This week's premiere broadcast of Mountain Stage was recorded on the campus of West Virginia University at the Canady Creative Arts Center. On this episode, we hear live performances from Duke Robillard Band, Cedric Burnside, Sam Weber, Las Cafeteras, and The Black Feathers.
The Tygart Valley Homestead Community in Randolph County is celebrating its 75th anniversary this weekend. The Roosevelt Administration built the town of Dailey during the Great Depression to give out-of-work West Virginians a second chance. But the community is now struggling to hold on to that history and to their school building.
During the 1930s, First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt was personally very devoted to the resettlement communities that were built across the country. She visited Arthurdale in Preston County and the Tygart Valley Homestead.
The vision for these Resettlement communities was to offer work and housing to hard working white Americans who were victims of the Great Depression. Residents had to apply to be offered a job and relocate their families to a resettlement community. No African Americans were selected for the communities.
And the Tygart Valley Homestead was perhaps one of the most successful of the Resettlement communities.
To celebrate its 75th anniversary this weekend, an Eleanor Roosevelt impersonator will travel to the homestead school.
Sonny Knaggs is organizing the celebrations, which begin Friday evening and continue into Sunday afternoon. Although the main purpose of the events will be to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the homestead, Knaggs says the local Tygart Valley Homestead Association is worried about whether the historic school, once visited by Eleanor Roosevelt, will be able to remain in operation. Repairs are needed, including a new roof and electrical upgrades. The future of the school, which teaches 145 kids, Kindergarten through 5th grade, will be discussed this weekend.
Elliott Stewart has been making zines since he was 13 years old. His ongoing zine “Porch Beers” is an incisive look at Appalachian culture, through the eyes of a queer trans man.
Students from across the state participated in the 2024 West Virginia Social Studies Fair Wednesday. More than 500 students, ranging from third graders to high school seniors, presented their projects at the Charleston Coliseum and Convention Center.
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On this West Virginia Morning, Berkeley County in 2022 celebrated its 250th anniversary. Now, the county is looking back at its history through a public art lens. By early June, a mural will be on display in the heart of Martinsburg tracing the history and culture of Berkeley County over the years.
Winners of the 2023 Virginias Associated Press Broadcasters Awards were announced March 23 at the Awards Luncheon and Annual Membership Meeting at The Greenbrier Resort in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia. WVPB brought home five first place awards and seven second place awards in eight different categories.