Inside Appalachia

This week on Inside Appalachia, we’re visiting Berkeley Springs where we sample healing waters from a natural spring so good that even George Washington traveled to check it out. We’ll also visit the Cass Scenic Railroad in Pocahontas County, West Virginia. Tourists come from all around to ride its antique trains. And there’s a crew of experts who keep ‘em running. And we speak with Kentucky author Silas House about his new novel. It’s part of a growing genre called climate fiction.

This week on Inside Appalachia, we’re learning about an unexpected immigrant to central Appalachia — the armadillo. We’ll also take a ride on the Cass Scenic Railroad and follow reporter Randy Yohe as he explores some one-of-a-kind getaways in West Virginia. And, just in time for the paw paw harvest, we revisit one of our 2020 stories about this wild food delicacy.

This week, we begin our journey through Appalachia in Floyd, Virginia, at the Friday Night Jamboree. We’ll also check in with volunteers from across the country who are coming together to help those in Eastern Kentucky dealing with flood damage. And we’ll learn about the people who worked toward securing women the right to vote. All that and more this week Inside Appalachia.

This week, we’re airing an encore episode of Inside Appalachia. We’ll meet a man who makes wooden turkey calls, not ordinary turkey calls. Painter Brian Aliff doesn’t call himself an artist, but he intricately paints his turkey calls, which are now collectors’ items. We’ll also meet people who make wooden paddles by hand and custom-decorate each one, and a man who repairs cuckoo clocks.

This week, we’re revisiting our episode “What Is Appalachia?” from December 2021.

This week on Inside Appalachia, we’re visiting the Hindman Settlement School in Kentucky, whose cultural archives were damaged by historic flooding.

One thing we know to be true about Appalachians: we love to compete. But there’s more to a competition than winning. In this week’s Inside Appalachia, we meet competitors who are also keepers of beloved regional traditions. The post Winning, Running And Flooding Inside Appalachia appeared first on West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

Inside Appalachia is 20 years old this month — we celebrate the anniversary by taking a look back with Inside Appalachia founders Giles Snyder and Beth Vorhees. The post Inside Appalachia Has Turned 20. We Talk With The Show's Founders appeared first on West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

On this week’s episode, we begin our journey through Appalachia in the meadows and woods of West Virginia to catch the buzz on beekeeping. The post Banjos, Buzzing Bees And 'No Hate In My Holler' appeared first on West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

On this week’s episode, we begin our journey through Appalachia by way of Lviv, Ukraine to learn about their version of an Appalachian dulcimer. We’ll make a roadside stop to revisit the theme park throwback Dinosaur Kingdom II in Natural Bridge, Virginia. And, we’ll swing by Lexington, Kentucky to visit the newly appointed United States Poet Laureate, Ada Limón. The post Hammer Dulcimers And Roadside Dinosaurs Inside Appalachia appeared first on West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

This week on Inside Appalachia, amid recent hospital closures, Appalachian women are having to travel farther and farther to give birth. We also learn how seed libraries and community gardens are helping to protect heirloom seeds from being lost. And we hear more from our series on greyhound racing. Next year, West Virginia will be home to the last two remaining greyhound racetracks in the United States. This week, we learn about the government policies that sustain dog racing. The post Maternal Care Deserts And Seed Saving Inside Appalachia appeared first on West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

This week, on Inside Appalachia, we visit a cemetery in Bluefield, Virginia, and learn how racial segregation followed some people to the grave. Also, we continue our series on greyhound racing. Most states have closed down their race tracks. So, what’s the future of the sport in West Virginia? And we’ll revisit a conversation with America’s last World War II Medal of Honor recipient — Hershel “Woody” Williams, who died recently at the age of 98. The post Righting A Wrong, Greyhounds, And Talking To A Hero, Inside Appalachia appeared first on West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

This week on Inside Appalachia, we listen to stories from 2021 that tackle everything from the challenges that came with virtual schooling to using poetry to change public perception. The post Revisiting Matriarchal Moonshiners and Legendary Lawbreakers appeared first on West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

This week on Inside Appalachia, we hear from a radiologist in eastern Kentucky who says he’s seeing a rise in cases of black lung among young coal miners. We’ll also hear the first part of a new series from reporters Randy Yohe and Chris Schulz about the dog racing industry in West Virginia. Then, we’ll travel to Monaca, Pennsylvania where Shell plans to begin operations at its massive ethane cracker plant, and our host Mason Adams speaks with author Barbara Ellen Smith. The post The Resurgence Of Coal And Coal Dust, And A Trip To The Dog Track appeared first on West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

This week on Inside Appalachia, we’ll hear about a farm in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania that can grow a lot of agriculture on one acre of a former industrial site. We’ll also hear about a podcast that remembers the back to the land movement in West Virginia during the 1970s and 1980s — as well as a mysterious disappearance. The post Taylor Swift’s Appalachian Millipede, Agriculture Innovations And A Mysterious Disappearance appeared first on West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

On this week’s episode, we’re journeying far and wide through Appalachia and beyond. Author Mesha Maren takes us from the hills of West Virginia to the Texas/Mexico border — the land of the Luchador. We’ll also hear about what West Virginians are doing to help Ukrainian refugees. And, we’ll learn about what doctors are saying about medical cannabis in the Mountain State — where it's now available to more than 8,000 patients. The post From The Land Of The Luchador To East Tennessee: Chatting With Appalachians Across The United States appeared first on West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

On this week’s encore episode of Inside Appalachia, we’re dedicating the show to children's authors. Hear from Cynthia Rylant, author of “When I Was Young In The Mountains,” “Messy Larry” author David J. Perri and storytelling champion Bil Lepp reading from his children's book “The Princess And The Pickup Truck.” The post Children's Authors Discuss Creativity, Appalachia, Diversity appeared first on West Virginia Public Broadcasting.

This week, we’ll meet a man who has struggled with substance use disorder. Now, he’s a recovery coach.We’ll also meet a woman who started a farm and culinary training program to help people in recovery.And childhood friends who first started singing together 70 years ago show why it’s never too late to begin again…You’ll hear these stories and more this week, Inside Appalachia. The post Recovery, Reinvention And Why It’s Never Too Late To Begin Again appeared first on West Virginia Public Broadcasting.