Elk Creek, Virginia, is a small, unincorporated community located in Grayson County, about a half hour from the North Carolina border. Many people in Elk Creek have deep ties to their land, and for one family taking care of their land and honoring their ancestors meant creating a traditional Japanese Shinto Garden. From Elk Creek, Folkways Reporter Wendy Welch brings us the story.
The Return Of The Headless Man And The Murdered Girl
Mike Allen And The Button Bin
Mike Allen is an award-winning science fiction, fantasy and horror writer based in Roanoke, Virginia. Besides writing, Mike also runs Mythic Delirium, a micropress that “specializes in speculative fiction and poetry, with a penchant for writing that’s challenging to classify.”
Mason Adams visited Mike to talk about fantasy and horror and to hear excerpts from one of his stories.
Molly Born And The Spooky Old Tunnel
Spooky stories can be about people, but sometimes they’re just about a place. In Mingo County, West Virginia there’s an old single-lane railroad tunnel that’s become a local legend.
Back in 2018, reporter Molly Born ventured inside the Dingess tunnel to find out what makes it so unsettling.
Ghost Story
Some people are afraid of ghosts. Others want to figure out ways to communicate with them – like Anita Allen, a writer and paranormal investigator in Roanoke.
Mason Adams talked to her about a couple of her ghost encounters.
Another Ghost Story
Haunted places dot Appalachia – moonlit hollers, mist-shrouded cemeteries, and dusty buildings that hold unspoken secrets. Playwright and theater director Dan Kehde knows just such a place in Charleston, West Virginia.
Return Of the Headless Man And The Murdered Girl
James Froemel, an actor and storyteller in Morgantown, West Virginia brought us two stories from Ruth Anne Musick.
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Our theme music is by Matt Jackfert. Other music this week was provided by The Animals, Amy Lavere, Jason Isbell, Gerry Milnes, Sierra Ferrel, Southern Culture on the Skids and Red Sovine.
Bill Lynch is our producer. Zander Aloi is our associate producer. Our executive producer is Eric Douglas. Kelley Libby is our editor. Our audio mixer is Patrick Stephens.
You can send us an email: InsideAppalachia@wvpublic.org.
On this West Virginia Morning, a new book, “The Beasts of the East: The Fall and Rise of America’s Eastern Wilderness,” looks at the process to reintroduce large game to parts of Appalachia.
Social Security began 91 years ago when President Franklin Roosevelt signed it into law. Since then, it has provided a social safety net to Americans, allowing many of them to retire with dignity, according to John Hishta, senior vice president of campaigns with AARP. But many experts say that without some action, social security benefits will have to be reduced by 20% in 2032. News Director Eric Douglas sat down with Hishta to understand the situation.
The 2026 West Virginia Quilt Festival will bring quilters from across the state and beyond to the Cedar Lakes Conference Center in Ripley Sept. 17 to Sept. 19.
It’s thunderstorm season, but not all of them are the same. For the Appalachia + Mid-South Newsroom, Bill Burton and meteorologist Tawana Andrew break down what we know – and what we don't – about the climate and weather in the region. This week, they examine different types of thunderstorms.