Old Christmas celebrations continue for twelve days. Christmas Eve by Joseph Hoover and Sons, public domain In the heart of Appalachia, when winter settles dee…

The Allen Gang. Wesley Edwards, Maude Iroler’s sweetheart, at bottom left. There’s little difference between the raging hormones of teen romance and the fra…

Legend says that the spirit of Cherokee woman Running Deer inhabits the body of the Wampus Cat. It’s a cold, foggy night in the Appalachian mountains, where …

Poorhouse Farm residents were a mix of ages and genders. Before the days of welfare programs and safety nets, communities had to find ways to care for their mo…

Wild cave openings can be deceptive. Often, there are much large caverns inside. Driving up Groundhog Mountain from Mt. Airy, NC, to Meadows of Dan, VA, I pull…

As this 1918 poster boasts, corn has long been a staple in American homes. Imagine you’re in an Appalachian kitchen, the aroma of a hearty breakfast wafting th…

Okra is an African plant that has migrated around the world. There are few culinary divides in my home. But one is so large you could drive a truck through it:…

Willie Carter Sharpe’s booking photo by the Bureau of Investigation (later known as the FBI). When you think about Prohibition-era rum runners, the image of …

Sherri and Wayne Jordan and great grandmother Jordan I love cooking breakfast; I do so most mornings. It gives a productive start to my day and challenges me…

Jack and his brothers hid their moonshine still in a cave. As I wrote a blog post about Jack Tales, I was motivated to try my hand at writing a Jack Tale of m…

We’ve all heard the story of Jack and the Beanstalk—an English boy, some magic beans, a giant, and an adventure up a towering beanstalk. But did you know that …