by Sarah Loudin Thomas | Jul 30, 2020 | Appalachian, Family, History
I’m a dog lover. And I enjoy researching family history. Imagine my delight in finding the two passions intersecting! These booklets are priceless resources for researching my family history. I’m descended from David Phillips who first purchased the...
by Sarah Loudin Thomas | Jul 23, 2020 | Appalachian, Family, Nature
Some friends and I have been trading jigsaw puzzles back and forth. I have a pretty good collection, mostly from my mother who shares hers with me. My friends had discovered puzzles based on art by Charley Harper, a renowned illustrator and artist who specialized in...
by Sarah Loudin Thomas | Jul 16, 2020 | Appalachian, History
More than 120 years ago, in July 1897, Edward Shue was convicted of murdering his wife Zona “Elva” Heaster Shue–thanks to HER testimony. The story out of Greenbrier County, WV, actually rates a state historic marker. And it goes something like this: On January 23,...
by Sarah Loudin Thomas | Jul 9, 2020 | Appalachian, Family, History
I love it when I discover something wonderfully Appalachian that I didn’t know about! Quilts play a key role in my Appalachian fiction and I love to surround myself with them. But learning about coffin quilts was new for me! I was researching Appalachian funeral...
by Sarah Loudin Thomas | Jul 2, 2020 | Appalachian, Family, History
When my husband and I took on the family farm in West Virginia, a big part of the reason was to preserve family history. Turns out I’m pretty sentimental and I’m fascinated with history–especially my own. This land has been held by a descendant of...
by Sarah Loudin Thomas | Jun 25, 2020 | Appalachian, folklore cures
I have freckles. More than an adorable smattering across my nose. More than a dusting across my cheeks. I have a freckle on my lip, on my eyelids, my ears. And when I was a kid I wanted them GONE. Luckily (or not) there are quite a few folklore remedies for freckles...
