Stay ConnectedWelcome 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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Copyright: © Copyright Steve Gilly
Up until the end of the nineteenth century, most “doctoring” in the rural parts of Appalachia was done by folk healers or “granny-women,” who used old time roots and herbs and traditional treatments. One of the first true doctors to settle in the mountains of Southwest Virginia was an Englishman named Lawrence Haddon, who came […]
In the mid-19th century, American “filibusters” descended on Latin America with an eye on extending the United States’ influence over the area. The most notorious of these men was William Walker of Tennessee, who led his band of Tennessee and Kentucky mercenaries into Nicaragua, where he made himself dictator. To this day, Walker’s name is […]
At one time, Buchanan County, Virginia, was the home of the largest number of millionaires in the Commonwealth of Virginia, due to the money to be made mining coal. Probably the best known of these “one percenters” was Arthur M. Ratliff, also known as “Smiley.” Smiley Ratliff was a World War II vet, the first […]
In the hills of West Virginia, at White Sulphur Springs, is a fine resort, the Greenbrier. There you can enjoy fine living and also take a tour of a Cold War relic: the underground nuclear bunker designed to protect the elite of Washington politics in the event of a nuclear war with the Russians. On […]
On this episode of Stories we have a tale of love and sex and murder in the mountains of North Carolina. Steve and Rod tell you the story of Tom Dula of Wilkes County, North Carolina, whose life has been immortalized in the song “Tom Dooley.” Thanks for your ears!
Corporal Edward Dickenson from the Cracker’s Neck section of Big Stone Gap, Virginia, was captured by the Chinese during the Korean War and was one of a handful of Americans who initially refused to return to America after the war. On this episode of Stories, Steve and Rod tell you the story of Corporal Dickenson’s […]
On October 4, 1960, the lives of the residents of Kingsport, Tennessee, changed forever. It was on that date that a massive explosion occurred at the Tennessee Eastman Chemical Plant in the city, causing 15 deaths and more than 200 injuries. On this episode of Stories, Rod and Steve tell the story of that horrible […]
The world was in the middle of the Cold War on May 1, 1960, when a young Pound, Virginia, man set off on a U-2 flight from Pakistan which ended up making him part of the history of not only Appalachia, but the world. On this episode of Stories, Steve and Rod tell you the […]
On New Years Eve, 1952, 17 year old Charlie Carr was on a mission to deliver country music star Hank Williams to a concert in Canton, Ohio, and ended up driving into Appalachian history. Despite Charlie’s efforts, Hank didn’t make it to Canton, having died somewhere between Bristol, Virginia and Oak Hill, West Virginia. On […]
On December 18th, 1915, widower and President, Woodrow Wilson, married Edith Galt, from Wytheville, Virginia. The new First Lady went on to help her husband through a stroke and, some say, actually run the country during the last year of his presidency. On today’s episode, Rod and Steve tell her story. You can subscribe to […]
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