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Stories of Appalachia: Daily Summaries Delivered
by Steve Gilly, Rod Mullins
Welcome to "Stories of Appalachia," the podcast where hosts Steve Gilly and Rod Mullins have been unraveling the captivating history and folklore of the Appalachian region since 2015. Join them as they guide you through mist-covered mountains and winding rivers, exploring the stories that define the heart and soul of Appalachia.
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- 1 weeks ago20 min
Into the Unknown: John Lederer's Journeys Into Appalachia
In the late 1600’s, Dr. John Lederer, a German immigrant to the Virginia colony, became one of the first Europeans to explore the Appalachian region. Between 1669 and 1670, Lederer made three trips into the Blue Ridge Mountains, traveled west and south through Native territories in Virginia and the Carolinas, and searched for a passage west through the Alleghenies.Along the way he encountered wolves, rattlesnakes, deadly spiders, Native villages, rumors of strange bearded white men, and stories that hinted at vast inland waterways beyond Appalachia. Lederer’s journal about his travels became one of the earliest written descriptions of Appalachia.Be sure to subscribe to the Stories podcast. You’ll find us wherever you get your favorite podcasts.Thanks for listening!
- 2 weeks ago13 min
The Varmint of Burkes Garden
The highest mountain valley in Virginia is Burke’s Garden, also referred to as “God’s Thumbprint” for its bowl-like shape.It was here that something began killing sheep in the winter of 1952. Night after night, farmers woke to fresh losses, and no one could agree on what was responsible. Was it a wolf, a panther, or something stranger and unexplainable? This week we tell the story of Burke’s Garden and the mysterious predator that became known as the “Varmint of Burke’s Garden” and gripped an Appalachian community with fear for nearly a year.If you like our stories, be sure to subscribe to the Stories podcast. You’ll find us wherever you get your favorite podcasts.Thanks for listening!
- 3 weeks ago26 min
They Claimed They Spoke For God: Appalachia's 19th Century New Eden
This week we tell the strange and little-known story of the Mountain Cove Community, a spiritualist commune founded in the mountains of what’s now West Virginia in the early 1850s.Led by Reverends Thomas Lake Harris and James L. Scott, the group believed they could communicate with spirits, build a new Eden in Appalachia, and create a perfect society apart from the corruption of the outside world. But as power, prophecy, and control grew inside the community, Mountain Cove began to unravel.If you enjoy Appalachian history and folklore, be sure to subscribe to the Stories podcast.Thanks for listening!
- 4 weeks ago18 min
The Night They Burned Superman in West Virginia
In 1948, a small town in West Virginia became the center of a growing national fear over the perceived evil influence of comic books. There, in the town of Spencer, a schoolteacher and her students gathered thousands of comic books and set them ablaze in a bonfire, starting with one featuring the Man of Steel, Superman. What led to this dramatic moment? In this episode, Rod and Steve tell the story of the time a national panic reached into the heart of Appalachia, another one of the Stories of Appalachia. If you enjoy stories like this, be sure to subscribe to the Stories podcast so you never miss an episode. You’ll find us wherever you get your favorite podcasts.Thanks for listening.
- May 2, 202625 min
Worse than Savages: The Bloody Legacy of Kirk's Raiders
George Washington Kirk was a carpenter from Greene County, Tennessee.He was also a feared and hated Union soldier/bushwhacker during the Civil War, operating in the mountains along the border of North Carolina and Tennessee. Kirk and his band of Unionists known as Kirk's Raiders were hailed as heroes by some and denounced as nothing but savages by others.From the audacious raid on Camp Vance and the brutal Battle of the Bloody Chucky at Red Banks in what’s now Erwin, to his post-war role in the Kirk-Holden War against the Ku Klux Klan, George Kirk’s story is another one of the Stories of Appalachia. If you like our stories, we’d appreciate it if you’d give us a like and a comment; be sure to subscribe, too.Thanks for listening!
- Apr 25, 202627 min
The Long Walk Home: The Harrowing Journey of Mary Draper Ingles
In 1755, the frontier settlement of Draper’s Meadow was shattered by a brutal Shawnee raid in which many settlers were killed and the survivors captured. Among those taken prisoner was Mary Draper Ingles, a young wife and mother. The group was forced into a grueling march north to a village in the Ohio country. Separated from her children and facing a winter in the wilderness, Mary made a choice that would become one of the greatest survival stories in American history.This week, we tell the story of Mary’s incredible 500-mile journey home. With nothing but a tomahawk, a knife, a blanket and sheer will, she navigated treacherous terrain and escaped starvation to return to her Virginia home in the New River Valley.If you like our stories, be sure to subscribe to the Stories podcast wherever you get your favorite podcasts.Thanks for listening!
- Apr 18, 202617 min
James Harrod: The Kentucky Pioneer and his Mysterious Disappearance
James Harrod was a soldier, a longhunter, an explorer and the man who founded Kentucky’s first permanent pioneer settlement. But in February 1792, the legendary Colonel Harrod walked into the woods and never returned.Today we tell the story of the man who founded Harrodsburg, Kentucky and the many theories surrounding his mysterious disappearance, including a possible connection to the fabled Swift’s silver mine.Be sure to subscribe to the Stories podcast so you don’t miss any of our stories. You’ll find us wherever you get your favorite podcasts.Thanks for listening!
- Apr 11, 202614 min
The Woman-Hating Hermit of Kentucky
Roger Tandy Quisenberry had every advantage in life: wealth, education, and opportunity, but chose a path few could understand. From the California Gold Rush to a dangerous expedition in Nicaragua, his early years were filled with adventure. But when he returned home to Kentucky, something had changed. He withdrew from everybody, lived alone in a crude cabin, and became known for his extreme isolation and strange behavior. Today we tell the story of Tandy Quisenberry, the woman hating hermit of Kentucky, another one of the Stories of Appalachia. Be sure to subscribe and leave us a comment on your favorite podcast app, we’d appreciate it.Also consider becoming a supporter of the podcast at spreaker.com. You'll have access to an ad-free feed of the Stories podcast plus extra unreleased episodes!Thanks for listening.
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About Stories of Appalachia
Welcome to "Stories of Appalachia," the podcast where hosts Steve Gilly and Rod Mullins have been unraveling the captivating history and folklore of the Appalachian region since 2015. Join them as they guide you through mist-covered mountains and winding rivers, exploring the stories that define the heart and soul of Appalachia.
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