(Photo above was taken in Cabin Creek, 1918, part of David S. Skaggs collection)
From the series Celebrating Appalachia
10 Things People Say in Appalachia
From the Language and Life Project at North Carolina State University
Some of the most eloquent English I have ever read was written by people of Southern West Virginia, so I have a hard time relating to videos about “Appalachian English”. I’m not sure where exactly these people live; I know some live in North Carolina and Tennessee. I am not “putting down” so-called Appalachian English. From my studies of sociolinguistics, I have learned to respect all languages and dialects. However, I must say I can’t remember any of my WV relatives talking like this, and they and their ancestors had lived in the boonies for generations. They were very ordinary folks, not aristocratic by any means. My grandma might have thrown in a few of these unusual words, but, in general, her English was very standard and grammatically correct, and that was true of many citizens of Fayette County. Even in the oldest accounts going back to Greenbrier County, we have read how many folks wrote poetry—even if it was “verse” and not really poetry. The speeches and sermons we come across from the late 1700s and early 1800s are impressive, even if the handwriting and spelling is awkward. However, some of them had absolutely exquisite penmanship. And if you want to read fantastic writing, read the newspapers! My conclusion is that the “Appalachian English,” while colorful and interesting, does not at all describe the way many people spoke even 200 years ago.
Here is an example of the writing of Rev. Allen Wood, who was born around 1813: “I have lately held a two days' meeting in a section of the country where not a single sermon from a Baptist minister up to that time had been preached. So strong was the prejudice against the denomination, that it was supposed not more than ten persons would attend the meetings, but contrary to our expectation, a large congregation was in attendance. And under the power of divine truth, many wept like children. At the close of the meetings, several persons came forward and urged me to come back again and preach for them. There are many such sections in this and the adjoining counties, where the people are, to a great extent, ignorant of Baptists and Baptist principles. Should I be permitted to continue in the employment of the Board, I want to devote much of my time to such places.” He was born in Monroe County and was a third-generation native of the New River area.
See my previous newsletter called Our Very Literate Ancestors.
Also see my previous newsletter Health and Healing, Then and Now, Part 3.
From the series The Appalachian Storyteller
Appalachia’s Favorite Mountain Man: The True Story of Uncle Bush
From the Donnie Laws series
Life in the Coal Mining Camps in the Southern Appalachia Coal Fields (mostly south of WV)
Also check out this valuable resource on immigrant ancestors:
From Augusta Heritage Center, Elkins, West Virginia
Fiddle and Dance at August Bluegrass Week
I never saw anything like this in Fayette County, West Virginia. I think I heard some bluegrass music on my grandma’s TV, but not much. I have come to like bluegrass music in recent years, but I didn’t even know what clogging was until adulthood.
From Kindred Valley
From Five-Minute Genealogy:
Why Your Scotch-Irish Ancestors Moved So Frequently
From The Vanntage Point:
Origins of Appalachian and Southern Surnames #68
Origins of Appalachian and Southern Surnames, #67
The Irish Sea and the Birth of the Ulster-Scots People
Are Southern Appalachian People Unique?
Surnames of Appalachia and the American South Ep 10
Surnames of Appalachia and the American South #16 (See minute 6:15 for Johnson/Johnston(e)
From Forged in Ulster:
Wayfaring Stranger (Musical links between Scotland, Ulster & the USA) Pt.1