Rising Above Appalachian Stereotypes, Hiking the Appalachian Trail, African-American History in W.Va

Rising Above Appalachian Stereotypes: While it’s no longer politically correct to use racial, or gender-related remarks that stereotype groups of people, what about negative Appalachian stereotypes? And how do these stereotypes influence the pursuit of an education?

Sixty Years Ago: Black and White at East-West: Sixty years ago this week, two Marion County Schools – Dunbar High School and Fairmont Senior High School – met for the first – and last – time on the football field. Local historians say it was the first gridiron meeting in West Virginia of an all-black school and an all-white school. It came amid the tensions surrounding that year’s landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling on school segregation.

Credit Courtesy of the W.Va. State Archives, Bernidean Brown Collection

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Barbara Hicks Lacy Remembers Charleston During Segregation: In Charleston, West Virginia during segregation, a neighborhood known as The Block once had dozens of thriving businesses and was the heart of the African American community. Barbara Hicks Lacy recently shared her story of the ‘hey-days’, thanks to the West Virginia Center for African-American Culture and Arts.

What’s in a Name? The Appalachian town we’re exploring this week? Well, it’s a town with a name that isn’t really a name at all … or is it? Find out what’s in this Tennessee name when you listen to the podcast.

From Georgia to Maine: The Appalachian Trail is more than 2,000 miles long, stretching from Georgia to Maine. In 1955, Emma “Grandma” Gatewood became the first woman to hike the entire Appalachian Trail. She was 67 years old, and hiked the entire trail in a pair of Keds. In this story by Elliot Rambach of This Land Press, author Ben Montgomery tells how Grandma Gatewood escaped domestic violence, encountered a group of gangsters from Harlem, and scaled Mount Katahdin.

Credit Dan Schultz, Traveling 219

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More Than a Vacation: This year on August 31st, the four members of the Kallin family completed the entire length of the trail in exactly five months. Their family included one 8-year-old and one 9-year-old child. While they were still in route to Maine, NPR’s Rachel Martin spoke with the four members of the Kallin family.

Credit Dan Schultz, Traveling 219

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Watching the Hawk Migration at Hanging Rock: And along the Allegheny hiking trail in West Virginia, volunteers are busy counting the peak of the fall migration for broad-winged hawks. Volunteers have counted about 2,150 raptors in the last week. Most of these have been Broad-winged Hawks, but at least 25 bald eagles were also spotted.

Volunteers say that in the last few years more bald and golden eagles are making their home in southern West Virginia. This time last year, Roxy Todd visited the observatory to talk with the volunteers who were helping count the hawks and eagles. To see more photos, or to find directions to the observatory, click here.