jayne Anne Phillips. West Virginia author Phillips is this year’s winner of the Pulitzer Prize for literature. Courtesy Photo

3. A photo of West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection workers collecting water samples from Indian Creek, which dirty mine water flows into in Wyoming County. Photo Credit: Erin Beck

4. The Inside Appalachia logo is shown on a solid green background.

05/29/2024

Gathering wild foods has long been a way to put food on the table in the Appalachian mountains. In recent years, the practice has gone digital, with online communities devoted to foraging in the wild, springing up like wild mushrooms after a spring rain.

One woman in eastern Kentucky is sharing what she knows (and some humor) with the TikTok generation through an account called “Appalachian Forager.”

Folkways Reporter Amanda Page has the story.

Gathering wild foods has long been a way to put food on the table in the Appalachian mountains. In recent years, the practice has gone digital, with online communities devoted to foraging in the wild, springing up like wild mushrooms after a spring rain. One woman in eastern Kentucky is sharing what...

05/28/2024

Our latest 🌄 podcast is now available. This week, the woman behind the popular TikTok account “Appalachian Forager” makes jam from wild pawpaws … and jewelry from coyote teeth.

We also talk with the hosts of a new podcast that looks at coal dust exposure beyond the mines, affecting people far downstream from Appalachia.

And, in some places, slavery continued in different forms well after the end of the Civil War. A new marker in Western North Carolina acknowledges that history and commemorates a disaster that killed 19 Black prisoners.

Click/tap the link below 👇 to listen to this episode now. 🎧

West Virginia Public Broadcasting

The woman behind the popular TikTok account “Appalachian Forager” makes jam from wild pawpaws … and jewelry from coyote teeth. We also talk with the hosts of a new podcast that looks at coal dust exposure beyond the mines, affecting people far downstream from Appalachia. You'll hear these stor...

05/24/2024

This week on 🌄, the woman behind the popular TikTok account “Appalachian Forager” makes jam from wild pawpaws … and jewelry from coyote teeth.

We also talk with the hosts of a new podcast that looks at coal dust exposure beyond the mines, affecting people far downstream from Appalachia.

And, in some places, slavery continued in different forms well after the end of the Civil War. A new marker in Western North Carolina acknowledges that history and commemorates a disaster that killed 19 Black prisoners.

👉 Listen to Inside Appalachia SUNDAY at 7AM & 6PM on WVPB Radio. Tune in to your local WVPB radio station 📻, our live stream at wvpublic.org, with our WVPB app 📱, or ask your smart speaker to play West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

(👆 Find links in our Profile Linktree!)

📷 Pictured:

1. A photo of TikTok sensation "Appalachian Forager," who brings native know-how to TikTok with a side of silly. Photo Credit: Amanda Page/West Virginia Public Broadcasting

2. A photograph of the Dominion terminal and coal storage facility in Newport News, Virginia, where residents in nearby neighborhoods have complained of blowing coal dust. Photo Credit: Adrian Wood

3. No known photographs remain of the convict labor crew that the Cowee 19 worked on, but historians say this crew working on the Western North Carolina Railroad in the late 1800s was similar. Photo Credit: Hunter Library Special Collections, Western Carolina University

4. The Inside Appalachia logo is shown on a solid green background.

West Virginia Public Broadcasting

05/22/2024

Tennessee photographer Stacy Kranitz is attracting attention for her visceral photos of life in Appalachia and the South. Sometimes her photos are hard to look at, but they’re always compelling. That’s the case with a project published earlier this year. ProPublica’s story, “The Year After a Denied Abortion,” follows a young family in Tennessee.

Tennessee photographer Stacy Kranitz is attracting attention for her visceral photos of life in Appalachia and the South. Sometimes her photos are hard to look at, but they’re always compelling. That’s the case with a project published earlier this year. ProPublica’s story, “The Year After a...

05/21/2024

In eastern Kentucky, the town of Pineville has the oldest festival on record in the state. The Kentucky Mountain Laurel Festival happens every Memorial Day weekend on the grounds of a scenic state park.

It’s a four-day celebration that culminates with an exquisite tradition: the Grand March, a dance that has been taught to Kentucky college students in Pineville since the first festival in 1931. Its roots go even deeper, though, to 16th century Poland.

Folkways Reporter Will Warren was born and raised in Pineville and grew up taking part in the festival. In 2023, he went back home and reported on the Grand March as part of our Folkways Reporting Project.

The Kentucky Mountain Laurel Festival happens every Memorial Day weekend on the grounds of a scenic state park. It’s a four-day celebration that culminates with an exquisite tradition: the Grand March, a dance that has been taught to Kentucky college students in Pineville since the first festival ...

05/20/2024

Our latest 🌄 podcast is now available. This week, the Kentucky Mountain Laurel Festival has staged a formal dance for nearly a century. We visit the festival and learn about a manual that’s been passed down for generations.

Also, abortion is illegal in most cases in Tennessee. A photographer spent a year following one mother who was denied an abortion.

And we talk to Marshall University professor and poet Sarah Henning about her latest book, Burn.

Click/tap the link below 👇 to listen now. 🎧

West Virginia Public Broadcasting

This week on Inside Appalachia, for nearly a century, the Kentucky Mountain Laurel Festival has staged a formal dance. We visit the festival and learn about a manual that’s been passed down for generations. Also, abortion is illegal in most cases in Tennessee. A photographer spent a year following...