Appalachian Places

12/08/2024

Appalachian Places has published an August 2024 update led by Robert Morgan, one of America’s greatest living poets and writers of prose fiction and biography. It’s the magazine’s first of what we hope will be many short-story installments to come.

Also featured in this update:

North Carolina music writer Donna Davis notes the last of three decades worth of the Wayne C. Henderson Music Festival & Guitar Competition. Henderson’s 30th annual festival, held on June 15 at Grayson Highlands State Park in Mouth of Wilson, Virginia, was the last. Festival organizers and Henderson, maker and celebrated player of fine guitars, are stopping the popular festival after raising and distributing more than a half-million dollars in music instruction scholarships for youth.

ETSU Bluegrass, Old-Time, and Roots Music Studies program put on its first-ever bluegrass summer camp in July. Our story is centered on how instructors — including some of the top artists in the business — made the camp fun, and how some wonderful young musicians made the camp’s final-day concert memorable.

Look for a heartwarming story about how a quilting box filled with patterns and other stitching treasures connected a Jonesborough, Tennessee, woman to the grandmother she never knew. The story is adapted from a digital exhibit published online by the Archives of Appalachia at ETSU.

A story by P.B. Cooley explores how Jewish communities in Appalachia have adopted the music of the mountains they call home. “Jewgrass” is a tongue-in-cheek name for a subgenre that combines Jewish and Appalachian musical styles.

Another installment of From the Vault: “Now & Then" shares a story from the magazine’s Fall 1992 edition themed “Sports in Appalachia.” The story by Patrick Sloan is a personal narrative about Sloan’s experiences growing up in West Virginia playing and watching sports alongside now-famous athletes such as the late Basketball Hall of Famer Jerry West, who died in June.

Poetry in this edition of Appalachian Places features works by six poets, including an ode to an iconic and regional Appalachian fast-food eatery, Pal's.

28/05/2024

Appalachian Places has published a new May update!

Featured in this edition is the final of a three-part series on bluegrass music history by Jack Tottle. Additional stories include a historical look at “Appalachia’s other company towns,” and a remembrance of revered Appalachian writer and poet Fred Chappell. We chronicle the Tennessee Mountain Writers annual conference, Rhonda Vincent’s visit with ETSU students, and a look back at one of Scotland’s most influential folk artists.

In this update:

“African American contributions to the Appalachian bluegrass of Lester Flatt, Earl Scruggs, Buck Graves, and others” – Written by Jack Tottle, this is the final story in a three-part series on the evolution of bluegrass music including its origins, influences, and inspirations in Appalachia and beyond. In this story, Tottle opens by shining a light on Beyoncé’s success with her latest country album “Cowboy Carter,” then reviews the debt owed by country, bluegrass and other genres to African American songs and artists who paved the way for the unique sounds and lyrics of each genre.

“Appalachia’s other company towns” – Thomas E. Wagner and Phillip J. Obermiller write about the history of Appalachian company towns and debunk common misconceptions. While company towns are most often associated with coal mining, the authors expand on company towns and employee housing built around textiles, apparel, paper, railroads, and more.

“I Carry the Mountains with Me Wherever I Go: Remembering Fred Chappell” – Appalachian Places poetry editor Jesse Graves shares a touching remembrance of Chappell, who influenced Graves and countless other writers. Graves paints a picture of deep respect, admiration, and fondness for Chappell, who passed in January.

“Dick Gaughan’s ‘Handful of Earth’: Deep roots in other people’s soil” – Ted Olson writes about the work and life of Scotland’s Dick Gaughan, one of the most influential folk musicians living in the U.K. today. The story features an interview with British music journalist Ken Hunt, with whom Olson reflects on the international impact of Gaughan’s music, particularly his seminal album Handful of Earth (1981).

“Students of traditional Appalachian music spend time with bluegrass royalty” – Mark Rutledge, Appalachian Places’ managing editor, reports on Grammy award-winner, Grand Ole Opry member and “Queen of Bluegrass” Rhonda Vincent’s two-day residency last February with ETSU’s Bluegrass, Old-Time, and Roots Music Studies program.

“Tennessee Mountain Writers conference celebrates 35 years of sharing creative skills and energy” – Lacy Snapp shares stories from the 3-day Tennessee Mountain Writers conference held in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, this April. The annual conference has become a staple among the state’s writing community and even included a session with Fred Sauceman, a former editor of Now and Then magazine, the print forerunner of Appalachian Places.

Poetry in this edition of Appalachian Places features poems by promising young writers Ian Hall and Stacey Lounsberry, with poetry about close connections of family and place by Mitzi Dorton and Frederick Wilbur. Finally, we have a set of poems by West Virginia Poet Laureate Marc Harshman

17/02/2024

Appalachian Places has new content!

Appalachian Places has published a February update led by, “Bill Monroe’s bluegrass — Black and white music intertwined,” the second in a three-part series on the evolution of bluegrass music by Jack Tottle, founder of East Tennessee State University’s Bluegrass, Old-Time, and Roots Music Studies program.

Also featured in this update:

“Tim Stafford planning year two of Artist in Residence term at ETSU” – Mark Rutledge, Appalachian Places’ managing editor and communications coordinator for the ETSU Department of Appalachian Studies, writes about Tim Stafford. As an IBMA three-time Songwriter of the Year and SPBGMA Guitar Player of the Year with over 250 recorded songwriting cuts, multiple albums and 30 years of touring with his band Blue Highway, Stafford continues to bring rich insights to students. Tim Stafford

“Appalachian books and picket lines: A conversation with George Brosi” – Ron Roach, chair and professor of the Department of Appalachian Studies and co-editor of Appalachian Places, honors George Brosi, retired owner of Appalachian Mountain Books, with a Q&A interview regarding Brosi’s years of service, dedication to the Appalachian community, and overall regional impact.

“From Iran to Appalachia: A journey in rural health care” – Jason Soong shares the story of Dr. Fereshteh Gerayli, who received the Notable Women of ETSU Award for 2023 for her work in women’s health care. Gerayli was raised in and completed her initial medical training in Iran, where she worked with severely underserved communities. Gerayli went on to continue working with underserved communities when she did her family medicine residency in Hazard, Kentucky, after immigrating to the United States to continue her education at the University of Kentucky College of Medicine.

Mark Sarver breaks down the findings of a recent Glenville State University research project. The study reveals some combined factors, including leadership, community volunteers, festivals and marketing initiatives, which have elevated the economic conditions of several counties originally labelled by the Appalachian Regional Commision labeled as “distressed.” Glenville State University

Poetry in this edition of Appalachian Places features two poems by Now & Then’s founding editor and ETSU Professor Emeritus Fred Waage. Additional poems include works by Connie Jordan Green, Danny P. Barbare, Morgan Boyer, and Larry D. Thacker.

28/11/2023

Appalachian Places has new content!

'A conversation with Jim Minick' – Jake Lawson interviews Jim Minick, renowned Appalachian poet and author, in advance of his recent visit to speak at ETSU. Minick is an award-winning author of eight books, including poetry, memoir, fiction, and nonfiction. Much of his work involves themes of place, conservation, and environmentalism. Appalachian Places has posted a November update topped with an article by Jack Tottle, his first in a series on the evolution of bluegrass music and its influences from Appalachia and beyond. The founder of the Bluegrass, Old-Time, and Roots Music Program at East Tennessee State University, Tottle describes how radio broadcasts of Appalachian string bands helped ignite his passion for music as a boy growing up in Washington, D.C. ETSU Bluegrass, Old Time & Country Music - Alumni & Friends Literature and Language Department at ETSU

'Lilley Cornett Woods: The Hill Country’s legacy' – Historian and author Scott Honeycutt tells the story of Lilley Cornett Woods, one of the few remaining old growth forests in Kentucky. The forest is home to the Lilley Cornett Woods Appalachian Ecological Research Station, which has allowed researchers and students to use the forest for a variety of short-term and long-term nature studies. Lilley Cornett Woods Appalachian Ecological Research Station

'Experience The Warrior’s Canvas & Women Veteran's Art Exhibit' – Appalachian Places staff visited to The Women Veteran's Art Exhibit at James H. Quillen VA Medical Center in Johnson City, Tennessee, on Aug. 25, 2023. Hosted by the Warrior’s Canvas & Veterans Art Center in Johnson City, the exhibit featured lots of color in various mediums with expressions of art and culture from women veterans. James H Quillen VA Medical Center

Western North Carolina novelist Terry Roberts has contributed an essay about his friendship with the influential Appalachian educator and novelist John Ehle, who died in 2018. Roberts describes how Ehle’s writings and mentorship helped shape Roberts’ narrative style and character construction.

Poetry in this edition of Appalachian Places features three poems by Jim Minick, one of Appalachia’s renowned poets who visited and spoke at ETSU this November. Additional poems include works by Darnell Arnoult, Bart Sides, Kevin LeMaster, and the late Arthur Smith.

Read more by visiting us at www.appalachianplaces.org

ETSU Appalachian Studies ETSU College of Arts & Sciences

07/08/2023

With this late summer update of Appalachian Places, readers will learn about the music and life’s work of Mildred Katharine Ellis, a native of Johnson City, Tennessee, who organized the 1947 “Negro Music Festival” at East Tennessee State University. Jeremy Smith, director of the Archives of Appalachia at ETSU, writes about how the festival was a bold and successful endeavor given that the university was still racially segregated at the time.

Phillip J. Obermiller and Thomas E. Wagner treat us to a look into the long history of Appalachian railways and their impact on rural communities.

Kevin O’Donnell, director of the Environmental Studies minor in the Department of Appalachian Studies at ETSU, shares an in-depth look at Dysart Woods, Ohio’s last old-growth forest, efforts to preserve it and how it has been affected by coal mining.

Explore a story about Africa’s shared mountain culture with the Appalachians, written by Abu Afful, a Ghanaian master’s student in the ETSU Brand and Media Strategy program.

Featured poetry in this update includes poetry by celebrated poet and podcaster Maurice Manning, as well as pieces by KB Ballentine, Alan May and Sharon Ackerman.

Click on the images to read more about each story, and visit https://www.appalachianplaces.org/ for the full articles.

16/05/2023

It's that time again!! Appalachian Places has new content.

This update of Appalachian Places includes a story of Appalachian culture adopted by the people of mountain regions elsewhere, and traditional cultures of other countries thriving in an Appalachian community. Read about a documentary project highlighting bluegrass music on a mountain in Slovakia, and the popularity of some long-established Cuban restaurants in the mountains of northern Georgia.

Look for a Q&A story profiling this edition’s featured poet, Kari Gunter-Seymour, poet laureate of Ohio and founder of the Women of Appalachia Project. We also attended a Community Quilt Day in Jonesborough, Tennessee — part of a series put on by the Quilt Alliance, based in Asheville, North Carolina.

“Flan in Appalachia: Finding flavors of the Caribbean in the mountains of Georgia” — Food writer Fred Sauceman documents the popularity of Cuban restaurants in small mountain towns of northern Georgia, as well as the family histories that provide the recipes for success.

“Kosodrevina, 2019: Documenting bluegrass on a mountain in Slovakia” — Lee Bidgood describes how dissertation research in 2007 led to his 2019 film documentary about how bluegrass-related music thrives in the mountains of Slovakia. Watch the documentary and read about Bidgood’s visit to the Kosodrevina Muzikantský Kemp (Musicians’ Camp).

“Community Quilt Days stitch together the past and present” — The Quilt Alliance preserves material heritage and American history by allowing quilters and quilt enthusiasts to create brief “Go Tell It!” videos for a documentation project to capture the stories and histories of quilts.

“A conversation with Kari Gunter-Seymour” — The poet laureate of Ohio shares with Lacy Snapp about her family’s European and Appalachian migration history and how that has shaped her perspective and poetry, and her work as founder and executive director of the Women of Appalachia Project.

Poetry in this edition of Appalachian Places features poems by Kari Gunter-Seymour, Catherine Hamrick, Jessica Cory, Reneé Critcher Lyons, and John Thomas York.

28/02/2023

Appalachian Places has new content!

In this update of Appalachian Places, we highlight the voices of Eastern Kentucky residents impacted by the catastrophic flooding in July 2022. Our coverage includes a story, co-published with the digital newsletter 100 Days in Appalachia, linking to a short documentary on flood relief efforts. This piece's contributors – Skylar Baker-Jordan and P.B. Cooley – are both pursuing a Master's of Arts in Appalachian Studies at ETSU. Appalachian Places also presents two eyewitness accounts of the flooding by writers who were there.

We have a tribute to poet Jeff Daniel Marion; images and sound files from the Reece Museum’s recent event “Hip Hop History: A Cultural Celebration;” and featured poetry including a piece by G.C. Waldrep, a renowned poet whose first published piece was in Now & Then: The Appalachian Magazine, the print forerunner of Appalachian Places.

“'When the Water Goes Down'”– Appalachian Places staff member Skylar Baker-Jordan, alongside filmmakers P.B. Cooley and Jacob Higgs, recorded the stories of Eastern Kentuckians three months after the devastating floods. “Don’t forget us” is a theme expressed throughout the film.

“Slow recovery threatens hope in Eastern Kentucky” – Courtney Rhoades Mullins writes a firsthand account of the flood’s initial and lingering effects in Whitesburg, Kentucky. She touches on mitigation needs, permanent housing issues, strong generational ties to the land, and other issues that prevent residents from moving elsewhere.

“Flood alters Hindman Settlement School's ‘safe bubble’ experience” – Amy Richardson recalls the night of the flood and the terrifying series of events that took place that evening and into the following day. Hindman, Kentucky, experienced historic flooding causing 17 deaths in Knott County and extensive damage to the town and buildings.

“Rappalachian Soundbox: Cultural identity, soulful effects & fresh connections” – Rebecca Proffitt writes about the partnership between East Tennessee State University's Reece Museum and the Black American Studies Program, which has developed an annual series of events called Hip Hop History: A Cultural Celebration. Enjoy photos, videos, and audio from the second-annual event.

“A friendship rooted in shared passions continues to bloom in Appalachia” – Seth Grindstaff interviews poet Ted Kooser about his friend Jeff Daniel Marion. Included is Kooser’s poem “Danny,” written in honor of Marion.

Poetry in this edition of Appalachian Places features poems by G.C. Waldrep, Elaine Fowler Palencia, William Rieppe Moore and Sam Campbell.

Read here: https://www.appalachianplaces.org/

100 Days in Appalachia

20/12/2022

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all of our readers this holiday season. Appalachian Places has a special feature article this December.

Skylar Baker-Jordan writes a special feature highlighting the stories of two former participants of the ETSU Governor's School Scientific Exploration of Tennessee Heritage program to learn how their experiences helped shaped their educational and professional careers. Applications for the program are open until Jan. 17, 2023 and requirements can be found here: etsu.edu/cas/cass/governors

Read the story here: https://www.appalachianplaces.org/post/governors-school-gets-students-out-of-the-classroom-and-into-tennessees-great-outdoors



ETSU Appalachian Studies

By Skylar Baker-Jordan | How a state program for high school students has been changing lives since 1985...

21/11/2022

Appalachian Places has new content!


We begin the 2022 holiday season with a tribute to Helen Matthews Lewis; images from the Tilson Mountain Sorghum Festival; a dedication to perhaps the earliest bluegrass record label; notes from the 2022 Ulster-American Symposium; featured poetry; a memorable evening with Nobel-Prize laureate Seamus Heaney; and a feature on seed varieties for Appalachian gardens kept by the Seed Savers Exchange. Read also an editors’ note by Appalachian Places Co-Editors Ron Roach and Rebecca Adkins Fletcher celebrating the magazine’s first year of operation.


“Helen Matthews Lewis: Active Remembrance”– Appalachian Places Co-Editor Rebecca Adkins Fletcher writes about giving permanent residence to a book by the “Grandmother of Appalachian Studies,” with reflections from past and current graduate students on Lewis’ lasting influence as a legendary defender of Appalachia and women’s rights.

“A Pioneering ‘Bluegrass Label’: The Achievement of James Hobart Stanton and Rich-R-Tone Records” – Ted Olson writes about the historic record label —honored in November with a Tennessee historical marker — that operated in Johnson City from 1946 and through the 1950s. The label’s founder, the late James Hobart Stanton, made the earliest recordings of the Stanley Brothers and released records of several other first-generation bluegrass acts.


“Sorghum Festival Has Sweet Spot for Appalachian Heritage” – Enjoy photos and a video by Lee Bidgood featuring a sorghum-milling and syrup-making event on a beautiful fall Saturday in Unicoi County, Tennessee.


“Seed Savers Exchange Stewards Heirloom Appalachian Varieties at Heritage Farm in Iowa” – Sara Friedl-Putnam, communications coordinator at Seed Savers Exchange in Decorah, Iowa, writes about Appalachian varieties developed and kept at the Exchange for spring gardens everywhere. Seed Savers Exchange


“Ulster-American Heritage Symposium Explores ‘Transatlantic Transitions’” – Jane MacMorran writes about the 2022 Symposium, which drew scholars to ETSU for the June 19-22 event to explore the interconnectedness of place and visit local historic sites, including the Appalachian Trail.


Poetry in this edition of Appalachian Places features poems by Don Johnson, Denton Loving, Thomas Alan Holmes and Sam Barbee.


“‘A Wee Bit of the Irish:’ My Time With Nobel Laureate Seamus Heaney” – Don Johnson, retired professor of English and poet in residence at ETSU, shares memories of spending time with the late Seamus Heaney when the famous Irish poet visited Bridgewater State College in Bridgewater, Massachusetts, in 1982.


“A Look Back at the First Year of Appalachian Places” – Co-Editors Ron Roach and Rebecca Adkins Fletcher look at how the magazine has lived up to its name and mission by publishing stories, poems and expressions of places across Appalachia and other highland regions.

27/10/2022

By Gina Phillips | People often speak of Halloween as being a scary time. But rugged mountaineers in the 1830s apparently didn't need...

08/10/2022

Appalachian Places magazine has been updated with new content. This fall 2022 update highlights the ongoing flood recovery in eastern Kentucky and includes features on fall festivals, remembering a beloved Appalachian poet, and regular poetry installments.

“We are a proud people, but we also need some help” –
Enterprise reporting by Appalachian Places staffer Skylar Baker-Jordan focuses on the people of one eastern Kentucky county suffering heavily from the devastating flooding of July 28. Our story has updates from residents and public officials in Breathlitt County, Kentucky, and the tragic story of one family’s loss.

“National Storytelling Festival celebrates 50th staging of ‘storied’ event” – Writer Ted Olson talks to the president of the International Storytelling Center and the festival’s beginnings, its historical significance in Appalachia, and the multicultural importance of storytelling among all peoples. (The festival is happening this weekend.)

“Remembering Jeff Daniel Marion: Poems and Remembrances for Appalachian Places” – On July 29, 2021, Appalachia lost one of its most beloved and esteemed poets, East Tennessee’s own Jeff Daniel Marion. To recognize the anniversary of his passing, Appalachian Places is honored to share three unpublished Marion poems and three remembrances by some of those who were closest to him, as well as a full obituary that recounts some of his many accomplishments.

“Mitchell County, N.C., Launches Hilloween Festival: History and Mystery in the Blue Ridge Mountains” – The inaugural celebration, which is planned to be a yearly event, will present a lighthearted look at the harvest season with three separate days of events in three Mitchell County towns. Centered around the local legend of Frankie and Charlie Silver, future festivals will include other local lore and mysteries.

Enjoy 13 new poems exploring a global view of Highland places, opening with Jonathan Johnson of Scottish heritage (May Is an Island and The Desk on the Sea). Tony Reevy (Ghost Train!, Old North, Passage and Socorro) shares North Carolina orchards and memories from the kind of country store rarely found today. Beth Copeland (1999 Bright Hill Press Poetry Book Award winner, author of Selfie with Cherry and Traveling through Glass) gives us two poems of feeling attuned with the peaks around us. We close this installment with five new poems in the original Spanish by Isabel Gómez Sobrino (previously published in Letras Femeninas (now REGS) and Furman217, author Whispering Ashes) alongside translations into English by Matthew Fehskens.

Read more by visiting us at https://www.appalachianplaces.org

01/08/2022

New Appalachian Places Update Live Now!

Appalachian Places magazine has been updated with new content. This issue features a wide variety of stories and interviews, with a special multi-poet feature and a republished From The Vault piece written by the late Richard Blaustein, former director of East Tennessee State University’s Center of Excellence for Appalachian Studies and Services.


A Partnership that Works: An Interview with Gayle Manchin, Federal Co-Chair of the ARC –– Ron Roach, chair of the Department of Appalachian Studies at ETSU, interviews Gayle Manchin as she reflects on her first year as the 13th federal co-chair of the Appalachian Regional Commission. Manchin expands on her goals and activism for the Appalachian region, and collaboration with partnering states.


From The Vault: Exploring Rural Roots –– Enjoy this republished From The Vault piece written by ETSU’s first director of the Center of Excellence for Appalachian Studies and Services, Richard Blaustein. Taken from the 1990 volume of Now & Then: The Appalachian Magazine Issue 7, No. 1, Blaustein reflects on his childhood and connection to rural Appalachia. ETSU’s director of Old-Time Music Studies, Roy Andrade, introduces readers to Blaustein’s legacy and the new Reece Museum exhibit honoring his life.


Oral History Project Champions Forgotten Baseball Team — The Elizabethton Blue Grays last played in 1955, shortly before Major Leage Baseball began fully integrating. The team has been memorialized and is now celebrated in its home city and beyond, thanks to the effort of a grassroots group working to document and preserve the history of Elizabethton’s African American community.


Upper East Tennessee Fiddler’s Convention Celebrates Old-Time Style, Traditions –– Enjoy a photo gallery capturing the 2022 Upper East Tennessee Fiddler’s Convention, which is a celebration of the early old-time musicians of southern Appalachia and their methods for establishing regional playing styles. The brief introduction features thoughts from Lamar Alexander Rocky Fork State Park’s Park Manager Tim Pharis and old-time player Roy Andrade.


Enjoy 10 new poems collected from promising rising poet Micah Daniel McCrotty (Louisiana Literature, Still: The Journal) and established poets Linda Parsons (Southern Poetry Review, Shenandoah, copy editor of Chapter 16) and Rita Sims Quillen (finalist for the Weatherford Award in Appalachian Literature from Berea College). Both Linda and Rita served on the original Now & Then team and will be familiar to longtime readers.

24/05/2022

This is a GoFundMe organized by ETSU's Department of Appalachian Studies and Services Department Chair (and our Co-Editor) Dr. Ron Roach. Please consider donating if you are willing and able to assist Ukrainian refugees.

Students for Appalachian Studies at East Tennessee State University is raising… Ronald Roach needs your support for Help Refugees in the Mountains of Ukraine

20/04/2022

Thanks to Chapter 16 for this shoutout!

Appalachian Places' poetry update was mentioned in the weekly newsletter of popular poetry magazine and organization Chapter 16, who does great work for Tennessee writers. Check out our recent update for poetry by Shuly Xóchitl Cawood, Susan O’Dell Underwood, and Marianne Worthington at appalachianplaces.org.

05/04/2022

Appalachian Places has new content!

This issue features stories, photo essays, and poems related to women in Appalachia in honor of Women’s History Month, which was observed in March, as well as other topics. Features include:

“bell hooks Lives On" — Beth Feagan remembers the life and accomplishments of her friend bell hooks, a renowned poet, feminist, and social activist with over 40 books to her name. In this moving narrative, Feagan allows readers into her friendship with bell to experience her final days.

“Emma Bell Miles: A Place of Her Own” — Grace Toney Edwards writes about Appalachian feminist Emma Bell Miles, who penned 17 short stories featuring women’s stories and identities, particularly those of women in the Appalachian region.

“Celebrating Women of Appalachia: From the Archives of Appalachia, East Tennessee State University” – With images contributed from the Archives of Appalachia, Sandy Laws presents a collection of photos of women in Appalachia. Women featured include, coal miners, basket weavers, teachers, farmers, and more. The photo essay also features Cherokee and Native American women in Appalachia.

“Nicely Done: Continuing the Work and Mission of Sammie L. Nicely” – Rebecca Proffitt, interim director of the B. Carroll Reece Museum, writes about the life and artistic work of Sammie L. Nicely, whose family recently donated 50 works from his personal art collection to the museum.

Enjoy nine new poems by prominent female poets Shuly Xóchitl Cawood (Adrienne Bond Award for Poetry), Susan O’Dell Underwood (published in A Literary Field Guide to Southern Appalachia, and Still: The Journal), and Marianne Worthington (2021 Weatherford Award for Best Books about Appalachia).

Check out these features by visiting us at www.appalachianplaces.org

15/02/2022

Appalachian Places has new content!

Appalachian Places magazine has been updated with new content. In addition to all previous stories and poems, new features include:

UPDATE: “Can’t Be Put In a Box” — View updated video content filmed by Dave Smith of the Nov. 13, 2021, Doc Watson tribute concert at Lees-McRae College in Banner Elk, North Carolina. The concert highlighted Doc Watson’s musical legacy and newly released collection “Doc Watson – Life's Work: A Retrospective,” produced and curated by Dr. Ted Olson.

“Peck’s Addition: The Intentional Destruction of an Urban Appalachian Neighborhood” — Phillip J. Obermiller writes about the aftermath of the annexation of Peck’s Addition by the city of Hamilton, Ohio, in 1908, including the treatment of the Appalachian people who lived there and the opening of a city dump on the property.

“NASCAR’s ‘Last American Hero’ was an Appalachian hero first” — Kent Benfield of Greensboro, North Carolina, writes about the impact Junior Johnson had on stock car racing and Appalachian culture in Western North Carolina, and the influence of New Journalism writer Tom Wolfe’s 1965 article about Johnson and NASCAR.

“‘The American Chestnut’: An Interview with Author Donald Edward Davis” — Appalachian Places co-editor Dr. Rebecca Adkins Fletcher interviews Don Davis on his book The American Chestnut, exploring the ecological significance, historical and economic importance, and ongoing conservation efforts to “bring back” the American chestnut through genetic modification.

Enjoy six new poems by Fred Chappell — A 40-year University of North Carolina Greensboro professor emeritus, Chappell is a native of Canton, North Carolina, and has authored more than 30 volumes of poetry, novels, short stories, and essays. His many honors include a Woodrow Wilson fellowship, a Rockefeller Grant, and the Award in Literature from the National Institute of Arts and Letters.