It Still Lives

Gardening season is in full swing as summer quickly approaches! For the month of June, we're talking about planting by the signs, a common folk belief throughout Southern Appalachia. We dive into the history of this practice, and listen to some believers who always planted by the signs. 

This bonus episode features just a few short excerpts from submissions to our COVID-19 Crowd-sourced Oral History Project, many from high school and college students through Appalachia. As public historians and folklorists, we have a responsibility (and interest!) to capture history as it happens around us, and to engage the community in that pursuit. In light of the current coronavirus pandemic and trend of "social distancing," we are turning to you, our community, to help us document this moment in history. Share your own story at www.foxfire.org

In this episode, we're taking a look at how moonshine is made, and the experiences of both moonshiners and lawmen in Appalachia. Join hosts Kami Ahrens and TJ Smith, along with special guest Barry Stiles, as we talk all things moonshine and listen to excerpts from Conway Watkins, Lamon Queen, Leona Carver, and Simmie Free. Learn more about moonshine in The Foxfire Book!

As we approach the long-awaited release of Foxfire's newest book, Foxfire Story, we decided to bring you a small sample of the folktales you'll encounter in this volume. Foxfire Story is filled with tales and legends collected throughout the 50+ years of Foxfire's history. Listen in and hear from storytellers May Justice, Pat Cotter, Lyndall Toothman, Will Seagle, and Luther Rickman.

's finally spring on the mountain, which means wild plant foods and medicines are popping up all over the mountain! Join us as we learn about some of these important wild sources of food both historically and now, and go on a short foraging walk with local herbalist Cara-Lee Langston of Wildcraft Kitchen.

After several requests for more information about gardening, we've put together a special bonus episode on traditional heirloom gardening practices, straight from the Foxfire archives. 

In response to "social distancing," we are putting together some special bonus episodes of our podcast, "It Still Lives." The first of these is a Foxfire playlist—we've compiled several original recordings of mountain music for your listening pleasure. Check out Season 1, Episode 2 for more information on music in Appalachia or grab a copy of Foxfire 3.

We've received several requests over the past few months to feature midwives and granny women. In honor of women's history month, we are featuring stories from women interviewed in the 1970s all the way up until 2018 on midwives in Southern Appalachia. Read more about midwives and granny women of the past in Foxfire 2!

In honor of Black History Month, this February we are releasing a special four-part series that highlights African American experiences in Southern Appalachia. Our fourth week features excerpts from an interview conducted in 1976 with Anna Tutt of Cornelia, Georgia. Anna was born in 1911, and shares some of the harsher realities of growing up in the Jim Crow South. 

In honor of Black History Month, this February we are releasing a special four-part series that highlights African American experiences in Southern Appalachia. Our third week features excerpts from interviews conducted in 1976 and 1977 with Bruce Mosley, of Rabun County, Georgia. Bruce was born in 1908, and shares stories of his grandmother’s memories of liberation from slavery. 

In honor of Black History Month, this February we are releasing a special four-part series that highlights African American experiences in Southern Appalachia. Our second week features excerpts from interviews conducted in 1977 and 1981 with Carrie Stewart, of Franklin, North Carolina. Carrie was born in 1878, and shares stories of slavery passed to her through her grandparents and father. To read the rest of Carrie's story, pick up a copy of Foxfire 8.

In honor of Black History Month, this February we are releasing a special four-part series that highlights African American experiences in Southern Appalachia. Our first week features conversations with Dr. Althea Webb of Berea College and folklorist Jessica Cushenberry. Join us as we explore this important facet of Appalachian history, and discuss these communities in the present day.

We are back from a short break with our first episode of season 2! Join us as we talk about the Flu Epidemic of 1918. This global pandemic had devastating effects, even in the mountains of Appalachia. Listen to clips from contacts Ethel Corn, Lawton Brooks, and Harriet Echols. 

The holiday season is upon us! During the month of December, hosts Kami Ahrens and TJ Smith introduce you to a unique Appalachian Christmas tradition: serenading. On Christmas Eve, groups of teenagers and adults would sneak up to homes and make a racket - sometimes even using firearms! Listen to accounts from Lawton Brooks, Ernest Watts, Burma Patterson, and Mary Carpenter about their experiences serenading.

This week we are releasing part 2 of our folk medicine episode. Part 2 features interviews from Flora Youngblood, Ronda Reno, Kenny Runion, and Patricia Kyritsi Howell. Hosts Kami Ahrens and TJ Smith delved deeper into folk medicine and the rich traditions of Southern Appalachia by focusing on plant uses and how medicine has changed over time.