Hi, Folks! This week, I decided that I would do something a little different. Most folks still like to get out and ride country roads, although the Sunday Drive does not dominate families leisure time as it did in the past. When riding country roads, most people enjoy the serene…
Hi, Folks! Meet my late paternal grandparents, Ted & Lula Tweed. Grandpa & Grandma met in 1919, when the timber & lumber industry was in full swing in the Shelton Laurel Community of northern Madison County, North Carolina. Ted was a “Bit & Harness Man” for the mule teams and…
Hi, Folks! Have y’all ever noticed how much of our ancestors works are so deceptively subtle yet so glaringly obvious when you stop and think about it? The proverbial ‘can’t see the forest for the trees?’ It’s everything from the way boards are placed on the side of a barn…
Hi, Folks! Meet Edna, fully known to God as Edna Dean Holt Shetley. Most folks just call her Miss Edna or Miss Shetley. Her late husband John called her ‘Ed-Nee’ in the Appalachian tradition of pronouncing a short A as a long E. Me? I call her ‘Mamaw’ but for…
Hi, Folks! As most of you know, Appalachia has a rich & vibrant musical heritage; particularly where Folk, Gospel, Bluegrass & Ballad music are concerned. In 1916, noted folks song revivalist Cecil Sharp came to Madison County, North Carolina in order to notate and record old English Ballads which were…
Hi, Folks! As most of you know, Appalachia has a rich & vibrant musical heritage; particularly where Folk, Gospel, Bluegrass & Ballad music are concerned. In 1916, noted folks song revivalist Cecil Sharp came to Madison County, North Carolina in order to notate and record old English Ballads which were…
Hi, Folks! Meet Ray Tweed; “Rayboy” to everyone who knows him. Rayboy picked up his unusual nickname as a child. The local school principal was also named Ray Tweed. To differentiate between the two, people started referring to the younger as “Rayboy” and the name stuck. Rayboy was raised in…
Hi, Folks! Meet Miss Polly as I call her. Mrs. Polly Gott to be exact. When looking at her life history, Polly could be considered a bit of an anomaly. The reason I say that is because Polly and her husband Peter moved here from New York in 1960 at…
Hi, Folks! This is the late Father Andrew J. Graves and The Church of The Little Flower. With the sole exception of Frances L. Goodrich, Father Graves is probably the most influential religious figure Madison County has ever known. A staunch advocate of the poor, Father Graves began his ministry…
Eleven Months & Twenty-Nine Days. Ask any old-timer that’s been around and in the know. They will tell you that was the automatic sentence anyone would receive if caught hauling moonshine years ago. “Hauling Shine” has left us with a wealth of daring, sad, and hilarious stories throughout Appalachia and…
