This week, in the 1920s, Oscar Micheaux was an entrepreneur filmmaker in western Virginia. He became a world-renowned director and producer. Also, Kentucky’s poet laureate lives down the road from what has been called the country’s most lethal cryptid. Attempts to spot it have led to deaths. And, we talk soul food with Xavier Oglesby, who’s passing on generations of kitchen wisdom to his niece.
Biscuits, gravy, pepperoni rolls, fried chicken, and… salt? This week on Inside Appalachia, we’re investigating the history and stories of some of Appalachia’s most famous foods with the help of Gravy, a podcast produced by the Southern Foodways Alliance.
We’ll hear about the revitalization of West Virginia’s salt production industry, the complicated history of fried chicken, and the growing popularity of Appalachian food in major urban centers.
The Hidden History of Kanawha Valley Salt
Nancy Bruns and Lewis Payne, owners of JQ Dickinson Salt
Did you know? A young Booker T. Washington cut his teeth in the salt mines in Malden, not far from where Nancy Bruns and Lewis Payne are working to revive their family’s historic salt company, JQ Dickinson Salt. The siblings have re-designed the process that their ancestors used to create the product that was known worldwide for its distinct flavor and pink hue, all the while keeping in mind the slave labor that fueled their family’s salt’s original success.
Credit Clark Davis / WV Public Broadcasting
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WV Public Broadcasting
Our Not-So-Simple Relationship with Fried Chicken
Later, we’ll take a look at the complicated relationship between race and fried chicken. While soul food has provided opportunities for economic mobility for some African Americans, many feel uncomfortable enjoying traditional food in public because of the harsh stereotypes associated with their consumption.
Credit The Clarksburg Post
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In 2013, West Virginia named the pepperoni roll its state food.
This week, in the 1920s, Oscar Micheaux was an entrepreneur filmmaker in western Virginia. He became a world-renowned director and producer. Also, Kentucky’s poet laureate lives down the road from what has been called the country’s most lethal cryptid. Attempts to spot it have led to deaths. And, we talk soul food with Xavier Oglesby, who’s passing on generations of kitchen wisdom to his niece.
This week, Inside Appalachia discusses the influence and contributions of Oscar Micheaux, an African American filmmaker who lived in Virginia in the 1920s. Mason Adams speaks with Roanoke historian Jordan Bell about Micheaux's life and career.
On this West Virginia Morning, both the U.S. and Japan are considering robots as a potential solution to an aging population amidst a caretaker crisis.
As baby boomers in West Virginia and nationwide continue to age, more Gen X and Millennial adults are finding themselves as caregivers for their parents. Pittsburgh’s major health systems are designing a new program alongside federal agencies aimed at keeping seniors at home for as long as possible.
