by Sarah Loudin Thomas | Nov 9, 2020 | Family, History, holidays
Wednesday is Veterans Day. Which got me to thinking about the veterans in my family. And I’m not talking about Vietnam or Korea or even World War II. I’m reaching back to the days before West Virginia was even a state! It was during the Civil War that West...
by Sarah Loudin Thomas | Oct 29, 2020 | Appalachian, History, West Virginia
While I write historical fiction it’s not VERY historical. I have yet to venture back past the 1930s. But I DO sometimes reference more distant history. The Right Kind of Fool is set in Beverly, WV, a very historic town. But the bit of history that’s best...
by Sarah Loudin Thomas | Oct 8, 2020 | Appalachian, History, West Virginia
When people ask me where in West Virginia I’m from, it’s a bit of a dance. I generally say, “French Creek.” Then, when they give me a blank look, I say, “the nearest town is Buckhannon.” Mom and me failing at taking a selfie on Main...
by Sarah Loudin Thomas | Aug 6, 2020 | Appalachian, History
I’ve shared before about how West Virginia came to be a state in a pretty unusual way. Basically, some mountaineers west of the Allegheny Mountains vacated all the state (of Virginia’s) offices and filled them with their own elected officials. President...
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 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,...
