The Knoxville Race RiotThe Knoxville Race Riot
In 1919 a wave of riots and lynchings occurred across America, fueled in part by a fear of communism and communist agitation among minorites and in part by fear of
Author: Steve Gilly
The Legend of the Moon-eyed PeopleThe Legend of the Moon-eyed People
Years before European settlers moved into Appalachia, native tribes from Alabama to Ohio spoke of going to war with a mysterious race of pale-skinned people who were so sensitive to
The Unfetchable Melungeon Moonshiner (Video)The Unfetchable Melungeon Moonshiner (Video)
A woman who once lived atop Newman’s Ridge in Hancock County developed a reputation as the biggest moonshiner in Appalachia, literally. Her unique ability to avoid the law brought reporters
The Last Public Hangings in Lawrence County, Kentucky and Wilkes County, North CarolinaThe Last Public Hangings in Lawrence County, Kentucky and Wilkes County, North Carolina
Today we bring you part of the end of an era of public executions in Appalachia, which had, in many cases, turned into an excuse for a carnival, with vendors
Andrew Jackson’s Giant Wheel of CheeseAndrew Jackson’s Giant Wheel of Cheese
After America’s first Appalachian president was elected, a farmer in New York decided to send him a very fragrant gift, one which President Andrew Jackson had trouble getting rid of.
Billy PossumBilly Possum
The opossum, or just plain possum as we tend to say, is, for a lot of folks, a symbol of Appalachia. It seems some important people happen to like possums
The Earthquake In A Cold Wave – February 13, 1899The Earthquake In A Cold Wave – February 13, 1899
On this day in 1899 the south was in the grip of a severe cold wave, with temperatures of 15 below zero reported in Anniston, Alabama. In the Knoxville area
The Unfetchable MoonshinerThe Unfetchable Moonshiner
One of the biggest moonshiners (literally) in Appalachia was a Melungeon woman from Newman’s Ridge in Hancock County, Tennessee. She lived an interesting life, providing shine in many ways, including
Tweetsie: The East Tennessee and Western North Carolina RailroadTweetsie: The East Tennessee and Western North Carolina Railroad
After the end of the Civil War a railroad was built to haul iron ore from the Cranberry mines in North Carolina down to a foundry in Johnson City, Tennessee.
The Outlaw Kinnie WagnerThe Outlaw Kinnie Wagner
The 1920s were a decade of loosening morals, Prohibition and crime, with notorious outlaws popping up across America. Along with the likes of Al Capone, John Dillinger and Bonnie and