LENOIR, N.C. — Greetings and Happy Summer! We’ve got the first of many heatwaves coming our way. Be safe. Look after one another. I just completed my “spring cleaning” of the blog, meaning many articles are now archived, though not visible. Those articles remaining are still relevant. So, if you’re looking for a way to pass the time, consider the articles below which we’ve published. Some are recent, some not so much so. Still, many readers may have missed these the first time around, so these are offered for your consideration.

The Our Story Traveling Museum

Articles about the work of Wess Harris in telling the story of the struggle by coal miners to form the United Mine Workers of America.

Who Tells Our Story? Are Self-Anointed Caretakers of Appalachian History Hiding the Truth? (04/14/24): When Appalachian history is inconveniently true, it is also conveniently ignored by the “Gatekeepers.” This account is the epitome of this failure of initiative and leadership.

Wess Harris Reveals His Unlikely Path as Curator of ‘An Incredible History that Hasn’t Been Told’ (02/27/24): The story behind the chance meeting that led to a lifelong turn of the work of Wess Harris.

The Rest of the Story: The ‘When Miners March Traveling Museum’ by Sociologist Wess Harris (01/23/24): Includes references to two books edited by Wess Harris: “When Miners March” and “Written in Blood: Courage and Corruption in the Appalachian War of Extraction.” Both are must reading for any person wishing to understand the whole, sordid story of the tactics of coal operators.

The First Coal Wars and the Convict Lease System – Preserving the Teaching of ‘Boomer’ Winfrey (11/23/23): Institutional racism is theme of this account. It is a rare glimpse at the key moment when coal miners decided to defend themselves against coal operators using black-majority prison labor in place of the miners.

Features & Essays

Block Party Summers: The Joy of Growing up a West Virginian

Preserving and Honoring Mother Earth for Our Children

A Tribute to the Immigrants that Built a Culturally Rich Community in West Virginia

Appalachian Gems – Jennie Yount: ‘We’ll just talk.’

Why I’m Not Looking for the Fountain of Youth in My ‘Pensioner’ Years

© Michael M. Barrick, 2024. Keep in mind that the articles you see currently posted on the blog represent only about 1/4 of our posts. The majority are archived, but available upon request.