My interest in Appalachia began with my Granny Rector Polk. Her side of the family had been coal miners and ironworkers in Germany before coming to Virginia, where they eventually settled in Germanna. Later generations made their way into the Blue Ridge Mountains and eventually into the mountains of East Tennessee, where the family continued their trade and built the first forge in the area. That is where my granny was born and raised. Although she left the mountains after sh

How Coal Camps Carved Out a Future Through Education Roda School 1907 VA Tucked deep in the hollers and ridgelines of coal country, where...

Welcome to our heartfelt blog series, "Breaking Ground." Here, we’re pulling back the curtain on the incredible stories of two groups of...