Shenandoah Story Archives - West Virginia Public Broadcasting

Encore: What Is Appalachia? We Asked People From Around The Region. Here’s What They Said

This week, we’re revisiting our episode “What Is Appalachia?” from December 2021. Appalachia connects mountainous parts of the South, the Midwest, the Rust belt and even the Northeast. The Appalachian Regional Commission defined the boundaries for Appalachia in 1965 with the creation of the Appalachian Regional Commision, a part of Lyndon B. Johnson’s War on Poverty. It was legislation that sought to expand social welfare, and some localities were eager for the money, while others resisted the designation. The boundaries and definition of Appalachia can now only be changed by an act of Congress.

This week, we’re revisiting our episode “What Is Appalachia?” from December 2021. Appalachia connects mountainous parts of the South, the Midwest, the Rust belt and even the Northeast. The Appalachian Regional Commission defined the boundaries for Appalachia in 1965 with the creation of the Appalachian Regional Commission, a part of Lyndon B. Johnson’s War on Poverty. It was legislation that sought to expand social welfare, and some localities were eager for the money, while others resisted the designation. The boundaries and definition of Appalachia can now only be changed by an act of Congress.

Politically, Appalachia encompasses 423 counties across 13 states — and West Virginia’s the only state entirely inside the region.

That leaves so much room for geographic and cultural variation, as well as many different views on what Appalachia really is.

For Inside Appalachia, we turned our entire episode over to the question, “What is Appalachia?” With stories from Mississippi to Pittsburgh, we asked people across our region whether they consider themselves to be Appalachian.

A 1996 map that shows the southern part of Appalachia, as defined by John Alexander Williams.

Mississippi

Bob Owens is a watermelon farmer outside New Houlka, in the northeastern part of Mississippi. Owens said he was aware that Mississippi is part of Appalachia, but that no one in the state would consider themselves Appalachian. “I consider myself the worst redneck you’ve ever seen,” Owens said. “I live in the area of the Appalachian mountain range — not part of it, but close to it. So I guess you call me a redneck Appalachian.” This is the general consensus among the people in Mississippi we spoke to.

Geographically, the foothills of the Appalachian mountain range are located in northern Mississippi. The state’s tallest point is Woodall Mountain, 806 feet in elevation. For reference, the highest point in North Carolina, Mount Mitchell, is more than 6,600 feet in elevation, eight times higher than Woodall Mountain.

Co-host Caitlin Tan spoke with Texas State University History professor Justin Randolph, who wrote an essay for “Southern Cultures” called “The Making of Appalachian Mississippi.” Randolph argues in his essay that Mississippi became part of Appalachia for political and racial reasons, as well as economic advantages the designation brought to the 24 counties in Mississippi that were included in the ARC’s boundaries.

Shenandoah Valley

In the 1960s, while some localities were clamoring to get into Appalachia, on the eastern edge of the region, some lawmakers fought to keep their counties outside the boundaries, including politicians in Roanoke, Virginia and the Shenandoah Valley. Appalachian Studies associate professor Emily Satterwhite said explaining to her students why some counties in Virginia are included in Appalachia, but others aren’t, is confusing. “

The students in front of me are wondering why they’re not included,” White said.

Pittsburgh

Appalachia’s largest city is Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. When we asked people from that city to tell us if they consider it a part of Appalachia, about half said no. “I definitely do not feel that I am Appalachian culturally,” said Mark Jovanovich, who grew up just outside Pittsburgh’s city limits in the Woodland Hills area. “Personally, I would consider the city of Pittsburgh is sort of like a mini New York City. I guess we’d probably be lumped in as like a Rust Belt city, which makes enough sense, but definitely not Appalachian culturally.”

Writer Brian O’Neill disagrees. He wrote a book called The Paris of Appalachia: Pittsburgh in the Twenty-First Century. “My original title for the book was ‘I love Pittsburgh like a brother and my brother drives me nuts.’”

An editor advised him to change the title of his book to a phrase that he said is sometimes used to refer to Pittsburgh derisively. “I couldn’t figure out why that should be a putdown, because Paris is nice. And Appalachia is a beautiful part of the world. And if we were called the Paris of the Rockies, we wouldn’t run from that. So why would we run from this? Why don’t we embrace it? So that became the title of my book.”

He said that geographically, Pittsburgh is clearly in the Appalachian Mountains. “I mean, this is one mountain range that stretches from Georgia to Maine. And the idea that it belongs only to the southern part of the mountain range defies logic to me,” O’Neill said.

What Do You Think?

How about you? Do you call yourself an Appalachian? Why or why not? Send us an email to InsideAppalachia@wvpublic.org.

——

Our theme music is by Matt Jackfert. Other music this week was provided by John Wyatt, John R Miller, Alan Cathead Johnston, and Dinosaur Burps. Roxy Todd originally produced this episode. Bill Lynch is our current producer. Our executive producer is Eric Douglas. Alex Runyon was our associate producer on this original episode. Kelley Libby is our editor. Our audio mixer is Patrick Stephens. Zander Aloi also helped produce this episode.

You can find us on Instagram, Threads and Twitter @InAppalachia. Or here on Facebook.

Sign-up for the Inside Appalachia Newsletter!

Inside Appalachia is a production of West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

National Park Visitors, Spending Increase, Driven By New River Gorge

Last year and in 2021, national park visitor spending in the state topped $100 million for the first time.

More people are coming to West Virginia’s national parks and they’re spending more, according to a report from the National Park Service.

Visitors and spending increased after the New River Gorge National Park and Preserve gained national park status.

In late 2020, the New River Gorge became the newest unit of the National Park Service. Last year, and in 2021, national park visitor spending in the state topped $100 million for the first time.

Park visitation increased to 1.6 million in 2021 and 2022, up from 1 million in 2020 and 1.2 million in 2018 and 2019.

The Harpers Ferry National Historical Park also registered an uptick in the past two years: 400,000 visitors last year, and 300,000 in 2021.

More visitors came to New River last year and in 2021 than went to Virginia’s Shenandoah National Park, which charges an entrance fee.

November 22, 1825: Kanawha Valley Pioneer Anne Bailey Dies

Kanawha Valley pioneer Anne Bailey died in Gallipolis, Ohio, on November 22, 1825, at about age 83. It’s not clear when the native of Liverpool, England, emigrated to America. However, she was living in Staunton, Virginia, by 1761.

After her husband was killed by Indians in the 1774 Battle of Point Pleasant, she swore to avenge his death. She taught herself how to shoot a gun and became a scout. Some say this is when she earned the nickname “Mad Anne.”

She roamed the Western Virginia wilderness for 11 years, relaying messages between frontier forts. About 1785, she married Greenbrier County soldier John Bailey but continued scouting. In addition, she supposedly drove livestock from the Shenandoah to the Kanawha Valley.

A frequently quoted legend says that Anne Bailey carried gunpowder from Lewisburg to relieve a 1790 siege on Fort Lee at the present site of Charleston. Writers of that time didn’t mention the incident, so most historians consider the story to be fiction. Regardless, Anne Bailey’s services to frontier settlements were invaluable and remain a powerful symbol of the fortitude of pioneer women.

November 22, 1825: Kanawha Valley pioneer Anne Bailey dies

Listen: Bob Thompson Play "Shenandoah" on Mountain Stage

This week’s Mountain Stage Song of the week features our own Bob Thompson, with his take on the classic American folk tune “Shenandoah,” which was recorded live on the campus of James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia.

During the episode you’ll also hear performances by The Steel Wheels, The Seldom Scene, The Honeycutters, and Jonatha Brooke.

Like what you hear? Download the entire show right now on the Mountain Stage podcast (just look for Ep. 877). While you’re at it, make sure to subscribe, leave us a rating/review and send us a tweet with your favorite song: we’re @mountainstage.